Dallas Mavericks: Boban Marjanovic leads Serbia to win over Philippines

The Dallas Mavericks have an important decision to make with Boban Marjanovic this offseason. The 32-year-old big man is an unrestricted free agent. Will he stay in Dallas or search for a larger opportunity elsewhere? Bobi is an important piece for the Mavs both on the court and in the locker room. Expect Dallas to do their best to keep him.

Marjanovic is representing his country in the Olympic Qualifying tournament. Serbia is hosting one of the four events across the globe. NBA MVP Nikola Jokic decided against playing, so Boban is the starting center for his national team. He dominated the paint with 18 points and ten rebounds in their win over the Dominican Republic to kick things off.

Serbia had their second and final pool game on Wednesday. Boban Marjanovic led his national team to their second straight win. Get the latest on his performance here.

Dallas Mavericks big man Boban Marjanovic leads Serbia to win over Philippines

Boban earned his second straight start for Serbia. He had two points and two rebounds in the opening quarter in 6.3 minutes of play. His team was shooting well and held a six-point lead at the end of the first.

The Philippines had no answers for Marjanovic inside. He had 15 points and six rebounds heading into the fourth quarter, but Serbia led by just five points. The Philippines had a young team that played hard. They were flying around the court and it kept them in the game.

Boban had ten points in the final ten minutes to lift Serbia to a 83-76 win. The 7’4 big man finished with 25 points, ten rebounds, and one steal in 26.4 minutes. He was 12 of 18 from the field and nailed multiple key buckets to lift his team to the win.

Serbia was missing three players and Stefan Jovic was injured during the game. It was not the night that they hoped for, but Serbia survived for their second win of the tournament.

Serbia will play in the semifinals of the tournament on July 3. They are guaranteed to win Group A and will face the second-best team from Group B, which will be either Puerto Rico or Italy. Serbia needs to win two straight games to advance to the Olympics in Tokyo. Stay tuned to see if Boban Marjanovic and qualify.