Aleksej Pokusevski weighs an NBA return after years in Europe, with teams potentially drawn by his size and skill

Aleksej Pokusevski is exploring the possibility of returning to the NBA, according to Yahoo Sports, bringing attention back to a former lottery pick whose professional path has unfolded largely outside the league. The 7-footer has been playing in Europe since he last appeared in the NBA’s orbit during the 2023-24 timeframe, and he has spent the past two seasons with KK Partizan in Serbia. For NBA teams, the question is whether a player who has shown flashes of skill at his size can close the gap in consistency, spacing, and defensive impact that every contender requires.

Pokusevski entered the NBA as a 2020 first-round selection, and his long-term reputation is tied to his rare combination of height and perimeter-oriented ability. Yahoo’s report frames his desire to return as something teams would likely monitor, even as any team considering such a move would have to evaluate how his European minutes, role, and matchup experiences translate back to the NBA. In Europe, players can refine specific aspects of their games, but the NBA’s style of play often compresses time and raises the frequency of high-pressure possessions.

This summer storyline is notable because it follows a clear period of stability for Pokusevski overseas. Yahoo Sports reports that he has played the previous two seasons with Partizan, a club that routinely emphasizes serious development and competitive discipline in domestic and regional contests. That matters because the NBA is less forgiving of developmental uncertainty than many fans expect, especially for players who have already been through early expectations in the league. If Pokusevski’s growth has come with improved decision-making and better shot selection, that could address the core issue that often determines whether role players or fringe starters stick in the NBA.

At the same time, Yahoo indicates that Pokusevski had a difficult season, describing struggles during the year in question. The specifics of those struggles are not laid out in the available reporting, but the framing alone suggests NBA teams would likely treat any interest as a fit-and-projection exercise rather than a guaranteed return to earlier form. For a 7-footer, the NBA’s evaluation typically hinges on effectiveness in three areas: whether he can defend well enough to stay on the floor, whether his offensive touches create sustainable advantages, and whether he can operate within a team’s spacing requirements without dragging possessions into low-percentage outcomes.

If Pokusevski does pursue an NBA opportunity, the most realistic path would likely depend on how teams view his readiness to adapt to higher possessions per game and tighter rotations. In the NBA, defensive schemes move quickly, and perimeter players are expected to handle switching responsibilities while bigs help maintain the balance of pick-and-roll coverages. For Pokusevski, the appeal would be his potential to contribute in more than one phase of the game, but the risk would be whether his weaknesses persist even when matchups improve.

For now, the story is less about an announced transaction and more about market interest. His stated “wants to” stance, as characterized by Yahoo, suggests he is positioning himself as an NBA-level option rather than settling into a purely European career track. Teams that need a specific combination of size, playmaking, and spacing could explore the fit, especially if they believe his next development step can come faster than it did previously.

Fans watching next should look for any formal reporting on roster intent, workouts, or team engagement. More importantly, they will want to see whether Pokusevski’s decision-making and defensive positioning improved enough to turn a difficult season into a meaningful adjustment. If the NBA door opens, his return will ultimately be judged on whether he can convert his tools into repeatable impact against the league’s best athletes, not just in select stretches of a game.

Either way, Pokusevski’s situation underscores a broader NBA trend: teams increasingly scout skill-forward European bigs, but the league still demands durability across full seasons. His next phase, whether it happens in the NBA or remains in Europe, will likely come down to whether the version of his game that succeeded in European competition can survive the tighter margins of an NBA roster spot.