If you thought that you had seen the last of Darko Milicic on a professional basketball court, you thought wrong.
The former No. 2 overall pick in the 2003 NBA Draft reemerged this week for his first basketball game in seven years, suiting up for his hometown team in Novi Sad, Serbia. European journalist Marco Pagliariccio shared an image of Milicic on the court looking absolutely enormous.
DARKO MILICIC IS BACK!
LeBron, Darko, Delfino and Barbosa are the only four still active 2003 first round picks pic.twitter.com/fhdXXGxV3h
— Marco Pagliariccio (@loupaya) October 7, 2019
Here are more images of Milicic’s return to the hardwood, which apparently ended prematurely due to a shoulder injury.
Darko Milicic Warm-Up before his first official game since 2012 #icametoplay pic.twitter.com/NDjIQhZdhJ
— Majkan (@Catch1Release) October 7, 2019
After seven years out from basketball, Darko Milicic has played first official game for Serbian team from Novi Sad "I came to play".
The 2nd pick of the 2003 NBA draft scored 2 points in a win against Futog before he suffered a minor shoulder injury. pic.twitter.com/l2n6JWyKRF
— NBA Serbia (@NBASrbija) October 7, 2019
The now 34-year-old Milicic, who was listed at seven-foot and 250 pounds during his playing career, was infamously selected by the Detroit Pistons in 2003 ahead of the likes of Carmelo Anthony, Chris Bosh, and Dwyane Wade. While he was on Detroit’s 2004 championship team, Milicic bounced around six teams in nine years before his NBA career flamed out in 2012.
The last that we heard of Milicic, he was dabbling in another pro sport. That did not go too well for him though, and now he has found his way back to the friendly confines of basketball.
