Darko Milicic

Overview: Milicic has been very inconsistent during his time in the NBA, struggling to live up to his billing as the #2 overall pick behind LeBron James, in a stellar 2003 draft. Offensively, Milicic has good footwork and mobility, but lacks finishing polish on his moves around the basket. As a jump shooter, Milicic also shows promise at times, but no consistency. Defensively Milicic has shown himself to be an adept shot-blocker at times, good on weak-side and on-ball challenges. His rebounding and team defense is off and on. Milicic has an average basketball IQ and does not make up for it with the intangibles he brings to his team, lacking focus, drive and mental toughness in particular. There is very little doubt at this point that he came to the NBA far too early for his own good, and in turn missed out on the type of playing time that is so incredibly important to a player so young. Younger than some NCAA seniors, though, there is still plenty of time for him to turn his career around, although it’s hard to call his NBA tenure thus far as anything less than a huge disappointment.

Offense: Milicic has the size and athleticism to be an offensive weapon, but is severely lacking polish on his array of moves, shooting a mediocre 44% from the field in 07/08. He spends most of his time in the post, preferring to go to a rolling hook in the lane on the right block or a turn-around baseline hook on the left. Milicic’s action is smooth on the moves, but he lacks touch on the finish. Seeing him in action, one gets the impression that more practice repetitions would lead to better results. Milicic also displays promise with his face up jumper, showing range out to 18 feet. This shot, again, is inconsistent and needs work. He rarely gets to the free throw line, and shoots a poor percentage from there too. Not a great passer, Milicic needs to work on taking care of the ball better.

Defense: Milicic is as unpolished in this area as he is in most others, but may have the most promise at this end. He has superb timing and instincts when it comes to shot-blocking, but lacks good technique in his man and help defense. Milicic doesn’t do a good job with using his body and moving his feet. He tends to give ground easily, likely in an attempt to keep his balance and set up for the shot block attempt. Milicic tends to be foul prone when aggressive, using his hands and body to push opponents. Though he’s very mobile, Milicic doesn’t make great reads when moving in the team defense and is late on his rotations frequently.

The upcoming World Championship could be a coming out party on the international front for Darko Milicic, whose career is clearly on the upswing after being traded from the Detroit Pistons to the Orlando Magic. Joe Dumars made two mistakes regarding Milicic, first when he selected an unproven youngster with the 2nd overall pick over college stars like Dwyane Wade, Carmelo Anthony and Chris Bosh, but the bigger one was this spring when he gave up Milicic for a future 1st round pick and the luxury tax breathing room which was used on signing Nazr Mohammed. Even if the 7.6 points, 4.1 rebounds and 2.1 blocks he posted in a Magic uniform aren’t eye-popping numbers, Darko showed tremendous potential as the 7-foot skilled athlete that made him such a desirable prospect in the first place.

After an embarrassing performance at last summer’s Eurobasket on their native soil (only being able to participate in this year’s world championship thanks to a special wildcard from FIBA), new coach Dragan Sakota is bringing a fresh young team to Japan, which for various reasons does not include NBA players such as Peja Stojakovic, Nenad Krstic, Vladimir Radmanovic, Marko Jaric and Aleksandar Pavlovic. During the preparation games Serbia posted surprisingly good results, and Darko appears to have emerged as the true team leader as Serbia’s best player in almost every game.

Unlike last year’s European Championship when he logged 40 minutes (4.5ppg 4.0rpg 1.3bpg) in the entire tournament—but still showed some terrific sparks at time--Darko is now expected to be their go-to-guy on both ends of the floor. His excellent size, length and athleticism are a huge asset for Serbia in the middle, given that he is one of the premier shot-blockers in today’s international game. Milicic’s potential to become a defensive stalwart was already noticeable last season playing for the Magic, but what was less visible was his offensive ability since he didn’t get many opportunities to create offensive game.

During the friendlies so far, Darko showed that he can be an inside-outside threat and a focal part of the team’s offense, showing nice touch on his jump-shot while hitting a few three-pointers in the process. He got carried away and settled for too many jumpers in the next game, but this doesn’t appear to be as much of a reason for concern as it was in the past. Due to his immense physical gifts he is also a force down low, although his footwork and skill-set in that regard still have a ways to go, Darko is able to get good position on the block and is a very effective passer out of the double team.

The World Championship will be a big test/opportunity for Milicic, who has never enjoyed the status of being his team’s star in any senior competition before. Is he ready for such a role after not getting playing time in such a crucial age in a player’s development? Is he good enough to lead Serbia to a respectable result, which they so desperately need after three straight underwhelming international tournaments? Japan will offer answers on these questions. The basketball world will be watching closely.