After playing his first three seasons with the Minnesota Timberwolves, it appeared that Nemanja Bjelica was ready to move on in his NBA career this summer.
Bjelica reportedly agreed to sign with the Philadelphia 76ers just weeks ago in free agency but according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, hw won’t be playing in the NBA at all next season. In fact, the Serbian forward recently told the Sixers he plans to stay in Europe for the 2018-19 season.
Free agent forward Nemanja Bjelica — who had agreed to a one-year deal with the 76ers — informed the team on Monday that he will stay in Europe this season, league sources tell ESPN. He never signed his contract with Philadelphia.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) July 17, 2018
While Wojnarowski reported that the contract had never actually been signed, it certainly looked as if Bjelica would get a fresh start in Philly next season. However, his opting to remain in Europe certainly doesn’t rule out a future return back to the NBA by any means.
According to Philly.com’s Keith Pompey, complications with Bjelica’s visa and physical also played a role in his bypassing the NBA next season.
Bjelica flew to Europe when the Timberwolves’ season ended and was scheduled to have a physical with the Sixers last week. The team said that visa complications prevented Bjelica from taking the physical.
Though this won’t make or break Philly’s offseason, adding Nemanja Bjelica would’ve surely given them an additional spark off the bench.
He fit in well with their play style but the Sixers will now have to continue their hunt for someone to fill the floor spacing role that departed veteran Ersan Ilyasova played for them off the bench last year.
