Not Just Bozic! Guangdong Reportedly Looking to Sign 2.09m European Center, Is a Finals Spot Guaranteed?_Jakovljevic_1_CBA

During the offseason of the 2025-26 CBA season, news that championship favorite Guangdong was close to signing Croatian international Bozic has continued to gain attention. According to reports from well-known European media, Bozic has decided to move to the Asian stage and will join CBA traditional powerhouse Guangdong men's basketball team. As Bozic's arrival draws closer, Guangdong foreign coach Jakovljevic's player selection style has also gradually become clearer. Unless there are unexpected changes, Guangdong is expected to adopt a comprehensive European tactical system next season. After all, Bozic is not a wing player with elite individual ball-handling ability, but rather an all-around No. 3-4 player with playmaking, physicality, and rebounding skills. Meanwhile, Jakovljevic recently followed former NBA Cavaliers starting center Zizic on social media, further fueling Guangdong fans' speculation about the team's big foreign center candidate.

As Bozic's signing is almost considered finalized, the acquisition itself has already revealed the preferences of Guangdong's new head coach Jakovljevic in player selection. The 30-year-old Bozic played in the Spanish league last season, averaging 16.2 points, 6.5 rebounds, and 3.1 assists per game. As a 2.01-meter Croatian national team forward, Bozic is not a traditional scoring machine, but a typical European team-oriented player—he is physically strong, skilled at attacking the basket and finishing inside, has strong rebounding ability, and also possesses solid passing and playmaking skills. This style, which does not rely on a large amount of individual isolation offense and can integrate into a European tactical system, fits well with the “team basketball” philosophy emphasized by Guangdong's new head coach Jakovljevic.

At the same time, Jakovljevic recently followed former Cavaliers center Zizic on social media, leading fans to make further connections regarding Guangdong's big foreign player choice. The 29-year-old Zizic is 2.09 meters tall with a 2.16-meter wingspan, and during his peak period with the Cavaliers he averaged 7.8 points and 5.4 rebounds per game. After leaving the NBA, Zizic has also maintained solid statistics in European competitions. Although Zizic has almost no three-point shooting ability and his individual offensive skills are not as comprehensive as players like Salinger and Lofton, his size, wingspan, and physical strength could effectively complement Bozic, and the two could potentially secure Guangdong's defense at the No. 3-5 positions.

For Guangdong, Sumner and Bozic are reportedly basically confirmed. Therefore, the team's current interior rotation does need a traditional center capable of protecting the paint. Jiao Boqiao was already shown during Du Feng's tenure to be more suitable as a mobile big man rather than a physical rim-protecting center, Zhou Peng is no longer young, and Wang Hongze does not yet have the physicality and experience to take on the center position. Under these circumstances, it would be understandable if Guangdong's foreign coach wanted to bring in a traditional rim-protecting center like Zizic. Bozic would provide playmaking and attacking ability on the wing, while Zizic would anchor the paint. Such a setup fully matches the requirements for foreign players in Jakovljevic's previous European tactical system. In summary, Guangdong's new coach Jakovljevic's player selection approach has become quite clear. Although Zizic currently still has a contract, the article suggests that Guangdong has the ability to buy out his contract and sign him after securing Bozic.