By Johnny Askounis/ info@eurohoops.net
In connection to officially welcoming Dubai to the AdmiralBet ABA League, a press conference was held on Tuesday.
“Everything about Dubai is positive. We are here to show the best of Dubai, that it is good for basketball,” explained executive director and vice president of the expansion team Djordje Djokovic, “We will not stop here.”
Moving into the 2024-25 season, Dubai will debut in the regional league.
“Dubai will play in Dubai’s Coca-Cola Arena. Not in Belgrade or Cacak. The GM of Coca-Cola Arena, Mark Jan Kar is here with the contract,” GM Dejan Kamenjasevic confirmed the plan for home games to be played in the city of the United Arab Emirates, UAE.
“We do not expect support like the fans of Panathinaikos, Olympiacos, Zvezda, and Partizan, but 90 percent of the people in Dubai are foreigners, they love basketball but do not have their team. Four or five years ago, a poll showed that 67 percent pointed to a lack of a sports franchise. We want to build an identity and a team that Dubai fans can be proud to support,” he added.
Building a roster from scratch will start with hiring a head coach familiar with the regional league, noted Kamenjasevic. “Since everyone is under contract, we can not reveal his name,” he stayed shy of revealing a specific candidate for the job.
“We are not bringing in [Walter] Tavares, Mike James, and all that,” he rejected rumors about signing high-profile players, “We will be competitive with a normal budget for ABA in the first season. We need to learn, make mistakes, gain experience, and understand the league. To play and be at our best.”
“Winning the ABA League is not a priority,” furthered Kamenjasevic, “Even if we win, we will not enter the EuroLeague or EuroCup through ABA.”
Barring a sudden change of plans, Euroleague Basketball is expected to invite Dubai to the BKT EuroCup.
“We are currently creating a team for the ABA with most of the players from this region, but if the situation changes in the next month, we will take a different approach,” mentioned Djokovic, hinting toward potential participation in the second-tier competition of Euroleague Basketball, besides the ABA League.