Crvena Zvezda 2017/2018

[unnamed]

I think the team needs 2 more foreigners - PG and SG. But we need PG with pass first mentality, not some ball hog shooter.

[CoachZ]

I think the team needs 2 more foreigners - PG and SG. But we need PG with pass first mentality, not some ball hog shooter.

I don't think we will add a SG. Whoever we add will take away minutes from the people that are going to play here and the way roster is set up. PG is a must, then add maybe another Big. It can be again PF/C tweener. We can go with a frontcourt of Jankovic, Jovanovic, Bjelica and another guy. They are all PF/C tweeners. Then You have Simanic and Davidovac that are SF/PF combos. That should be enough. Maybe a strong rebounding presence and PnR target guy.

PG of course is more crucial.

[ThePeraCar]

Good signs, i dont want Djordje Gagic, please no, even Rasko is better than him

[unnamed]

I don't think we will add a SG. Whoever we add will take away minutes from the people that are going to play here and the way roster is set up. PG is a must, then add maybe another Big. It can be again PF/C tweener. We can go with a frontcourt of Jankovic, Jovanovic, Bjelica and another guy. They are all PF/C tweeners. Then You have Simanic and Davidovac that are SF/PF combos. That should be enough. Maybe a strong rebounding presence and PnR target guy.

PG of course is more crucial.

Somehow I don't think Davidovac will see a lot of playing time this season. If not for another SG, we could definitively add PF with solid balance of strength/rim protection/pnr game.

[Obina]

I don't think we will add a SG. Whoever we add will take away minutes from the people that are going to play here and the way roster is set up. PG is a must, then add maybe another Big. It can be again PF/C tweener. We can go with a frontcourt of Jankovic, Jovanovic, Bjelica and another guy. They are all PF/C tweeners. Then You have Simanic and Davidovac that are SF/PF combos. That should be enough. Maybe a strong rebounding presence and PnR target guy.

PG of course is more crucial.

We will 100%.

PG, combo guard and C will be foreigners. And one more, probably during the season...

[CoachZ]

According to Sportando, Colton Iverson is close. I think it's an OK signing, since most of the bigs flourish in our system. He is quite athletic for his size and can play the PnR. To be honest, if he comes at a good price, it's not a bad deal. Anyway, we are probably going to field an insanely young team. This is how it looks as of now.

PG Nikola Radicevic (23)
SG Ognjen Dobric (22), Branko Lazic (28), Petar Rakicevic (22)
SF Nemanja Dangubic (24), Marko Keselj (28), Stefan Lazarevic (20)
PF Stefan Jankovic (23), Borisa Simanic (19), Dejan Davidovac (22)
C Colton Iverson (28), Nikola Jovanovic (23), Milko Bjelica (33)

[AmonRA]

very good team..

















for fiba eurochalange

[CoachZ]

very good team..

for fiba eurochalange

Love your enthusiasm as always Of course the team will be weaker than what we were used to in the past years but it's a rebuild and I am always excited to see kids ball out. It will be enough to take care of the ABA, KLS etc and in the Euroleague there will be no pressure. I always like us as underdogs.

The key will be the starting PG who comes. Should be a guy that can play for others and be a good mentor.

[AmonRA]

Love your enthusiasm as always Of course the team will be weaker than what we were used to in the past years but it's a rebuild and I am always excited to see kids ball out. It will be enough to take care of the ABA, KLS etc and in the Euroleague there will be no pressure. I always like us as underdogs.

The key will be the starting PG who comes. Should be a guy that can play for others and be a good mentor.

if Radonjic was stayed, instead he is kicked from covic, then I will have some hope, even with last year roster from FMP..
but now, we are like some mediocret teams from Italy, France which every year brings 6-7 new players change coaches, and hope that that will be year when everyone will make good chemistry..
but the thing is that we have like half smaller budget then that mediocre teams from Italy, France etc..

[CoachZ]

if Radonjic was stayed, instead he is kicked from covic, then I will have some hope, even with last year roster from FMP..
but now, we are like some mediocret teams from Italy, France which every year brings 6-7 new players change coaches, and hope that that will be year when everyone will make good chemistry..
but the thing is that we have like half smaller budget then that mediocre teams from Italy, France etc..

In reality our budget cannot be 500k smaller than last year. Last year our total budget was 4.5mil including player salaries, coaches, admin, travel etc. We can't go below 4mil, since then we will not fulfill the EL requirements which require a minimum budget of 4mil euros to compete in EL. So I think that the budget will not be that much lower. We are saving a looooot of money on players, but there should be still money for a good PG.

Regarding Alimpijevic, it's a huge risk I agree. Again, you never know some people rise from the tough environment and he seems like a supremely confident guy (which has a lot to learn of course). The good thing is that most of the staff Radonjic worked with will stay. Position coaches, assistants, video crew/scouting etc...

[ZalgirisFanForLife]

As Zalgiris fan I am exited to see how your youngsters will do. I see that Coach is very optimistic. For me it is weird, because I would not be so exited, because that would mean bad performance in EL, and that is the most important. Yeah, it's extra if the performance is good and bigger part of the team in NT players, but if I could pick- to loss most of the EL games, but grow NT players or win and be competitive in EL and take only one of the best NT players and only one or two really talented youngsters, I would choose the second one. Maybe I'm too optimistic, but I think Zalgiris roster will be much better, than yours, especially after Kavaliauskas will move to Rytas and we get Gudaitis or DMo.

[CoachZ]

As Zalgiris fan I am exited to see how your youngsters will do. I see that Coach is very optimistic. For me it is weird, because I would not be so exited, because that would mean bad performance in EL, and that is the most important. Yeah, it's extra if the performance is good and bigger part of the team in NT players, but if I could pick- to loss most of the EL games, but grow NT players or win and be competitive in EL and take only one of the best NT players and only one or two really talented youngsters, I would choose the second one. Maybe I'm too optimistic, but I think Zalgiris roster will be much better, than yours, especially after Kavaliauskas will move to Rytas and we get Gudaitis or DMo.

I am optimistic to see the kids play, not about the result. I don't think we have a chance to repeat the success of the last year, since we have lost more than half of the roster of a team that had a market value that was MUCH, MUCH higher than our budget. Zvezda's goal will always be to win ABA League first and domestic championship and then give their best in EL. Unlike Zalgiris which has A License we have to make sure we win the regional ABA League if we want even to play in EL. So that is always top priority. In regards to that we should have a team to take care of that and Cedevita in particular as the main opponent. In Euroleague the key is to play the kids and grow them. All of our kids are on long-term contracts and even new signings, so they have to play, practice and develop and expect from this team to become much much better as time goes on.

Lastly, most of the teams have better rosters "on paper" than Zvezda but actual performance and reality usually shows a different story. We have been put in the bottom of EL last two years in terms of roster and expectations, often ridiculed that we will wing 4-5 games out of 30 and stuff like that. This team will not have high EL ambitions but the way it goes I have a feeling we will still win 10 games and keep most of the games close and interesting. For this young team and being their first year together, that is a good success. It's actually nothing about NT, it's about giving a long term perspective to Zvezda's roster. That you have a new core for the following 4-5 years. That is how you build good teams and with some additions you can achieve something.

[CoachZ]

Let's throw some names around for PG spot. It's a wishlist, let's see if some could be available.

Julyan Stone is a big PG that has a very, very good all around game. Good creator, defender, rebounder. He is not a pure shooter but can do a good job as a spot-up shooter from the distance. He is very smart, high IQ and in many ways reminds me of Stefan Jovic. He is also mature, 28 and has Euro experience. Also, he would come on a good price.

[CoachZ]

Askia Booker is a 6'2'' PG that played at Colorado and lately in NBA-DL. He is a great, great defender that puts so much pressure on the ball and passing lanes. He is a good but not great shooter with bad shot selection sometimes. He is on the other hand excellent creator and PnR guy, cleans the boards beside his size etc.

[CoachZ]

I was extremely surprised that Briante Weber has been released yesterday by the Hornets. He signed a 2 year non-guaranteed contract with the Hornets but was waived yesterday before Aug 1 deadline (his contract would become guaranteed after that). He has been for me the best PG prospect in the D-League and he even had good games in NBA when he was called up. He is a fantastic defender, in Europe he would be a nightmare for most of the PGs. He is extremely athletic, excellent vision and fantastic teammate. He is an OK shooter but not elite. Much more important he can run different types of offense and his defensive effort and creation would be an asset to any team.

I doubt he would come cheap, especially after that 2-year deal with Hornets. Let's say I dare to dream Some previous guys from the wishlist have signed, so why not I really loved watching him at VCU especially.