| Krstić with the Thunder | |
| PBC CSKA Moscow | |
|---|---|
| Center | |
| Personal information | |
| Date of birth | July 25, 1983 |
| Place of birth | Kraljevo, SR Serbia, SFR Yugoslavia |
| Nationality | Serbian |
| Listed height | 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) |
| Listed weight | 240 lb (109 kg) |
| Career information | |
| NBA Draft | 2002 / Round: 1 / Pick: 24th overall |
| Selected by the New Jersey Nets | |
| Pro career | 2001–present |
| Career history | |
| 2001–2004 | Partizan (Serbia) |
| 2004–2008 | New Jersey Nets |
| 2008 | Triumph Lyubertsy (Russia) |
| 2008–2011 | Oklahoma City Thunder |
| 2011 | Boston Celtics |
| 2011–present | CSKA Moscow (Russia) |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| Stats at NBA.com | |
| Stats at Basketball-Reference.com | |
Nenad Krstić (Serbian Cyrillic: Ненад Крстић; born July 25, 1983 in Kraljevo, SR Serbia, SFR Yugoslavia) is a Serbian professional basketball player for CSKA Moscow. Krstić is officially listed at 7'0" (2.13 m) tall.
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His first professional club was KK Partizan where he played for three years, making his debut in the 2001–02 season. In the 2003–04 season, his last with Partizan, he averaged 13.4 points per game in the Euroleague. With Partizan, he also won three national championships in a row, and one national cup in his first season.
He was drafted 24th overall in the 2002 NBA Draft by the New Jersey Nets. But he then went on to play the next two seasons with Partizan Belgrade.[1]
During the 2004–05 NBA season, Krstić logged an impressive rookie campaign for the New Jersey Nets, averaging 10.0 points, 5.3 rebounds and 0.84 blocked shots per game.[2] He was honored as part of the All-Rookie NBA second team.[3]
In his debut in the playoffs against the Miami Heat, Krstić averaged 18.3 points, 7.5 rebounds, and 1.0 assists per game;[2] an exceptional performance for a rookie in the playoffs. This followed a greater trend where Krstić had consistently improved at a great pace as his rookie season progressed. He has a wide skill set for a big man, including refined post moves and a fantastic shooting touch from eighteen feet.
Throughout the 2005–06 season, Krstić's play had continued to rapidly improve. Three quarters of the way through the season, he averaged 13.4 points and 6.1 rebounds, and had become an integral part of the Nets offense. In the first round of the 2006 NBA playoffs against Indiana he averaged 18 points per game along with 7.1 rebounds.
In 2006–07 despite the rough Nets start, Nenad Krstić was averaging career highs in points (16.6), rebounds (6.8), and assists (1.8)[2] before falling to the ground after tearing his anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee versus the L.A. Lakers at Continental Airlines Arena on December 22, 2006.[4] His surgery was successful.[5] Krstić was out for the rest of the 2006–07 NBA season, but returned ahead of schedule to start the 2007–08 NBA season.[6]
His 2007–08 season was a disappointment, as his injury disrupted his play and confidence on the court and he was largely a liability. Krstić later stated in his blog that he felt he let the team down, and vowed to return to his old form at the start of the 08–09 season.
During the 2008 summer off-season, Krstić entered negotiations with the Russian Super League team Triumph Lyubertsy and eventually signed a 2 year contract (with the NBA an opt-out option) worth €6 million euros net income with them on July 29, 2008.[7][8] He averaged 10.4 points and 5.1 rebounds per game in seven games in the Russian Super League[9][10] and 13.3 points and 7.3 rebounds per game in 6 games in the EuroChallenge.[11]
On December 19, 2008, two NBA league sources told ESPN.com that the Oklahoma City Thunder had agreed in principle to sign Krstić to a three-year offer sheet.[12] On December 22, Krstić officially signed the offer sheet. The New Jersey Nets had seven days to match the offer, or Krstić would be free to join the Thunder.[13] The Nets declined to match, and the Thunder waived Steven Hill to make room for Krstić.[14]
He played for the first time in a Thunder uniform on January 7, 2009, versus the Minnesota Timberwolves, scoring six points and blocking 2 shots in 16 minutes.[15]
On February 24, 2011, Krstić was traded along with Jeff Green and a 2012 first round pick to the Boston Celtics for Kendrick Perkins and Nate Robinson. In his first game as a Celtic, he recorded 9 points and 6 rebounds in a win against the Los Angeles Clippers on February 26.
On June 22, 2011 he signed a two-year contract with CSKA Moscow in Russia.[16]
| Medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
| Competitor for Serbia | ||
| FIBA European Championship | ||
| Silver | 2009 Poland | National Team |
Krstić played with the Serbia and Montenegro national basketball team at the 2004 Summer Olympics and Eurobasket 2005.
As captain of Serbian national basketball team he played at the Eurobasket 2009, where he won the silver medal and 2010 FIBA World Championship, where he won the fourth place.
He is married to his wife Tanja and has one daughter.[17] Krstić, whose nickname is "Curly", was voted the 3rd most eligible bachelor by Serbia's version of People magazine.[18] On August 19, 2010, in a game against Greece for the Acropolis Tournament, he participated in a fight between players and threw a chair at Greek Center-Forward Giannis Bourousis. That resulted in his spending the night at the police station, from where he was released the day after.[19]
After the 2010 Serbia earthquake, Krstić and his Oklahoma City Thunder teammates donated $10,000 to help his hometown of Kraljevo, which was near where the earthquake hit.[20]
| Legend | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game |
| FG% | Field-goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field-goal percentage | FT% | Free-throw percentage |
| RPG | Rebounds per game | APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game |
| BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game | Bold | Career high |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004–05 | New Jersey | 75 | 57 | 26.2 | .493 | .000 | .725 | 5.3 | 1.0 | .4 | .8 | 10.0 |
| 2005–06 | New Jersey | 80 | 80 | 30.9 | .507 | .250 | .698 | 6.4 | 1.1 | .4 | .8 | 13.5 |
| 2006–07 | New Jersey | 26 | 26 | 32.6 | .526 | .000 | .711 | 6.8 | 1.8 | .4 | .9 | 16.4 |
| 2007–08 | New Jersey | 45 | 38 | 18.0 | .410 | .000 | .754 | 4.4 | .6 | .2 | .4 | 6.6 |
| 2008–09 | Oklahoma City | 46 | 29 | 24.8 | .469 | .000 | .797 | 5.5 | .6 | .5 | 1.1 | 9.7 |
| 2009–10 | Oklahoma City | 76 | 76 | 22.9 | .502 | .200 | .717 | 5.0 | .7 | .4 | .6 | 8.4 |
| 2010–11 | Oklahoma City | 47 | 47 | 21.7 | .498 | .000 | .803 | 4.4 | .4 | .4 | .4 | 7.6 |
| 2010–11 | Boston | 24 | 20 | 23.0 | .537 | .000 | .750 | 5.3 | .3 | .3 | .3 | 9.1 |
| Career | 419 | 373 | 25.2 | .494 | .143 | .730 | 5.4 | .8 | .4 | .7 | 10.0 |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | New Jersey | 4 | 4 | 38.5 | .563 | .000 | .792 | 7.5 | 1.8 | .2 | .5 | 18.3 |
| 2006 | New Jersey | 11 | 11 | 33.3 | .504 | .000 | .711 | 6.8 | .7 | .4 | .9 | 14.7 |
| 2010 | Oklahoma City | 6 | 6 | 21.5 | .405 | .000 | .929 | 5.8 | .7 | .5 | .7 | 7.2 |
| 2011 | Boston | 7 | 0 | 8.0 | .625 | .000 | .667 | 1.7 | .3 | .0 | .6 | 1.7 |
| Career | 28 | 21 | 25.2 | .505 | .000 | .767 | 5.4 | .8 | .3 | .7 | 10.4 |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008–09 | Triumph Lyubertsy | 7 | 21.0 | 0.489 | .000 | .73 | 5.1 | 1.3 | 1.0 | 10.4 |
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