Dejan Bodiroga

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Dejan Bodiroga (Serbian: Дејан Бодирога, born March 2, 1973 in Zrenjanin) is a Serbian basketball player. Many basketball observers consider him the best player never to suit up for a National Basketball Association team.

He is famous for his leadership, basketball IQ and all-around game. One of the smartest, if not the quickest players to come along in decades, Dejan dominated European courts and won everything there is to be won, both on club and national team levels.

Son of Vaso and Milka Bodiroga, Dejan is a devout Orthodox Christian. He is idolized in his country for his on the court prowess and also revered for his unassuming, humble and quiet way of going about matters off the court.

On July 13, 2003, at the age of 30, Bodiroga married his long time fiancée Ivana Medić in Belgrade's Saborna crkva (one of the most significant Serbian Orthodox Cathedrals).

The couple's first child, a boy named Nikola, was born July 23, 2004.

Contents 1 Player career 1.1 Early Early Days in Zrenjanin 1.2 Early Days in Zadar 1.3 Italy 1.4 Spain 1.5 Greece 1.6 Spain again 1.7 Italy again 2 Titles 2.1 Club level 2.2 Yugoslavia/Serbia-Montenegro National Team 3 Individual Honours & Awards 4 Trivia 5 External links

[edit] Player career

• 1989/90 Proleter Zrenjanin
• 1990/91 KK Zadar
• 1991/92 KK Zadar
• 1992/93 Pallacanestro Trieste (Stefanel)
• 1993/94 Pallacanestro Trieste (Stefanel)
• 1994/95 Olimpia (Stefanel) Milan
• 1995/96 Olimpia (Stefanel) Milan
• 1996/97 Real Madrid
• 1997/98 Real Madrid
• 1998/99 Panathinaikos
• 1999/00 Panathinaikos
• 2000/01 Panathinaikos
• 2001/02 Panathinaikos
• 2002/03 FC Barcelona
• 2003/04 FC Barcelona
• 2004/05 FC Barcelona
• 2005/06 Virtus (Lottomatica) Rome
• 2006/07 Virtus (Lottomatica) Rome

[edit] Early Early Days in Zrenjanin

Dejan Bodiroga first started playing structured basketball at the age of 13. He enrolled in Zrenjanin's Masinac (Servo Mihalj) basketball section under Rade Prvulov's supervision. One growth spurt later he sprung up to 2.05m and was at 15 quickly incorporated into Masinac Zrenjanin first team squad coached by Miodrag Sija Nikolic, former OKK Beograd and Yugoslav national team player in the 1960s.

[edit] Early Days in Zadar

Dejan's professional career began in earnest when, at only 17, he got noticed by the former Yugoslav great Kresimir Cosic who persuaded Bodiroga's family to allow their son to move away to Zadar. This was not the usual route for basketball talents in Serbia, most of whom at this stage of their development fancy a closer move to one of the big two clubs from the capital city - Partizan or Red Star. Whether it was the case of Cosic's reputation prevailing or Belgrade blindness to the huge talent sitting in their back yard, it didn't matter much - Dejan was on his way to Zadar.

Once there he trained twice a day under KK Zadar's youth team coach Josip Pino Grdovic. The training regiment consisted of a morning 3-hour practice (7am - 10am) and a 4-hour evening one (8pm - Midnight). Soon, Zadar's head coach Slavko Trninic was giving Dejan occasional first team minutes.

Bodiroga's stay on the Dalmatian coast came to a premature end since the conflict that pitted Croats and Serbs against each other soon inflamed. Country was breaking up, war was raging and basketball quickly became an afterthought. Being a player from Serbia in a Croatian city was becoming increasingly uncomfortable for Dejan, so his mentor Cosic (coaching AEK at the time) began to work on the 'escape plan' that would be satisfasctory to both sides.

Trials were arranged with AEK and Olympiakos. Both clubs offered Dejan a contract on condition that he take naturalized Greek citizenship. Bodiroga refused and hopped northward to Trieste, Italy where an emerging team coached by Bogdan Tanjevic and financially backed by Stefanel clothing empire was moving up the ranks.

[edit] Italy

It was in Trieste that Bodiroga first captured the attention of wider basketball public. Shortly after his arrival in the summer of 1992 he made immediate impact averaging 21.3 points per game over 30 league matches and leading his team to playoffs where they were quickly disposed of in first round by the more experienced Pallacanestro Cantù (S. Clear).

He had another stellar season for Pallacanestro Trieste in 1993/94 - this time leading his team to a deeper playoff run. They overcame the first hurdle in Bologna's Fortitudo (Filodoro) to make the semi-final where Victoria Libertas (Scavolini) from Pesaro were waiting. The series was never a contest as Carlton Myers put on a show for a 0-3 sweep. Trieste also began flexing its muscle in Europe - reaching Korac Cup final where they surrendered to PAOK Thessaloniki starring Zoran Savic, Walter Berry and Bane Prelevic. With this the Trieste chapter of Dejan's career came to an abrupt and unexpected end. During summer the team lost Stefanel's backing. The clothing giant threw its money into Olimpia Milano - all of which sparked an exodus of Trieste players and coaches to Lombardy.

Coach Tanjevic, Bodiroga and pretty much every other core Trieste player (Gregor Fucka, Alessandro De Pol, Ferdinando Gentile) moved to Olimpia which coupled with the sponsorship of Stefanel made it appear as though the entire club relocated to a new city the way NBA franchises do.

The 1994/95 season in new surroundings went as planned for Dejan. He was scoring; he contributed with rebounds and assists. Slowly but surely he was growing into the all-round role he would soon become famous for. In European competition, Olimpia reached Korac Cup final, a familiar sight for most of these players. However they couldn't pull the trigger and lost out to ALBA Berlin coached by Svetislav Pesic, who would come to play a big role later in Dejan's career. On the home front team made it to playoff semi-final but lost 3-2 to eventual champions - Virtus (Buckler) Bologna, led by another Serbian superstar Predrag Danilovic. Two Serbs turned the series into a personal duel with Danilovic's experience prevailing in the end.

Summer of 1995 was an important milestone.

Olympic medal record
Competitor for FR Yugoslavia
Men's Basketball
Silver	1996 Atlanta	FR Yugoslavia

Bodiroga became part of the great Yugoslavia squad that was making its comeback after years of international exile. Team was loaded with stars like Aleksandar Djordjevic, Vlade Divac, Zarko Paspalj, Predrag Danilovic, and Zoran Savic and of course Dejan, all hungry to prove to Europe that Yugoslavia was still the continent's top basketball nation. Together they won European gold in one of the most spectacular finals in Eurobasket history against a Lithuania team that featured stars and legends like Arvydas Sabonis, Šarūnas Marčiulionis and Rimas Kurtinaitis.

Also that summer Bodiroga was drafted by the Sacramento Kings in the second round (overall #51). One year later, the Kings selected his younger countryman Peja Stojakovic. However, unlike Stojaković, Bodiroga declined the offer to play in the NBA, choosing instead to remain in Europe.

In the following 1995/96 season Olimpia continued its quest for trophies and Bodiroga & friends finally obliged. Italian Cup trophy was bagged in quick fashion. Then came the dreaded Korac Cup; again they made the final and again the trophy was taken from under their nose - this time by Efes Pilsen Istanbul. This loss made Olimpia all the more hungry for Scudetto and the coming playoff run. Bodiroga led the way with 23.3 points per game in 32 regular season matches. Then came the playoffs. They first returned the favour to Virtus (Buckler), beating them 3-1 in playoffs semi-final (although the task had somewhat gotten easier since Danilovic moved to NBA the previous summer) and then with Bodiroga taking charge triumphed over powerhouse Fortitudo (Teamsystem) Bologna led by Aleksandar Djordjevic, Carlton Myers and Alessandro Frosini.

By now an established international, Bodiroga took his place in the Yugoslav national team for the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta and brought home a silver medal. The American Dream Team featuring Shaq, Charles Barkley, Scottie Pippen, Hakeem, David Robinson still wasn't ripe for picking but Yugoslav squad with Paspalj, Divac, Djordjevic, Bodiroga, Danilovic and friends gave them a game for about 30 minutes before running out of steam.

[edit] Spain

There were two big reasons why Bodiroga decided to join Real Madrid in the summer of 1996: offer of $1 million per season and madridista coach Zeljko Obradovic whom Dejan got to know very well through national team. The squad also featured veteran Joe Arlauckas as well as established internationals Alberto Herreros and Mikhail Mikhailov. They easily made the playoffs, progressing all the way to the final. The opponent was a Barcelona team boasting Aleksandar Djordjevic, Jerrod Mustaf, Artūras Karnišovas. An evenly matched series ensued, eventually going the distance. Barcelona prevailed 3-2, winning the deciding 5th game 82-69 on Real's home court. It was a bitter pill to swallow for Bodiroga and Real who had to find consolation in the European Cup trophy which was their only piece of silverware in 1996/97 season.

On the national team front, Yugoslavia ploughed over the competition with considerable ease en route another Euro gold in 1997, with Bodiroga again playing an integral role. More eventful than semi-final and final games which were entirely dominated by Yugoslavs was the round robin clash vs. Croatia. It was the first meeting between two nations since the breakup of old Yugoslavia. The game carried all kinds of political tension and was a jittery, low-scoring affair until Djordjevic won it for Yugoslavia with a dramatic 3-point buzzer beater.

Next Real season started without coach Obradovic who moved on to Pallacanestro Treviso (Benetton) and it offered no improvement over previous one. Playoff run ended a round earlier at the hands of Basquet Manresa (TDK) which signaled the end of Madrid period for Bodiroga. Although he consistently put up strong numbers and delivered key points, the team never found proper chemistry and winning rhythm. The only personal consolation was that he earned league MVP honours for the 1997/98 season.

That summer's national team duty was markedly happier as it brought another World championship title for Yugoslavia and a first one for Bodiroga. Now 25, Bodiroga was, together with Djordjevic and Rebraca one of the team leaders in every sense. And he needed to be since Danilovic didn't even make it to Athens '98 due to injury while Djordjevic played reduced minutes because of knee problems.

[edit] Greece

Same summer of 1998 also saw Bodiroga move to Greek powerhouse Panathinaikos where club chairman Pavlos Giannakopoulos began assembling a team to conquer Europe. The greens finally won the national title that June, after 14-year wait, so sights were set on Euroleague for the coming 1998/99 campaign. Bodiroga was to be the final piece of the jigsaw that already included Dino Rađa, Fragiskos Alvertis and coach Slobodan Subotic. Unfortunatelly, everything didn't go according to master plan as Panathinaikos won the national league easily but fell short in Euroleague.

It was more than club president was willing to take so out went Radja and coach Subotic and in came coach Zeljko Obradovic who brought along Zeljko Rebraca, his center in Treviso (Benetton). In fact, $15 million was poured into the team for the coming season. It proved to be enough as PAO captured both the 1999/2000 national league and Eurolegue trophies - the latter coming in a final versus Maccabi Tel Aviv.

This was the beginning of Bodiroga's undisputed reign atop Europe. At 27 he was reaching the pinnacle of his career and was simply dominating. What made it all the more strange is that in an era of quick, physical players he was almost a throwback to the older times. He wasn't terribly fast nor muscular yet he had an uncanny feel and knowledge of the game. Although always strong, his statistics were never jawdroping, but his impact on the game could never be expressed through mere numbers. What made him truly outstanding was his ability to break games and make key shots. When match is on the line, ball would invariably go into Bodiroga's hands.

By this time he also became the undisputed leader in the national team, too. This was most evident in 2001's European Championship in Turkey and 2002 World Championship in Indianapolis both of which Yugoslavia won. The ball was always in his hands when important games were being decided like the now famous Indianapolis final. Yugoslavia couldn't find the rhythm all night and was down by 8 points to Argentina with little more than 2 minutes to go. After finally beating the Dream Team in quarterfinals, Yugoslavs were seeing their dream of back to back Worlds wins slowly fly away. However, Bodiroga had other ideas: on a night when nothing seemed to click in Yugoslav offensive setup due to excellent Argentine positional defence, he began to play 1 on 5 with Argentina, singlehandedly making up the difference and sending the game into overtime. It was an injection of confidence and energy Yugoslavs were looking for all night - the outcome of the overtime period was never in doubt.

Bodiroga literally wrested the trophy from Argentine hands.

[edit] Spain again

In the summer of 2002, Bodiroga came back to the Spanish league, with a FC Barcelona managed by Svetislav Pesic and with players like Šarūnas Jasikevičius, Gregor Fucka and Juan Carlos Navarro. He won the Euroleague with it (one and only time Barcelona has made it so far), and two times the Spanish league. He is one of few players who have won the Euroleague with clubs from three different countries and also who have won the national leagues of Italy, Greece and Spain.

[edit] Italy again

In the summer of 2005, Bodiroga came back to Italian league, this time with Virtus Roma re-joining coach Svetislav Pesic who, no doubt had a lot to do with Bodiroga's arrival. The team played in ULEB Cup in addition to domestic league and Cup.

After getting eliminated from ULEB Cup at the round of 16 stage, and losing the Cup final narrowly (83-85) to Carpisa Napoli in February 2006, Virtus concentrated on domestic league and finished the season in 6th place with a 22-12 record. Bodiroga finished with 15.7 poits-per-game regular season average.

The playoff first round pitted them against favourites Mens Sana Siena. After dropping the first game, the now customary Bodiroga clutch time takeover saw Virtus win three straight games with Bodiroga scoring 24, 17, and 24 points, respectively (all three team highs).

[edit] Titles

[edit] Club level

• 1995/96 Italian League (Lega Basket) Champion with Olimpia (Stefanel) Milano.
• 1995/96 Italian Cup (Coppa Italia) Winner with Olimpia (Stefanel) Milano.
• 1996/97 European Cup Winner with Real Madrid.
• 1998/99 Greek League (A1 Ethniki) Champion with Panathinaikos.
• 1999/00 Greek League (A1 Ethniki) Champion with Panathinaikos.
• 1999/00 Euroleague Champion with Panathinaikos.
• 2000/01 Greek League (A1 Ethniki) Champion with Panathinaikos.
• 2001/02 Euroleague Champion with Panathinaikos.
• 2002/03 Spanish League (ACB) Champion with FC Barcelona.
• 2002/03 Euroleague Champion with FC Barcelona.
• 2002/03 Spanish Cup (Copa del Rey) Winner with FC Barcelona.
• 2003/04 Spanish League (ACB) Champion with FC Barcelona.

[edit] Yugoslavia/Serbia-Montenegro National Team

• 1995 Eurobasket Champion
• 1997 Eurobasket Champion
• 1998 FIBA World Championship Champion
• 2001 Eurobasket Champion
• 2002 FIBA World Championship Champion

Additionally, Bodiroga has an Olympic silver medal from the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia, and a bronze medal for a 3rd place finish at 1999 Eurobasket.

[edit] Individual Honours & Awards

Spanish League MVP: 1997/98

World Championship MVP: 1998

Yugoslav Athlete of the Year: 1998

2-time Greek League MVP: 1998/99 and 1999/00

Euroleage Top 16 stage MVP: 2001/02

World Championship Final MVP: 2002

2-time Euroleague Final Four MVP: 2002 and 2003

3-time All-Euroleague 1st Team choice: 2001/02, 2002/03 and 2003/04

Spanish Cup (Copa del Rey) MVP: 2003

Spanish League Finals MVP: 2004

[edit] Trivia

• Dejan Bodiroga is a close relative of another European basketball great - Dražen Petrović. Dejan's grandmother (on father's side) and Drazen's grandfather (on father's side) are brother and sister.
• Dejan Bodiroga's grandfather left the Bileća region in southeastern part of Bosnia and Herzegovina with Dejan's father, who was only a child at the time, and settled in Serbia after World War II.
• Bodiroga is one of the founding members of the Group Seven Children's Foundation.

[edit] External links

• Bodiroga Fan Page