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VIDEO: Mario Hezonja drops 24 for Croatia in friendly, scores 11 in 3 minutes

Anadolu Agency / Getty

The excitement around Orlando Magic rookie Mario Hezonja continues to grow.

The No. 5 overall pick has transitioned seamlessly from impressing in the Spanish ACB Finals, to enticing at Orlando Summer League, to tantalizing in exhibition action ahead of EuroBasket 2015. The offensively gifted 20-year-old is set to play for Croatia in the Olympic qualifier that begins next week, and he's set to dominate, if Thursday's friendly was any indication.

Hezonja scored 24 points in a blowout victory over Bosnia and Herzegovina, helping push Croatia to a perfect 8-0 mark in tuneups, adding six rebounds and two assists for good measure. The only thing more impressive than his 5-of-6 mark from long-range is the fact that he scored 11 of his points in a three-minute stretch.

Croatia isn't putting all of their eggs in the Hezonja basket - they're a talented team that can really balance their attack - knowing that even an incredibly talented young player is going to take their lumps when the competition ratchets up at EuroBasket.

"As for Hezonja," head coach Velimir Perasovic said after the game. "His performances are likely to fluctuate a lot because he is still a very young player. It is almost inevitable that he will play one great game and will be worse in the next."

The No. 12 ranked team in the world and eighth in the region by FIBA, Croatia could be in tough to earn a spot at the 2016 Olympics. Only the top two teams from EuroBasket earn a berth, with four more punching a ticket to next summer's last-chance qualifying tournament.

Following the tournament, Hezonja will join the Magic for training camp, having reached a buyout with Barcelona in late June. You can read more about him in our pre-draft scouting report.

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