Jaleen Smith to obtain Croatian passport and play in Eurobasket 2022

ALBA Berlin guard Jaleen Smith is expected to obtain Croatian passport and play in the Eurobasket 2022 with the national team, per Croatian media outlet Dubrovacki vjesnik (h/t Basketnews.com).

Following Croatia NT’s failure to advance to the second round of the 2023 World Cup qualifiers, the country’s federation parted ways with the experts’ council for Men’s Basketball headlined by Dino Radja.

According to the report, Radja did not want the Federation to recruit foreign players to improve the team. The national team will play in Group C of the EuroBasket 2022 together with Greece, Estonia, Ukraine, Great Britain, and Italy.

Smith is coming off his first EuroLeague season with ALBA Berlin averaging  8.3 points, 2.2 rebounds, and 2.3 assists with the German giants. He helped his team win the German BBL title beating Bayern Munich in the Finals.

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