Dusan Djordjevic is the tallest person in the room. At least, he was the tallest person on the first floor of the Logos on the particular March night that I spoke with him. The white LED lighting of the room was terrible, the time of night was inconvenient and the environment is typically one of stressed students cramming homework into their busy schedules. Still, Djordjevic had no qualms about meeting for the interview.
Originally from Serbia, Djordjevic is a student athlete that has been living in the United States for the past 5 years. In August of 2018, he came to what he refers to as “the states” for the opportunity to pursue both a college education, and a college career in basketball. After living with a host family and playing basketball at a North Carolina high school for a year, Djordjevic came to Union to continue his education and career in basketball.
There’s a stereotype for college athletes. More specifically, there’s a stereotype for basketball players: they’re perceived as tall, intimidating and all around “unreachable.” However, Dusan Djordjevic is proof that this stereotype is false.
Djordjevic is a nursing major. Although an academic senior, he’s a junior on the basketball court due to getting eligibility back from the shutdown of 2020. On top of being an international student, college athlete and a nursing student, Djordjevic also works in the university’s wellness center. Balancing a schedule like this is no simple feat. In fact, Djordjevic is the first men’s basketball player on Union’s team to be a nursing student.
When he initially asked his coach about declaring a nursing major as a basketball player, the coach was hesitant. Instead of backing down, Djordjevic embraced the challenge, proving to be dedicated and maintaining a 4.0 grade point average his first four semesters at Union.
“I proved to them that I could do it,” he said proudly.
Between clinicals, training and working his on-campus job, Djordjevic has had to learn how to balance his responsibilities. According to Djordjevic, he owes much of his discipline to academics to his experiences in Serbia. In Serbia, high schools are specialized by subjects to prepare students for upper level studies. This prepared him for the intensity of upper level education.
I was shocked to hear Djordjevic say that he’s never had a planner. Instead, he uses his memory to keep up with his busy schedule.
“Usually I try to get on top of things, and you wouldn’t believe me, but I usually study the day before my exams and usually do well,” Djordjevic said modestly. “People say I have a photographic memory, which I doubt, I don’t think I do. I would just say it’s the discipline I got from studying back home.”
“School felt easier [at Union] than I was used to, but the time management felt hard because of the basketball aspect. Especially when were in season, there’s a lot of traveling, and then being in school, especially nursing school,” Djordjevic then took a deep breath before explaining the complexities of his clinicals schedule.
Although the basketball team didn’t finish where they would have liked, losing in the first round of conference games, Djordjevic is dedicated to his team and the sport. The team works hard, especially during pre-season training.
“A lot of times [during the pre-season] it would happen that I would have conditioning in the morning and have an exam at 8, so I would have to literally run to the class and change real quick in the bathroom and just take an exam,” Djordjevic explained. “Sometimes it would happen that conditioning was so hard that I would need a few minutes to gather my thoughts.”
Ivan Prug is a freshman finance major and close friend and teammate of Djordjevic’s. Similar to Djordjevic, Prug is from Croatia and came to the United States for his senior year of high school before ending up at Union for college. The two students became close friends after Djordjevic was Prug’s host for a Union visit.
“He’s really focused on certain goals that he’s set for himself and he would put the right work that’s required to do to get there, and that’s with his school, basketball, and he has a job outside of all that,” Prug said about his friend. “He’s pretty successful, one word I can use for him is dedicated, that’s for sure.”
Success is earned. It takes hard work and dedication. Dusan Djordjevic has shown his superiors and his peers that he is capable of doing whatever he sets his mind to, regardless of any stereotypes or limitations.
“I feel like a lot of people have stereotypes about basketball players, which I don’t blame them,” Djordjevic said. “But just being able to prove everyone else wrong and showing them that you can do both, and in my case I’m able to do both nursing and be a basketball player on a scholarship.”
Djordjevic plans to continue his education at Union for graduate school and continue to play basketball here. He has plans of pursuing a Nurse Practitioner license and establishing a life here in America. With his dedication and drive, Djordjevic will no doubt be successful again.
“People know when they see me, they know that I’m a basketball player, but they also know that I’m in the nursing school, that I’m actually smart you know…” Djordjevic trailed off.
“You’re not just a basketball player” I concluded.
He nodded and confirmed: “I’m not just a basketball player.”