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- Rocco Zikarsky is pushing towards 2025 NBA draft
- Has altered his food intake on dietitian’s advice
He is arguably Australian basketball’s biggest rising star – and Rocco Zikarsky has been told by a dietician he must gorge on chocolate milk, Skittles and M&Ms if he is to realise his dream of playing in the NBA.
Zikarsky, 18, is impossible to miss on-court for the Brisbane Bullets as he stands at a towering 7’3″ (220cm).
Already in his second NBL season, the teenager isn’t currently getting the minutes he wants, but knows he has a bigger picture to chase.
Short term, that includes feasting on sugar as part of a 5,500-calorie-per-day diet.
Zikarsky’s energy levels have dramatically increased as a result – and the young gun has already added 10kg of muscle to his wiry frame.
‘It’s a sugar hit like you’ve never had before and it would probably give me a heart attack… but it’s really helped Rocco stabilise his energy levels to be able to work even harder,’ his mother Kylie Zikarsky told News Corp.
‘Before he trains, he’ll have a handful of Skittles and if the session goes longer than an hour, he’ll have another handful [and] he has a handful of M&Ms before he goes to bed.’
Ultimately, Zikarsky is gearing towards potentially being a 2025 NBA first-round draft pick, with millions of dollars coming to him if he succeeds.
Rocco Zikarsky has been told he must gorge on chocolate milk, Skittles and M&Ms if he is to realise his dream of playing in the NBA
Zikarsky, 18, is impossible to miss on-court for the Brisbane Bullets – he is a towering 7’3″ (220cm) tall
If NBA scouts are impressed by Zikarsky, they could offer him a five-year rookie scale contract worth more than $74million
Pick No. 1 in the NBA draft next year will come with a $11.5million contract – while pick No. 30 would ‘only’ land the center US$2 million.
Incredibly, if NBA scouts are impressed by Zikarsky, they could offer a five -year rookie scale contract worth over $74million.
Zikarsky also comes from elite sporting genes – his father is German Olympic medal-winning swimmer Björn Zikarsky and his mother Kylie is a former Australian champion ironwoman.
Aiding Zikarsky’s cause is having his manager Damian Martin – an NBL great – in his corner.
‘We keep encouraging Rocco, be a great teammate, first and foremost, push yourself every single day and let’s see what happens from there, because NBA scouts know that he’s only 18,’ Martin said.
‘When he’s coming up against kids his age, he’s one of the best players in the world… then you get brought back to reality when you’re coming up against grown men with years of experience and physical maturation [in the NBL].
‘From our end [sports management] he’s done everything we’ve asked of him.’
