Milko Bjelica

Milko Bjelica
	Bjelica with Crvena zvezda
No. 51 – Mornar
Position	Power forward / Center
League	ABA League
Personal information
Born	June 4, 1984 (age 40); Belgrade, SR Serbia, SFR Yugoslavia
Nationality	Montenegrin / Serbian
Listed height	2.08 m (6 ft 10 in)
Listed weight	108 kg (238 lb)
Career information
NBA draft	2006: undrafted
Playing career	2001–present
Career history
2001–2006	Crvena zvezda
2006–2007	Phantoms Braunschweig
2007–2008	Köln 99ers
2008–2011	Lietuvos rytas
2011–2013	Saski Baskonia
2013–2015	Anadolu Efes
2015–2016	Darüşşafaka
2016–2018	Crvena zvezda
2018	Tecnyconta Zaragoza
2018–2019	Alvark Tokyo
2019–present	Mornar
Career highlights and awards
	ABA League champion (2017); Serbian League champion (2017); EuroCup champion (2009); Japanese League champion (2019); 2× LKL champion (2009, 2010); 2× LKF Cup winner (2009, 2010); Baltic League champion (2009); LKL All-Star (2011); 3× Serbian Cup winner (2004, 2006, 2017); Turkish Cup winner (2015);

Milko Bjelica (Serbian Cyrillic: Милко Бјелица, born June 4, 1984) is a Serbian-born Montenegrin professional basketball player who currently plays for Mornar of the Adriatic League.

Professional career

He began his professional career with Crvena zvezda, where he spent five seasons. He then played in Germany with Phantoms Braunschweig and Köln 99ers. In 2008 he signed with Lietuvos rytas, and made his EuroLeague debut during the 2009–10 season.

In July 2011 he signed a two-year deal with Saski Baskonia.^[1] On October 28, 2013, he re-signed with Saski Baskonia on a short-term deal.^[2] On December 30, 2013, he signed with the Turkish Euroleague team Anadolu Efes for the remainder of the season.^[3]^[4] On July 9, 2014, he extended his contract with Efes for two more years.^[5] On June 22, 2015, he left Efes and signed with Darüşşafaka for the 2015–16 season.^[6]

On September 8, 2016, Bjelica returned to Crvena zvezda, signing a two-year contract.^[7] In April 17, 2018, after parting ways with Crvena zvezda, Bjelica returned to Spain, signing with Basket Zaragoza for the remainder of the season.^[8]

Career statistics

Legend
GP	Games played	GS	Games started	MPG	Minutes per game
FG%	Field-goal percentage	3P%	3-point field-goal percentage	FT%	Free-throw percentage
RPG	Rebounds per game	APG	Assists per game	SPG	Steals per game
BPG	Blocks per game	PPG	Points per game	PIR	Performance Index Rating
Bold	Career high

	Led the league

Euroleague


Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG	PIR
2009–10	Lietuvos Rytas	10	2	21.5	.462	.154	.667	4.3	1.1	.4	.2	11.8	9.0
2010–11	Lietuvos Rytas	16	10	26.1	.533	.279	.727	4.7	1.4	.7	.4	12.3	12.1
2011–12	Baskonia	8	2	23.7	.492	.294	.842	3.9	.8	.8	.1	10.6	9.5
2012–13		27	19	17.3	.406	.378	.750	2.7	1.2	.5	.2	5.4	5.7
2013–14		8	3	21.3	.594	.353	.952	4.4	1.3	.3	.4	12.8	13.8
2013–14	Anadolu Efes	14	3	22.8	.459	.270	.913	2.5	1.2	.6	.1	9.4	7.5
2014–15	Anadolu Efes	28	7	16.2	.462	.415	.736	2.5	.8	.2	.3	7.8	6.8
2015–16	Darüşşafaka	24	6	19.1	.434	.354	.679	3.4	.8	.4	.1	7.5	7.5
2016–17	Crvena zvezda	30	1	15.6	.385	.193	.795	3.0	1.1	.5	.3	7.4	7.5
2017–18	Crvena zvezda	29	29	26.0	.397	.297	.703	3.7	1.3	.4	.2	9.2	8.8
Career		194	82	20.2	.446	.305	.750	3.3	1.1	.4	.2	8.6	8.1

Personal life

Born and raised in Belgrade, Serbia, he internationally represents Montenegro,^[9] where his grandfather is from. One of his sisters, Milka, is also a basketball player, while another, Ana is a Serbian volleyball player.

References

^ "Caja Laboral announces the arrival of Milko Bjelica". Sportando.net. 26 July 2011. Retrieved 30 December 2013.
^ "LABORAL KUTXA brings Bjelica back". Euroleague.net. 28 October 2013. Archived from the original on November 2, 2013. Retrieved 22 June 2015.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
^ "Anadolu Efes signs Milko Bjelica". Sportando.net. Retrieved 30 December 2013.
^ "ANADOLU EFES tabs big man Milko Bjelica". euroleague.net. Archived from the original on January 2, 2014. Retrieved 22 June 2015.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
^ "Anadolu Efes keeps Bjelica for two more years". Euroleague.net. July 9, 2014. Retrieved July 9, 2014.
^ "Milko Bjelica signs with Darussafaka Dogus". Sportando.com. 22 June 2015. Retrieved 22 June 2015.
^ "Crvena Zvezda brings Bjelica home". Euroleague.net. 8 September 2016. Retrieved 11 September 2016.
^ "Milko Bjelica signs with Tecnyconta Zaragoza". Sportando.basketball. 17 April 2018. Retrieved 18 April 2018.
^ "Milko Bjelica Player Profile". EUROBASKET. Retrieved 2008-06-28.

External links

Milko Bjelica at aba-liga.com
Milko Bjelica at euroleague.net
Milko Bjelica at fiba.com

[1] "Caja Laboral announces the arrival of Milko Bjelica". Sportando.net. 26 July 2011. Retrieved 30 December 2013.

[2] "LABORAL KUTXA brings Bjelica back". Euroleague.net. 28 October 2013. Archived from the original on November 2, 2013. Retrieved 22 June 2015.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)

[3] "Anadolu Efes signs Milko Bjelica". Sportando.net. Retrieved 30 December 2013.

[4] "ANADOLU EFES tabs big man Milko Bjelica". euroleague.net. Archived from the original on January 2, 2014. Retrieved 22 June 2015.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)

[5] "Anadolu Efes keeps Bjelica for two more years". Euroleague.net. July 9, 2014. Retrieved July 9, 2014.

[6] "Milko Bjelica signs with Darussafaka Dogus". Sportando.com. 22 June 2015. Retrieved 22 June 2015.

[7] "Crvena Zvezda brings Bjelica home". Euroleague.net. 8 September 2016. Retrieved 11 September 2016.

[8] "Milko Bjelica signs with Tecnyconta Zaragoza". Sportando.basketball. 17 April 2018. Retrieved 18 April 2018.

[9] "Milko Bjelica Player Profile". EUROBASKET. Retrieved 2008-06-28.

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