The last time Windy City Bulls forward Duje Dukan played in front of his family he was averaging 23.0 points and 9.5 rebounds for his Deerfield Warriors' high school team.
Since then Dukan earned scholarship to Wisconsin, made the Sacramento Kings roster as an undrafted rookie, played in Croatia and, earlier this year, for the Austin Spurs.
But when the 6-foot-9 Dukan was traded from Austin to the Windy City Bulls late last month it was a homecoming of sorts for the Chicago native.
"It's a great opportunity. I haven't been able to play in front of my family and friends for five or six years, ever since high school," Dukan told CSN's Mark Schanowski. "So I think it's a great opportunity for me just to be able to play and be at home. I missed my family being overseas for a while and just being able to spend more time with them. I'm really happy about that."
The Dukan family name has had ties to the Bulls for quite some time. Duje's father, Ivica, has been the international director of scouting for more than two decades. He's helped scout and bring over the likes of Toni Kukoc, Omer Asik, Nikola Mirotic and Paul Zipser. And during that time Duje, who grew up in Deerfield - just minutes from the Bulls' old practice facility - was a ball boy for the team.
In six games with the Bulls Dukan has averaged 11.2 points on 57 percent shooting (including 56.5 percent shooting from deep) and 2.8 rebounds in 17.3 minutes. And though he played on the United Center floor playing for the Badgers in the Big Ten Tournament, it's his hope that one day he he'll receive that call-up to the NBA and play for the team he's cheered for his entire life.
"It's a whole different story putting a Bulls uniform on," he said. "So if I could get that opportunity it would definitely be a special moment for me."
NBA
See more of what Dukan had to say in the video above.