Cibona Zagreb's mid-season pick-up from BC Triumph, American swingman Alan Anderson, admits he'd love to put on a Croatia national team shirt. The 26-year-old started the 2008-09 campaign with EuroChallenge Final Four side Triumph and averaged 9.8 points and 5.2 rebounds in six games before moving to Cibona in January and pouring in more than 15 points in eight Euroleague contests.
"It's simple," Anderson said to Kosarka.hr. "They (media) have asked me 'would you be interested in playing for Croatia?' and I've seriously answered ‘I would.'" The 1.98m Anderson played college basketball at Michigan State and spent a couple of seasons in the NBA before moving to Virtus Bologna for the 2007-08 campaign. He then joined Triumph before switching to Cibona, which gave Croatia coach Jasmin Repesa ample opportunity to watch the player in action.
Croatian journalists asked Repesa about his EuroBasket 2009 squad and while he did not mention Anderson by name, he did give a comment to the Vecernji list daily. "Every good player is welcome," he said. "Today, many teams have naturalised players, but we don`t have one, a versatile wing, strong on the ball."
The Croatian Basketball Association (HKS) appeared to quash the speculation on the sports website javno.com. Zeljko Draskic of the HKS said: "The Counseling Council of the Croatian Basketball Association (HKS) should respond on foreigners playing for the national team, along with the Croatian Olympic Committee. "Only then could the terms for a passport be met. According to Croatian law, only a foreigner who has been living in Croatia for five years can have a Croatian passport."
source : fibaeurope.com
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