• Home
  • FIBA
  • EuroLeague
  • NBA/NCAA
  • National Leagues
  • Podcast
  • Features
  • More
  • Contact

Grimag

  • FIBA
  • EuroLeague
  • NBA/NCAA
  • National Leagues
  • Podcast
  • Features
  • More

Can Svetislav Pesic relaunch the Red Star?

September 9, 2008

The traditional Belgrade basketball team Crvena Zvezda was close to folding just one month ago; with €80,000 in bank and only four players left, the future looked not very bright for the former champions. But things have changed in recent days.

On 1 September, the club announced the signing of world-class coach Svetislav Pesic to bring the team back to its former glory. This was quite a surprise for a club that is rumored to have a multi-million Euro debt and officially holding limited funds. A few days before announcing the new coach, the team presented its new general manager, Milan Opacic. The former director of the YUBAK camps and the coaching community in Serbia will use his connections to rebuild a strong roster.

The latest announcements, after the already-official signing of Marko Marinovic, Marko Keselj and Vladimir Stimac, say that the team wants to recruit two foreign players, one forward and one inside player. According to sources close to the team, this could be Alex Scales and Gregor Fucka. Then there is also Filip Sepa, who is rumored to be joining the team. If you add these names to the already present players, Crvena Zvezda will have a pretty decent roster for being so close to bankruptcy a few weeks ago.

(hint #2: 1)

The question that remains is: Where are all these funds coming from? When you check the official website of the team, you see a lot of big international brands in the “Partner” gallery. But I heavily doubt that these companies are bringing the necessary funds to pay high-quality players like Scales or Fucka. On the other hand, its status as a national symbol may have helped the club to find some private sponsors to stay alive: Nobody can imagine a Serbian championship without legendary duels between Red Star and Partizan.

Now we will see how this story plays out, and if these big names will really land in Belgrade. Pesic is at least a guarantee to form a competitive team out of the players, and if you have Playboy as media partner, your team can’t lose in any way.

Sep 9, 2008ballineurope
Powered by Sidelines
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
This post was published on September 9, 2008
After the Olympics: What's the future of Spain?After the Olympics: What's the future of Russia?
You Might Also Like
 
Crvena Zvezda in trouble; Maljkovic to the rescue?
 
Monday’s cigarettes
Comments: 2
  1. Rambo
    14 years ago

    Good point about, from where suddenly all that sponsors come?
    It’s definitely londering aspekt.
    Financial police should intervene and shut them down.
    About the new coach, he is not good enough, therefore he wasn’t win something important in the last 4 years.
    His zipper doesn’t work.To have it work he must have in his roster stars but big star like Bodiroga, otherwise he can’t dumn nothing win.
    It is only londering. but what about debts??????????

    ReplyCancel
  2. Rambo
    14 years ago

    Soory I’ve neglected and forgot to direct Coach Pesic to one article about legendary NBA coach Kevin Longhery and article in Si.com “Suddenly over night. I/ve got dumned”.
    Kari should rid it.

    ReplyCancel

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

ballineurope
14 years ago 2 Comments MoreAlex Scales, Crvena Zvezda, Gregor Fucka, Svetislav Pesic
Recent Posts
For Bonn, to win just once would be enough
14 days ago
Thank you Partizan
22 days ago
The Sloukas game
23 days ago
Categories
Recent Posts
For Bonn, to win just once would be enough
Thank you Partizan
The Sloukas game
Tags
EuroLeagueNBAYouTubeCSKA MoscowReal MadridFC BarcelonaFIBAOlympiacosZalgiris KaunasPanathinaikosACBSpainMaccabi Tel AvivTeam SpainRicky RubioLos Angeles LakersMontepaschi SienaPartizan BelgradeLithuaniaPau GasolGermanyTeam LithuaniaTurkeyItalyIrelandTeam FranceCaja Laboral BaskoniaLietuvos RytasFenerbahce ÜlkerJuan Carlos NavarroGreeceSan Antonio SpursTony ParkerFranceMinnesota TimberwolvesDirk Nowitzkibasketball highlightsTeam RussiaSerbiaTeam USAALBA BerlinEuroBasket 2011EuroCupBrose Baskets BambergDallas Mavericks
Share
0
Facebook
ABOUT
BallinEurope.com was founded in September 2007 by Christophe Ney (who now runs the excellent scouting-themed website European Prospects) and Tobias Seitz, both then bloggers for FIBA.com with over 10 years’ worth of experience in the professional basketball world each. The mission then was to “provide a very unique perspective of Basketball in and about Europe.”
Most Commented
Why Andrei Kirilenko and CSKA Moscow must win the Euroleague
11 years ago
180 Comments
Euroleague Transfers Table 2008/2009
15 years ago
168 Comments
A week in highlights: Spanish block party, mighty Milos, Utah rap and some dude dunking in L.A.
12 years ago
139 Comments
Archives
Get In Touch

Email: emmetryan@gmail.com

Name: Emmet Ryan

2014 © BallinEurope. Join JCI Dublin