You’ve been in Orlando long enough to see a lot of your teammates move on from the organization. You’ve certainly seen firsthand that the NBA is a business, watching players like Victor Oladipo, Tobias Harris, Moe Harkless, Kyle O’Quinn, Elfrid Payton and others leave over the years. I know you were really close to some of those guys too. How tough is it to lose so many teammates you’re close to and how difficult is it to deal with the roster constantly changing? Nikola Vucevic: It’s not always easy, especially when it’s a guy who’s been here a couple years and you’ve built a relationship with them – on the court and off the court – but it’s part of the business we’re in. You have to realize that it can happen to anybody at any point. We’ve seen some of the biggest stars in this league get traded – guys that you never expected would be traded. It’s just part of it and you have to accept it. Sometimes, the GM thinks that the team will be better by making a certain move and you have to accept it. In sports, our job as players is just to play and give our best on the court while trusting that the front office will put together the best team possible. It’s hard, especially when you’ve built a bond with somebody and you’re close friends, but it’s part of this business. Then, you just look forward to the games when you’re able to play against them and catch up. It can be fun to go up against the people you’ve played with before.
