Ukić with Roma. |
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| Position | Point guard-shooting guard |
|---|---|
| Height | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) |
| Weight | 190 lb (86 kg) |
| League | Turkish League Euroleague |
| Team | Fenerbahçe Ülker |
| Born | December 5, 1984 Split, SR Croatia, SFR Yugoslavia |
| Nationality | Croatian |
| Draft | 2nd round, 41st overall, 2005 Toronto Raptors |
| Pro career | 2000–present |
| Career history | Split (2000–05) Baskonia (2005–06) Barcelona (2006–07) Roma (2007–08) Toronto Raptors (2008-09) Milwaukee Bucks (2009-10) Fenerbahçe Ülker (2010-present) |
Roko-Leni Ukić (born December 5, 1984) is a Croatian professional basketball player who plays for Fenerbahçe Ülker.[1] Ukić mainly plays at the point guard position, but he can also play at the shooting guard position. He is 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) tall and he weighs 190 lb (86 kg).
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Ukić was born and raised in Split, SR Croatia, SFR Yugoslavia, where he began playing basketball for the youth clubs of KK Split in 1992. He competed on cadet and junior teams for the club, winning the national youth championship twice with the cadet team and earning the MVP award of the Croat cadet championship in 2000. Ukić joined the club's senior team, KK Split, in 2000, at the age of 16. He played for Split until 2005, when he was drafted by the NBA's Toronto Raptors in the second round, 41st pick overall, after averaging 18.5 points and 4.3 assists in 35.2 minutes for Split in the Adriatic League.[2]
Rather than risk being buried on the bench as a reserve player in the NBA, he opted to join Saski Baskonia of the Spanish ACB League, a team that had an open spot at the backup point guard position in 2005. After spending a season with Baskonia, he moved to Spanish League rivals FC Barcelona in the summer of 2006, where he also held the backup position at point guard.
In the summer of 2007, he moved to the Italian League team Virtus Roma on a loan deal, where he was coached by his mentor and Croatian national basketball team coach Jasmin Repeša. Ukić then left Europe and moved to the NBA. After being waived by the Milwaukee Bucks during his second NBA season, in January 2010, Ukić returned to Europe when he moved to the Turkish League club Fenerbahçe Ülker.[3] He signed a two year contract on June 17, 2010.[4]
On July 16, 2008, Ukić agreed to a three year deal with the NBA's Toronto Raptors.[5] During his first NBA season he appeared in 72 games as a backup at point guard to his former Saski Baskonia teammate José Calderón, wearing jersey #1 for the Raptors. In 12.4 minutes of play, he averaged 4.2 points and 2.1 assists with a career highs of 22 points on February 22, 2009, against the San Antonio Spurs and 10 assists on March 27, 2009, against the Oklahoma City Thunder.[6]
On August 18, 2009, Ukić was traded to the Milwaukee Bucks, along with Carlos Delfino, in exchange for Amir Johnson and Sonny Weems.[7] On January 4, 2010, he was waived by the Milwaukee Bucks at his own request, because he wasn't satisfied with his role on the team. [8]
Ukić is a former member of the Croatian junior national team, earning with them a gold medal at the 2002 FIBA Europe Under-18 Championship and he also played with Croatia's junior national team at the 2003 FIBA Under-19 World Championship in Greece, averaging 19.8 points, 4.6 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 2.6 steals per game as his team reached the semifinals.[9]
He has also been a member of the senior Croatian national basketball team. He has played with Croatia's senior national team at the EuroBasket 2005, the EuroBasket 2007, the 2008 Olympics, and the EuroBasket 2009. At the EuroBasket 2009, he averaged 13.6 points, 2.3 rebounds, and 3.8 assists per game.[10]
Ukić is married to wife, Tamara, and has a daughter, Sara. Born October 20, 2007, in Rome, Sara weighed 3.4 kg at birth and was 51 cm long.[11]
| 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008–09 | Toronto | 72 | 0 | 12.4 | .380 | .177 | .733 | 1.0 | 2.1 | .4 | .0 | 4.2 |
| 2009–10 | Milwaukee | 13 | 0 | 7.5 | .467 | .250 | .818 | 0.2 | 0.9 | .1 | .0 | 3.1 |
| Career | 85 | 0 | 11.6 | .387 | .189 | .746 | 0.9 | 1.9 | .4 | .0 | 4.0 |
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