By Aris Barkas/ barkas@eurohoops.net
Dubai BC is officially part of the ABA League. They hope they will start climbing the ladder in European competitions from the BKT EuroCup, they have presented themselves and after two years of talks, a basketball team that will play at least in the Adriatic League is being formed.
Djordje Djokovic, the younger brother of Tennis legend Nole Djokovic, and Dejan Kamenjasevic, former assistant coach in Baskonia and also assistant coach and GM in Girona among others, two of the main people responsible for the Dubai BC project, open their cards and talk to Eurohoops about their step to a bold, new world.
With many things already written about Dubai and many myths surrounding the endeavor, there are some key points to be considered.
While Dubai will be competitive in any competition they are participating in, first and foremost, it wants to be sustainable as a business, opting to use the term “franchise”. So all the rumors about big signings are not accurate.
Of course, there are potentials on the court, and things might be even more interesting with the off-the-court plans which include moves at every level, including the key part of talents leaving early for other leagues, lately for the NCAA.
At this point, Dubai may still enter next season’s EuroCup, a decision the EuroLeague shareholders will take this month. The newly formed club has even accepted, as it was said in the official joint press conference in ABA, that they will not get qualification to the EuroLeague by winning next season’s Adriatic League.
While the EuroLeague remains the ultimate goal, Dubai is ready to pay its dues and walk step by step. That made the first question of this interview obvious.
Why do you want to play in the ABA League and how this ties to your intention to be part of the EuroLeague?
Dejan Kamenjasevic: “For us, the Adriatic League is important for many reasons, Dubai has a lot of people from former Yugoslavia. It’s a region that has produced some of the best players in the world and also they understood our plan and accepted us in the league, even those who had previous doubts.
In total, we have 100.000 people from the region living in Dubai, a very important potential fan base. So ABA is our entry to Europe, we can help them and they can help us. This is a long-term partnership. And if we compete in the ABA League other leagues can accept us. Of course, some skepticism existed for the last two years about us because we didn’t explain who we were. I think our participation in the league will open up minds around Europe and break prejudice”.
Djordje Djokovic: “It’s the best and most logical choice. There have been great players and teams from different parts of that region. From day one, they gave us the option to enter Europe. It’s a league that gave too many great teams and players in Europe. So this is a great option for us. Dubai is also very popular, in the region of the Balkans. Many players will get a lot of respect for us, and we will continue to evolve as a sports project. We can test ourselves and become better”.
So that means you will get players for your roster from the ABA League region?
D. Kamenjasevic: “It’s necessary to have players not only from the region but also players who have experience in the league. That way our “landing” in the competition will be much easier. Our budget will be made according to the league. If we have to play also in another competition, then we will think differently. But right now, that’s our plan”.
D. Djokovic: “We can play only in ABA or in ABA and another competition. We have two different budgets and two different plans for the roster. We want to be among the top positions in the standings of the ABA League. So it’s very important to have players who have enough experience on this level and in this league. Also having players from the region of ABA is not only because of the region itself, but also because of the quality of players in the region. We want to create a hub for quality players. We want to keep players for the long term. We want to help develop new talents and hopefully, in our 10-year plan achieve a top European performance”.
The most common accusation is that sports are used for “sportswashing” in the Middle East. How do you reply to this?
D. Kamenjasevic: “This perception, we think, demonstrates a lot of prejudice and lack of knowledge about the Middle East in general. When we are talking about Dubai, or when we are talking about the United Arab Emirates, this is more than 200 nations living together in peace. And those 200 nationalities live in the world’s safest city. Human rights, which we like to speak about in Europe, are better respected here than in some European countries. Dubai is already a brand by itself, it was promoted as one of the best and safest cities in the world, and a lot of visitors can say that. If we talk about a human rights problem in Dubai, then some people are lying, or it’s just ignorance and bad faith.
I, also, have to add something else. If we go to the past from 1934 to 1954, Syria, Libanon, and Egypt were taking part with other European countries in FIBA competitions. Egypt hosted and won Eurobasket 1949. So all those comments about the Middle East are ignorant at best. It’s not bad when people don’t know, it’s bad when they think they know. So this is not a first. Maccabi is also from the Middle East. So, in a way, this is a continuity of something from the past and Dubai is coming at the right time for European basketball. And this is needed. We think that nobody can say that the current EuroLeague model, or in general the European basketball model, is sustainable. For us, that’s the important thing and there might be a lot of negative comments, but at the end of the day, this is just prejudice and nothing else. In one year, when people come and see the games, they will not talk about this. What Dubai brings is only positive”.
D. Djokovic: “Prejudice and everything else is normal, after all, we face it every day. We cannot “sell” Dubai to people who have not been there. But when you see Dubai, then you really understand what Dubai is all about. It’s one of the top 5 brands in the world. It’s already established and as Dubai basketball, we are representing Dubai as it is. It’s the greatest, safest, cleanest city in the world. There is no discrimination, everyone respects each other, no matter if you are Christian or Muslim, everyone is living peacefully and for me, this is the most unique place in the world. This is the first time I have not seen any racism and people don’t know about this. We want to show this face of Dubai, we don’t want to change the face, we want to show the true face. And I am thankful that I have the support and I can do this.
On top of that, Dubai has a huge love for the game of basketball. It’s the second most viewed live sport in the country, there are one million expats from Europe in Dubai. Our franchise will bring them the chance to share their passion for basketball. I know that it’s a challenge, there’s a huge culture to establish, but in the coming years, we are going to do something extraordinary. We hope that we are going to be one very competitive and healthy franchise, expanding that market in the Eastern part of the world and the whole world. We want to bring to Dubai for starters Adriatic League games, we want to bring entertainment value, expanding the market to the Eastern part of the world, helping the whole world understand what European basketball is all about”.
You used the word “franchise”, while in Europe we are used to terms like “teams” or “clubs”. Is this a difference that shows your approach?
D. Djokovic: “(Smiles) We are called Dubai Basketball Club, we want to have a good team, but also we are a franchise and we have a business plan. We are creating an ecosystem and a product that can be shared all over Europe and all over the world and create a profit. We can’t be all losing 10-15 million per season, we want to earn that kind of money. We want European clubs to be in a position where they can get back millions. That’s why we are using the term “franchise”, we hope that we can help create a business ecosystem that can be profitable”.
D. Kamenjasevic: “When you analyze this, Dubai is not a local project, it’s a regional project and that explains what Djordje says. We are not just a club, we are a franchise that brings a new ecosystem to the table. Geographically we are in the the middle between Europe and markets like Asia, China, and India. So we are in a position to open the doors of those markets to European basketball.
And don’t forget that Dubai itself is a big market. We have one million people here who are interested in basketball, they are expats from the EuroLeague countries. Out of them, 100.000 come from the ABA League region. Basketball is the most followed sport in Dubai with the biggest growth of 20% yearly. Until now European basketball is an outsider to those markets, compared to the NBA, or even the Australian NBL which by the way is doing a great job. I think the key will be opening the door for this business model. We feel that the European basketball value will not be the same in the future”.
D. Djokovic: “To get back to the question and add something, a “franchise” generally means a team of a bigger league, a term used in the NBA. Some terms on basketball have different meanings depending on the topics and the league’s system. Franchises are typically more stable entities, compared to clubs, they have clear rules and regulations, and there’s continuity for fans and stakeholders. And that’s exactly what we are hoping for”.
You have already mentioned the “second competition” on top of the Adriatic League. So next season you want to be part of the EuroCup? And how do you comment on all the rumors about Dubai having a huge budget and the ability to spend absurd amounts of money?
D. Djokovic: “We have been very open to the EuroLeague from day 1 and we have shared our wish to be part of the family. It’s a long process, and we understand the complexities. We have even accepted that we will not be eligible to play in the EuroLeague if we win the Adriatic League. It would be unrealistic for ABA to accept us if we wanted that because they have only one qualifying spot that gives priority to a wild card. So we have been very clear on the fact that we are not seeking access via the ABA league to the EuroLeague, the EuroCup, or the Basketball Champions League. We hope to become a part of the EuroLeague someday, it would be a natural path to get there via the EuroCup. We don’t want to interfere with the EuroLeague and their plans, possible investors, or anything else. For the moment we are starting in the ABA and we want to show to everyone, including the EuroLeague shareholders, what Dubai means. We have a great business model, we have the Coca-Cola Arena and we want to show to the whole basketball community around the world, that our product will be there for a long time, we have a healthy structure and a solid plan”.
D. Kamenjasevic: “For us, EuroLeague it’s the best competition in the world. We were in the recent Final Four. We have a great respect for the league. We are here to bring something new, to unify people and we hope that in the future we will be part of the family. With the current CEO and the current President we have a great relationship, the same applied to the previous management and the point is to find the right timing and help build basketball in Europe and our region. We are happy and grateful to be in the ABA League and we hope that much more positive things will happen in the future.
On the other part, having an 80 million budget and getting the biggest players… As I said and Djordje mentioned, this is first and foremost a business model. Spending 80 million is not a business model, it’s spending money to win. We want to win and also make money. We want to be a solid, independent franchise with resources and income in a new ecosystem. How? We will need time. This is not happening from one day to the next. We will not spend more than we earn. We will not come to any league, get the best players, and win. We want to work together, in harmony with the rest, create a new ecosystem, and yes, be competitive. But we are not going to sign Tavares. Now they might say we are cheap, getting a player maybe for 100.000 euros (laughs). So don’t believe the rumors, we are not bringing Michael Jordan back from retirement”.
D. Djokovic: “We do consider the EuroCup as part of the EuroLeague, we have a lot of respect for the EuroCup. If and when Russian clubs come back, EuroCup will be even stronger. And you have seen what happened with Paris and their 22-1 record. this season. I think they have done a beautiful job, considering also the entertainment value in the arena. If we get to the EuroCup, it would be a great experience for us to learn, and also a chance to win. We are up to the challenge of organizing the games, filling the arena, and creating a solid team. We want at the same time to create a business project, that will be sustainable for a long time, this is not just something for the next 3-4 years.
We also have a basketball academy with more than 700 kids, we participated in the ANGT, in the junior ABA League and we consider this part of the project very important for our diversity. We have the most international academy, and we want to create a healthy hub that can develop some of the greatest talents in the world. We want Dubai to be part of all this, keeping the talents here and not all over the world because they have better resources elsewhere. That’s why we creating a state-of-the-art training center. To give every player the best possible conditions, the best talents, and become the best players they can”.