Jan 08, 2013; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Brooklyn Nets forward Mirza Teletovic (33) shoots a jump shot during the fourth quarter against the Philadelphia 76ers at the Wells Fargo Center. The Nets defeated the Sixers 109-89. Mandatory Credit: Howard Smith-USA TODAY Sports

While Avery Johnson was head coach, Mirza Teletovic struggled to get any playing time at all, buried at the end of the Brooklyn Nets’ bench. There were three main reasons why Teletovic couldn’t make his way off the bench: his three point shot was not falling, other players on the Nets’ bench such as Andray Blatche and Reggie Evans were performing very well, and Teletovic was getting exposed on defense and the boards whenever he was inserted into games. Now, Mirza Teletovic has found his shooting confidence and is contributing to the team.

Teletovic is averaging 9.3 points over the past three games, shooting 10-19 overall and 6-11 from three point territory. He put up 14 points, 6 rebounds, 2 blocks, and 2 assists against the Sacramento Kings in 20 minutes of playing time and 8 points in 14 minutes against the 76ers. Teletovic has tried to prove that he can do more that shoot threes recently in Europe and in Brooklyn. He told reporters, “People just think that I’m a three-point shooter. I can do so many more things and I can help the team out in different ways.” MarShon Brooks agrees. Brooks told reporters, “Some days, Mirza has been the best player in practice. Believe me, Mirza can play.”

I saw Teletovic play this summer in a EuroBasket game between Team Bosnia and Team Georgia. In that game, Teletovic led his team on offense and scored a huge contested three in the final minute of the game. I then predicted that Teletovic would have one huge game sometime this season. As he continues to build confidence, he should get more chances to play and assume a bigger role on the team.

Mirza Teletovic

Mirza Teletovic (Bosnia and Herzegovina) and Toko Shengelia (Georgia), the international Nets players, faced off against each other today in a thrilling EuroBasket game. Bosnia and Herzegovina defeated Georgia 107-103 in a game where both Nets players shined.

• Teletovic scored 25 points on 6/15 FG and 4/9 3PT. He also added 5 rebounds and 5 assists. He did get into some foul trouble, though.
• Shengelia scored 17 points on 8/15 FG and 0/1 3PT. He had 6 rebounds, 3 assists, and 3 steals. Neither player recorded any blocks.

To me, Teletovic was the MVP of the game, knocking down numerous sweet, contested three pointers. He was very clutch late in the game, knocking down a key three pointer and two crucial late foul shots. Late in the game, the offense almost always ran through Teletovic. Mirza showed a tendency to receive the ball near the perimeter, coming hard off a screen, with his back to the basket. From there, Teletovic might turn around and quickly release a shot, or use his great vision to back his opponent down and make a good pass. Also, Teletovic reacted well to double and triple teams – making the right pass under pressure on a few occasions. Towards the end of the game, Mirza got excited and lightly pumped his chest with both hands. I was really impressed with him.

Shengelia did not have the ball in his hands as much as Teletovic did, but he showed a great finishing touch down low. I only watched the second half and missed a lot of Shengelia’s buckets. His Georgian teammate, Zaza Pachualia (of the Atlanta Hawks), was very active late in the game.

A couple other notes: the referees were horrible in this game and made some very ridiculous calls. Also, Georgian fans were very enthusiastic, waving their large, white Georgian flags.