Donut22

Zoran Vukic wasn’t supposed to make it.

A 6'2" wing with no flashy highlights, no viral clips, and no agent connections, he went undrafted in the 2025 NBA Draft. Just another overlooked name in a league obsessed with size, hype, and marketability. But Zoran wasn’t here to entertain—he was built to calculate.

When the injury-plagued Dallas Mavericks extend him a five-day hardship trial, they aren’t looking for a star. They need someone efficient. Someone reliable. Someone who won’t turn the ball over when everything’s falling apart.

What they find instead is a silent technician.

Backed by a mysterious internal system that tracks, optimizes, and enhances every decision he makes on the floor, Zoran doesn’t play with emotion. He plays with precision. No trash talk. No drama. Just elite reads, clean execution, and surgical efficiency.

While the league sleeps on him, the Mavericks start winning. Quietly. Consistently. And as one injury after another sidelines the stars, Zoran keeps showing up—outscoring veterans, locking down scorers, and controlling the pace without wasting a single motion.

He’s not chasing a story.

He’s building one.

(AI is used as a editor as i don't have the time to check over them and edit them myself due to GCSE'S, so if you don't like AI being used in the story then idk don't read it) also i would like to add that the first 10 or so chapter will have the mc average very few points or assists

NBA:The Rise Of Zoran Vranes (RE)

The third quarter didn't start pretty.

San Antonio came out with energy. Victor Wembanyama knocked down a three over Powell, then sprinted the floor and blocked Dinwiddie's layup on the break. Suddenly, the Spurs had cut the lead to one.

Zoran stayed on the bench for the first five minutes of the half, watching intently. Not just the scoreboard, but the tendencies. The way Jeremy Sochan was getting into gaps, how Blake Wesley was slipping screens instead of setting them. The angles. The spacing.

Then came the tap on the shoulder.

Zoran peeled off his warmup top without a word, head down. As he walked toward the scorer's table, he heard one of the Spurs assistants yell to their bench: "He's a passer first! Gap him!"

He didn't react. But he registered it.

First possession: Mavs down 56–54.

Zoran brought the ball up, eyes darting across the floor. The Spurs sagged. Wesley dropped back, arms wide, inviting the jumper.

Quick jab, then straight into a smooth pull-up three.

Next time down, Sochan picked him up early. Zoran faked left, spun out right, and tossed a no-look dime to Powell for a lay-in.

Then he switched onto Wesley defensively, called out the coverage, and beat him to the spot twice in a row. One forced a turnover, the other a contested midrange miss.

The game was tight, but Zoran was everywhere.

In-Game Mental Flow Detected: Temporary Boosts Active

By the end of the third, the Mavericks were back up 68–64, and Zoran had quietly filled the stat sheet: 13 points (6-of-6 shooting), 6 assists, 2 steals.

And on the bench, even veterans like Klay and Dinwiddie were nodding at each other. They weren't just respecting him—they were deferring to him on the floor.

Chapter 14: Second Half Adjustments (RE)