The bigger the moment, the better Dejan Vasiljevic performs.
The Tarneit resident has proved time and again to be a special basketball talent and his latest achievements have the game buzzing.
Competing at the under-17 FIBA world championships in Dubai earlier this year, Vasiljevic dominated the tournament from start to finish.
As a senior member of the Australian team, he helped take his side all the way to the gold medal game against the US.
Despite being three-time defending champions, the Americans were pushed to the brink of defeat by the fired-up Australian side before holding on for a seven point win.
Vasiljevic was in the thick of the action, dropping 29 points in the final.
“It was a great experience to play against the best players and countries from around the world,” he said.
“To come second was just unbelievable. Probably the biggest moment from the team point of view was the semi-final where we were down by 24 points against Spain.
“We came back to win … it was an amazing team effort.
“Before the tournament, we were well prepared and confident with how we were going to perform.
“After the semi-final we thought we could go on and win.”
On top of a great team result, the individual accolades came thick and fast for Vasiljevic, who was named in the all-tournament team made up of the event’s five best players.
Previous under-17 FIBA all-tournament team representatives have included American Bradley Beal, who is now a shooting guard for NBA team the Washington Wizards.
Vasiljevic was Australia’s leading point scorer for the world titles, averaging 17.4 points a game.
“It was an honour to be named in that team,” he said.
“I had a really good tournament … I got a few calls from coaches after that congratulating me. It was a great feeling.”
Since the world championships, Vasiljevic has been a popular figure as US colleges
chase his signature for when he finishes high school.
Currently studying at the AIS, the 17-year-old will have one more year in Canberra before needing to make a decision about his US college future.
Meanwhile, the former Bacchus Marsh College student is focusing on his next major tournament.
Vasiljevic will part of the under-19 Australian team that will contest the world championships in Greece next year.
