"I’m sorry he’s not here": Nikola Jokic's Serbia coach unhappy with Giannis Antetokounmpo's absence from pre EuroBasket tournament

Nikola Jokic's Serbia faced off against Giannis Antetokounmpo's Greece in the ECOMMBX Cup on Saturday at Spyros Kyprianou Sports Arena. However, Antetokounmpo didn't feature in this pre-EuroBasket in Cyprus, earning the ire of Serbian coach Svetislav Pesic

The coach addressed his disappointment with Giannis' absence during the pre-game press conference, revealing that he was a huge factor in their participation in the tournament.

"I’m sorry he’s not here; we scheduled this tournament partly because of him," Pesic said.

The coach joked that Giannis was left out due to Serbia not playing Vasilije Micić.

"We have a good relationship with the Greeks; they always respond to our invitations, and we return the favor. This time it happened to them; maybe they have some problem. I imagine they’re just as disappointed that Micic isn’t playing," he joked.

Micic missed the game on Saturday due to an injury, as Pesic revealed he could miss the entirety of the tournament.

"We have 15 players here, two are injured and stayed in Belgrade. Nothing serious, but it’s unlikely we’ll be able to use Vasa," Pesic said.

Even without Micic, Serbia remains one of the strongest teams in the tournament and a favorite to take home the title. On Saturday, Nikola Jokic and Co. secured a 76-66 win over a Giannis-less Greek team in Limassol. Next up, both teams will face Israel to wrap up the Tri-Nations Cup.

Following their respective matches in Cyprus, Serbia will face the Czech Republic in their final preparation game, while Greece faces Montenegro on Aug. 14.

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Greek coach provides update on Giannis' omission as Nikola Jokic leads Serbia to victory

Giannis Antetokounmpo has remained absent from Greece’s friendly games despite the team having played twice. Although not sidelined by injury, the superstar has chosen to sit out these preparation games.

Greece coach Vassilis Spanoulis addressed Giannis Antetokounmpo’s absence last Tuesday, explaining that the superstar is "following his personal training program" and is unlikely to play in any of the upcoming friendly games. Spanoulis also reassured fans that this absence shouldn’t impact Giannis’ participation in EuroBasket 2025.

Although earning a 74-60 victory over Belgium without Giannis, the Greeks were unable to repeat the result on Saturday. Nikola Jokic's 23 points and 19 rebounds were enough to drown their Balkan rivals as Dinos Mitoglou led the scoring for Greece with 18 points.