Nick Rakocevic

Nikola "Nick" Rakocevic (Serbian Cyrillic: Никола Ракочевић; born December 31, 1997) is a Serbian professional basketball player for the Jilin Northeast Tigers of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA). He played college basketball for the USC Trojans and attended St. Joseph High School in Westchester, IL. Born in the United States, he represents Serbia internationally.

Nick Rakocevic
Rakocevic (#31) with USC in 2019
No. 31 – Jilin Northeast Tigers
PositionPower forward
LeagueCBA
Personal information
Born (1997-12-31) December 31, 1997
Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
NationalityAmerican / Serbian
Listed height6 ft 11 in (2.11 m)
Listed weight225 lb (102 kg)
Career information
High schoolSt. Joseph
(Westchester, Illinois)
CollegeUSC (2016–2020)
NBA draft2020: undrafted
Playing career2020–present
Career history
2020–2022Zhejiang Golden Bulls
2022Magnolia Hotshots
2023Zhejiang Golden Bulls
2023–presentJilin Northeast Tigers

High school career
Rakocevic in 2015

Rakocevic was born in Chicago to Momo and Denise Rakocevic. His father emigrated from Belgrade, Serbia at age 25. Rakocevic played for St. Joseph High School in Westchester, Illinois under coach Gene Pingatore. As a junior, he was a starter on the Class 3A state championship team.[1][2] In his senior season, Rakocevic averaged 19.8 points, 14.4 rebounds and four blocks per game, leading his team to the Class 3A Westinghouse Sectional title.[3] He earned First Team All-State honors from the Chicago Tribune. On April 11, 2016, he committed to play college basketball for USC over offers from UNLV, Arizona State and Florida.[4]

College career

Rakocevic averaged 5.2 points and 4.2 rebounds per game as a freshman at USC, serving as a part-time starter.[5] On March 13, 2018, he recorded 24 points and a career-high 19 rebounds in a 103–98 double overtime win over UNC Asheville.[6] He grabbed the most rebounds by a USC player in a game since David Bluthenthal in 2000. As a sophomore, Rakocevic averaged 8.1 points and 6.2 rebounds per game, shooting 62.7 percent, the second-highest field goal percentage in program history.[7] In his junior season, he averaged 14.7 points, 9.3 rebounds and 1.4 blocks per game. Rakocevic was a two-time Pac-12 Player of the Week and was named All-Pac-12 Honorable Mention.[8] On November 12, 2019, he tied his career-high of 27 points, grabbed 16 rebounds and reached 1,000 career points, in an 84–66 victory over South Dakota State.[9] As a senior, Rakocevic averaged 10.5 points and 8.3 rebounds per game.[10]

Professional career

On September 16, 2020, Rakocevic signed his first professional contract with the Zhejiang Golden Bulls of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA).[11]

In August 2022, he signed with the Magnolia Hotshots of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) as the team's import for the 2022–23 PBA Commissioner's Cup.[12]

National team career

Rakocevic played for the Serbia under-20 national team at the 2017 FIBA U20 European Championship in Greece. He averaged 6.3 points and 3.9 rebounds per game, helping his team finish in fifth place.[13]

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  Bold  Career high

College
Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2016–17 USC 36814.9.563–.6713.7.4.3.65.2
2017–18 USC 362221.1.627–.5486.2.5.7.58.1
2018–19 USC 333030.0.548.000.6799.31.3.81.414.7
2019–20 USC 312927.3.458.429.6348.31.51.21.010.5
Career 1368923.1.540.360.6436.8.9.7.99.5

References
  1. Helfgot, Mike (December 17, 2015). "Boys hoops: Nick Rakocevic maturing into leader for St. Joseph". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved September 26, 2020.
  2. Kaufman, Joey (February 22, 2018). "The ebullience of Nick Rakocevic helps push USC basketball to new heights". Orange County Register. Retrieved September 26, 2020.
  3. Narang, Bob (March 31, 2016). "All-area boys basketball first team: Nick Rakocevic". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved September 26, 2020.
  4. Mayor, Rich (April 11, 2016). "Basketball: St. Joseph center Nick Rakocevic commits to USC". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved September 26, 2020.
  5. Gonzales, Mark (January 10, 2017). "St. Joseph alum Nick Rakocevic comfortable with role at USC". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved September 26, 2020.
  6. "USC Holds Off UNC Asheville in 2OT, 103-98". USC Athletics. March 13, 2018. Retrieved September 26, 2020.
  7. "Nick Rakocevic". USC Athletics. Retrieved September 26, 2020.
  8. Spratling, Shotgun (October 8, 2019). "USC's Nick Rakocevic has expanded his game in new ways". 247Sports. Retrieved September 26, 2020.
  9. "Nick Rakocevic, Jonah Mathews Reach 1,000 Career Points as USC Handles South Dakota State, 84-66". USC Athletics. Associated Press. November 12, 2019. Retrieved September 26, 2020.
  10. "Nick Rakocevic College Stats". Sports Reference. Retrieved September 26, 2020.
  11. "Zhejiang Chouzhou signs rookie Nick Rakocevic". Eurobasket.com. September 16, 2020. Retrieved September 26, 2020.
  12. "Magnolia bringing in former Serbia U20 player Nick Rakocevic as import". Spin.ph. August 25, 2022. Retrieved August 25, 2022.
  13. "Nikola Rakocevic's profile – 2017 FIBA U20 European Championship". FIBA. Retrieved September 26, 2020.
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