The Atlanta Hawks Add Some Depth to the Frontcourt
By Gordon Robinson
In case you may have missed it, earlier this week the Atlanta Hawks reportedly added some front court depth by signing European big man Pero Antic. Antic is a solid inside-outside big man and at 6’11” and 260 pounds, he gives the Hawks so much needed size around the boards. Pero becomes the first player from the Former Republic of Macedonia to be a part of the NBA. He and the Atlanta Hawks seem to have come to a two year deal, but only the first year is guaranteed. With this signing, Hawks GM Danny Ferry continues to make Atlanta a global franchise.
As a player Pero Antic has been playing professional basketball since 1999 and has also played for the Macedonia National Team. He has played for several teams including AEK Athens of Greece, Red Star Belgrade of Serbia, Academic Sofia of Bulgaria, Lokomotiv Kuban of Russia, Spartak St. Petersburg of Russia and finally the Olympiacos of Greece. During his time with the Olympiacos, the club won back to back Euroleague Championships while Antic contributed 6.2 points and 3.3 boards while averaging 15.2 minutes per game. He played in 30 games last season.
Antic spoke with the Atlanta-Journal Constitution and stated that he had opportunities to get into the NBA in 2008 with the Orlando Magic, but he had a big pay day over in Russia that he could not walk away from. Now, he says, he is focused on taking on a bigger challenge by playing against the best. Ferry was quoted saying about Antic, “He will fit in well with what we’re building and we’re excited to add him to the team.”
Written at: sportsmedia101.com
