By Johnny Askounis/ info@eurohoops.net
Reports from Serbia suggested that James Nunnally sued Partizan after the two sides recently went separate ways. His agent, Bill Neff, responded by sending an official statement to Eurohoops.
Per Neff’s statement: “Partizan continues to attack James non-stop in interviews with the media and on its website. They are attacking him because the fans know he bled for the great fans of Partizan over two basketball seasons there. He was a fan favorite, and the fans wanted James to return. So, the club feels a need to justify James’s ouster from the club.
Prior to Game 3 of this past season’s ABA Championship Series, a player for Red Star who felt James had done something wrong to him in Game 2 of the series approached James and put his hands on James’s neck. No Partizan coaches/officials were there to prevent this Red Star player’s approach from escalating. While pinned against a wall and slipping, James swung to wrest himself free, and the punch landed hard, bruising the Red Star player. Partizan’s Jaleen Smith and other Red Star players picked the Red Star player off of Nunnally on the floor. Partizan’s coach decided not to play James that night, and Partizan lost Game 3, ending the series. Even though he was defending himself, Partizan chose never to play James again in future Serbian League games, ending his season. Neither the attacking player from Red Star nor James chose to press charges, so the matter was dropped by the police.
Since that time, Partizan has engaged in a determined effort to stymie James’s efforts in seeking employment elsewhere while also attempting to embarrass him to justify their decision with their fans. But the fans know better, and maybe the most telling point is who Coach Zeljko Obradovic played the most in the first two games of the ABA Championship vs. Red Star. To not play James again was undoubtedly a difficult decision for Coach Obradovic, as he had asked James on at least four occasions to continue with Partizan in subsequent seasons until he retired. With what happened, James moved on and has taken steps to recover money from the club he has already earned, money that was late for months. James has not filed a defamation suit, though he could, considering the president’s and the general manager’s continuing inappropriate remarks.
The Partizan president spoke of James’s fight and how embarrassing it was, coming on the heels of the club’s prior season’s melee with eventual champion Real Madrid in the Euroleague playoffs, and how it could affect its chances at an automatic spot in the Euroleague. I don’t know how the Euroleague decides these things, but it might behoove Partizan to focus more on how they treat their present and former players. Disagreements such as these with players are not meant to be played out in public, especially when players such as James have given so much to their organization.”
James Nunnally spent the last two seasons with Partizan, playing 69 EuroLeague games, and winning the ABA Championship in 2023.