By Peter Toth
This is Belgrade, I was lucky enough managed to get into the practice of the KK Zemun Kadets (1998 boys). It is just a practice, but the guys take it seriously and easy at the same time. Curiously, it is their forward who immediately catches the eye, not only because of his nice moves, good hands and excellent athleticism, but also of his seemingly young age. After a quick enquiry, I am told he was Marko Pecarski who – as they say – is playing “up”, above his age group that is, which is 2000. Having this information, the former experience seems even more intriguing – so after the game ends, I approach him for a short chat.
The first impression? Pecarski is huge, just turned 14 this February and he is over 6’8” and very well built (203 lb, size 15 shoe) and he has just started to grow out. He speaks a nice English and seems to have a mature and serious mood.
Having asked about his beginnings, the first thing I hear is that he is from a basketball family. His father is 210 cm tall, the former center of Partizan, Aris and Panathinaikos who after having retired, organizes basketball camps nowadays. So for a son of such a man, basketball was out of question.
- “I started playing in a local team at 7 at my father’s instinct, but two years later, he took me to Zemun in 2010, where I have been continuously playing since then.” Looking down at the enquirer he cheerfully reacted my awe at his stature “I have always been a big kid, and from the age of 7 I was – as we say in Serbia – growing like grass. I was 190 at 12 and reached 2m last year with 13, but had some extra weight that I have managed to work down.”
“Officially I am a member of the pionir team (year 2000), but my coach, Darko Perunicic, decided to take me up to 1999 and even to 1998 and 1997 because, as he said, pionir team was to weak and too small for me.
The coach’s instincts were proved to be right, the ’99 team of Zemun finished at 2nd place in the national championship last year and Pecarski, being a year younger than the rest, has been selected for MVP and best scorer of the whole tournament averaging about 28 ppg and 19 rebounds a game. So – as an honor - he has got time to play even at the Nike Tournament this year in Belgrade against players at least three years older than him.
Marko is very resolute about his playing, he is aware of his skills and also his shortcomings “I think I a nice shooter for my height and I am very good at rebounding and dunking, but I know I need to improve my defense. So in order to do so, he is having two practices a day, private fitness extra shooting so w=one can nothing but whish to see him back in an even more perfect condition in the U16 team of Zemun and Serbia too.
