Nikola Mirotic: ‘I hope to be the missing piece Monaco needs’

The new signing took part in an introductory press conference

There are not many EuroLeague teams that can boast one MVP on their roster, but AS Monaco will be able to count on two – Mike James and new addition Nikola Mirotic – in the 2025-26 season.

Together with club president Alekszej Fedoricsev, general manager Oleksiy Yefimov, guard Matthew Strazel and forward Alpha Diallo, Mirotic was present for Monaco’s season-opening press conference at the Casino de Monte-Carlo and made it clear that he has joined the Monégasque team with one goal in mind.

“It's a pleasure to be here wearing this jersey,” Mirotic said. “First of all, because this team has ambition and big goals. When you see an organization building something special, you want to be part of it. At 34, I want to win. I hope to be the missing piece the team needs to win the title.

“We have two Euroleague MVPs on the team, but we're missing the most important thing: the EuroLeague trophy. That's why I'm here. I've worked for this, and sometimes it takes time to keep believing. You have to be in the right place at the right time, and Monaco could be that place. Just making it to the Final Four is a huge accomplishment that's difficult to achieve every year.”

Mirotic has reached the Final Four on six occasions (2011, 2013, 2014 with Real Madrid; 2022, 2023 and 2024 with FC Barcelona) but he is yet to lift the biggest prize of them all. Together with Mike James and co., he’ll be hoping that he can make history by bringing a first-ever EuroLeague championship to Monaco.