After a rich playing career that spanned almost 20 years,  decided to hang up his sneakers and channel his energy and love for the sport into coaching.

That path opened up new perspectives, and during this engaging interview, he spoke about the challenges he faced on his coaching journey, what  meant to him — someone he was particularly fascinated by through their friendship and joint work at , how  showed qualities no one else had even back when he played for , the “” project, and the NCAA as a real pathway for young, aspiring players seeking a better future.

Last year, he worked in , and while waiting for a job with the — which is currently on standby due to internal conflicts between certain factions in Asia — he accepted an offer from the , which has been sending young players to , where he has worked with them actively in recent months.

belongs to the category of basketball romantics who had the chance to grow up around some of the greatest, which, as he admits, shaped his high standards when evaluating upcoming talent. Still, he got into coaching from the most honest motive — to help young individuals.

 found special inspiration in one of the greatest basketball minds of all time — . During his playing days, he had the chance to work with him by joining his teams during summers as a training player. That’s when he learned a valuable life lesson:

In recent months, a major topic has been the departure of young and talented players not just from the region but all over Europe to the NCAA. Over there, they get a life opportunity — from financial support to a chance to prove themselves on the court — and even if they don’t succeed in basketball, they leave with a plan B:

is a synonym for work ethic and relentless effort that led him to the heights of his basketball career, including signing with , then , and soon he’ll likely play in the again as a member of . In addition to all that, he’s a player who impressed with every performance for the national team and is someone the will rely on in the coming years.

That same said that  is his basketball father and someone who played a significant role in his journey. We came to  after touching on the topic of sports psychology, and according to the classifications made by our guest, there are players with internal motivation and those with external.

The first group is smaller and driven not by fame, money, or career, but by an inner feeling of fulfillment and genuine enjoyment of the process — from training to preparation and games. They handle criticism better, accept losses, and face reality more easily. The others, driven by external motivation, train for money, fame, and legacy. Some top champions are motivated by both, but in the group of intrinsically motivated athletes, you’ll find individuals like , , and :

All development processes in basketball are long-term — they need serious analysis, planning, and programming.

What does that mean?

How Nikola Jokic shattered stereotypes — from the bottom to the stars

also spent time in Asia, particularly , where his mentor was . When comparing cultures and work approaches, we wanted to hear firsthand why, despite the difference in numbers, countries like Serbia still produce more quality:

“I worked in China three times. My second job was coaching young players, and I recognized big potential in a then-16-year-old named Yang Hansen — 220 cm — who’s expected to get a strong NBA contract soon. Yang Hansen really flourished while working with me. They see him there as the next Yao Ming, but in terms of playing style, he’s more like Nikola Jokic — excellent technique, shooting, passing, great feel for defense and teammate movement.”

Dejan Milojevic – a smile and positivity

Dejan Milojevic is someone whose name brings a smile and warm memories to everyone. Though he left us too soon, his legacy is greater than anyone can imagine. Deki and Bojan Ljubojevic had a long history of friendship and professional collaboration. Like Avramovic, the late Milojevic highly valued Ljubojevic’s work and once said he was one of the best shooting and player development coaches in Europe:

“Deki… Let me try to say something that hasn’t been said. I thought a lot about him, about his success, about how well he was received in the NBA. Besides his undeniable coaching and personal qualities, what fascinated me was how he carried all that. All that pressure, work, development, and interpersonal relationships — he carried it with a smile and positivity.

I have to say, I once had a big basketball disagreement with him. I told him openly, and he replied that he didn’t agree, that everyone has a right to their opinion — but he thanked me for being honest.

There were young players who expected more minutes or better roles and were disappointed, but no player was ever truly unhappy with Deki. He was honest and direct. That was part of his greatness.”

Paris as a basketball club is now a sensation, and Bojan Ljubojevic was part of it from the very beginning in 2018. Seven years isn’t long, but “time flies,” and when you look at how Paris rose to EuroLeague levels and became a serious contender, it’s clear it was no accident. Behind it all was a well-thought-out plan:

“They were a club that, from the start, knew what they wanted and where they wanted to go. One of the owners previously had a stake in an NBA franchise and wanted to build something similar in Paris. He saw Paris as a good market, bought a club from the south of France, and moved it to Paris. Then they began working seriously on marketing — what does that mean? They were in the second division, brought in 10 of the most talented French players, worked social media seriously, signed a deal with the Jordan brand, brought in major musicians to perform at halftime… I know that in Asia, the Jordan Paris collection was the top-selling line at that time.

Sylvain Francisco was a great unproven talent I worked with a lot, but he wasn’t getting playing time — now he’s one of the top point guards in the EuroLeague. There’s also Milan Bartbich, who was with Paris back then and now plays for Nanterre — his father is from our region. I believe he can become one of the best point guards in France. Then there was Ismael Kamagate and several other talented players who ended up being drafted.”, Bojan Ljubojevic concluded for Basketball Sphere.