By Nikos Varlas/ varlas@eurohoops.net
It was a turbulent summer for Dusan Ivkovic and the Serbian national team. Since May it was known that many players will not accept the call of the national team, while Ivkovic himself was presented as a Fenerbahce/ Ulker target – something he strongly denied in the end by speaking to Eurohoops.
The end result was his decision to step down from the bench of the Serbian national team. As he said in a press conference on Tuesday in Belgrade: “I had a deal, but not a contract with the federation to lead the team to the FIBA World Cup. It’s time for a younger generation of coaches. I have spoken with federation vice president Dejan Bodirga and he knows my decision. I wish the best of luck to my replacement. There is no rush to find him, but I think that I was a good example and some of the coaches that have been with me in the national team for the last five years, like Aleksandar Kesar, should be considered as possible member of the new coaching stuff”.
The two names that have already emerged as possible replacements are Igor Kokoskov and Sasha Obradovic.