EP.97 :Strahinja Stojačić 3x3 najbolji igrač na svetu 🗣Strahinja Stojačić

Greetings and another conversation on YouTube. channel, Alesto of course at the beginning first of all gratitude to the guest, Strahinja Stojačić, currently the top-ranked basketball player. or 3x3 basketball player in the world. For some, it was a bit harder to adjust than for teammates earlier, but it seems they have gotten used to it. We will mention who we are talking about later. Of course, gratitude to Merkur X type, gratitude. Vergnan, gratitude to everyone for the support. Strahinja, tha

nk you so much for coming. You came from Novi Sad because today you only have one training session, but training has started seriously. Tell me, who trains the best among the guys currently in training? Who is the best... I don't want to say the best player, but who currently trains the best among the people you train with? First of all, thank you for the invitation, it's a pleasure to be here, I must say. In this period, the training sessions are really intense as we have started preparations f

or the Olympic Games. It was truly an honor for me that you invited me and I managed to find time to come. Regarding the training, well, we are still in that rhythm overall, let's say, where we started from the preparations after a month-long break, but for us, the winter period is intended for rest and breaks, so we have started training slowly and everyone is really at a commendable level. Usually, at the beginning of preparations, we are quite relaxed because we know there is time, but this y

ear is a special year for the Olympic Games and everyone has been somewhat in training and I think it's more than satisfactory for a start. And tell me one thing, I asked I talked a bit with some of your teammates, coaches, and so on, have you changed in terms of training from the period when you played basketball in the period when you started playing basketball? That is, how did a person who was not a fan of training reach such heights? Well, generally, maybe it's about giving it your all" I b

elieve that if I truly dedicated myself to basketball, I could have played at a decent level, maybe not at the highest level. I really think that if I had a better mindset, as they say, and if I had been more responsible towards myself and towards training, I would have succeeded, so to speak... and luckily, all the pieces fell into place, so I joined a good team, with good coaches from the start and with quality people who supported that story, and overall I have an issue because I don't like a

nyone having authority over me, that's just how I am. I'm not saying it's good, but that's just me. And then through basketball, I started to realize that you know that everything depends only on you. At that moment, you don't have a coach, you go to tournaments where if you lose, you haven't earned money, you've even spent it. And so one thing led to another, and as the results got better and better, my motivation grew, and I can say that now, compared to when I was playing basketball, it's lik

e night and day. Wait, so someone needs to hit your pocket for you to train? I'm kidding, of course. It's not about the money, it's more about that... Maybe my attitude was a bit... Although I was young and at that time, I might have left home early, started living on my own early, started doing things that an athlete shouldn't do. So, luckily, everything fell into place and it turned out fine. You played basketball, I saw somewhere, now correct me if I'm wrong... Was Mega your first professiona

l club or how did it go? Yes, I came to Mega as a junior at 16-17 years old and in Mega I spent a year and my first professional contract was actually with Radnički from Kragujevac. And I was there for four years. Was Muta your coach, Muta Nikolić? Muta was my coach for those four years and" At the beginning, we had a really good relationship, but then I had that accident, I had a somewhat serious leg injury, where due to my own bad decisions and mistakes, our relationship cooled off a bit. The

recovery took longer than it should have. I went underground, first to Smederevo, then from Smederevo, I went to Konstantin, stayed there for 4-5 years and then a couple of years abroad, and that's it. Can you tell me what happened, for example, with those wrong decisions, like the situation with Muta Nikurić, what happened? Do you remember? I mean, do you remember? Well, it's not really much of a story. In general, I was quite irresponsible and as for training, we've talked about it, I didn't p

ut in enough effort and at that moment, I can't say that I really, you know, wanted to be a very successful basketball player. I was fine where I was and I was young, I was the youngest there and somehow... Well, maybe I'd say, I can't say I didn't adapt, but all of that really means to me, first and foremost, many good friends since then, but overall, maybe my basketball journey didn't look as it should have because I didn't want it enough. So, you adapted well, but off the court. Yes, exactly.

Do you regret not pursuing a 5x5 basketball career? Do you blame yourself sometimes? Well, generally, I would probably blame myself a lot, but I think it turned out for the best. And I believe that what I am experiencing now and playing at the highest level of 3x3 sports is the best outcome, again, I say, living my childhood dream. Yes, it's not basketball, but it's basketball, which is very similar and... This year, the opportunity arose for me to possibly play at the Olympic Games. which prob

ably wouldn't have happened if I had pursued basketball, so currently, I can't say I regret it, but overall, I'm even glad that I managed to come out of that period." I come back and if everything ended like this and goes this way. If I may ask you, a hypothetical question although you partially answered, would you prefer to be the best basketball player in the world or a good basketball player in, I don't know, for example, Eurocup? Currently I can say... I won't say that. No...come on, please.

Currently, I'm definitely a better basketball player. If I, if I were in basketball where I am, rather than being some mediocre basketball player, so to say. Since you play this somewhat differently, there is really a great weight in going to defend, to play in those world championships every year, to go represent your country at the Olympic Games and I think that's something every athlete dreams of. Twice you were, twice you were world champion, The last time was at the end of last year, right

? Which month was it, just remind me. No, at the end of last year was the which was held in Jerusalem, and the World Championship was at the beginning of the year in Vienna. In Vienna, yes. In Vienna and that is one of, not one of, but surely the most beautiful tournament we played. The question is when will that atmosphere and that ambiance be repeated and it was truly incredible. And that match especially. Yes. Now, about the Americans... Yes. Now, I have a few things that interest me. The fir

st thing, there was a great atmosphere in the and that Vienna really somehow became if I may say a parallel to Chicago, and it is a symbol like Chicago for Serbian immigrants, so now Vienna. And once again, great gratitude to all the people who organized the Svetosavski ball. There are many wonderful, wonderful people of Serbian origin there who feel connected to the homeland, of course. And they showed that at that tournament." Now, I would like you to tell me how significant it is to have such

loud support and how much you annoyed the local fans. I really expected that there would be, that we somehow knew there would be a lot of our fans in Vienna, but what interested me the most was the quarterfinal against Austria that we played, where I truly believe that at that moment, more people were cheering for Serbia than for Austria. And then it was the first time, I would say, in basketball that I experienced such intense cheering, that... When we were in that tunnel, when the Americans w

ere coming out, it was really loud. Like in the arena when people start jumping, and we were below, it echoed. It was truly incredible and so far my most beautiful experience is that World Championship. How did the Americans react when they saw that cheering? Well, the Americans, they were, I would say, led by Fredette already... Even, I think, many of them experienced that atmosphere. There are players, for sure, who prefer to play away games, better than home games. So... I think they were als

o aware of where they came, because they watched our previous games, they knew what to expect. Absolute madness in the stands. Especially since we were playing against America, maybe we could say the biggest basketball derby of Serbia against America, two of the greatest basketball powers in history. So we were aware that it would be a really, really crazy game which in the end showed that maybe we had a little more luck than them at certain moments, but all in all a very good tournament for us

and well deserved. Yes, but to not just talk in general terms, you were losing in that final at that tournament and the coach and trainer Marko Ždero said that you even played that game poorly and he said it's hard to explain what happened. So they had three shots for victory or maybe even more. And as Ždero says, if football was, then" If that hoop was the goal line, that basket would have been counted, but the ball simply went out. Maybe describe it a bit now, okay, now it's been almost a year

, but from this distance, those details and that match. So generally, as for that match, I don't know exactly what to tell you now. I really think that generally, all four of us who were on the court at that moment, whatever the result and however much, I can't say that we played poorly, yes, we had shortcomings, especially defensively, but yes, we believed until the last moment that we would win that match. And Dejan, with a couple of crazy three-pointers he made, managed to pull us, because he

was truly a leader and someone who was the oldest in that team, maybe had the most experience with the national team, and where we just believed that we could come back in that match and that we were better than the Americans. I still claim that we are better than them, although it's always the hardest to play against them, But the team that also comes to win, it's always difficult to play such matches. But I think our trust in teammates the most, in ourselves, and that's what pushed us to vict

ory. Is there trash talk in basketball? Well, generally not so much, it happens, there are individual players who like it, but I think it's still at a minimal level. Because it's a fast game, you don't even have time to say. Yes, sometimes I often sit on the bench and when I would say something during a timeout, let alone to talk during the game. But there was trash talk in the quarterfinals against Austria. Is it true about the people from the audience? It was, that... They provoked us while we

were sitting on the benches and so on, which I consider not... not sportsmanlike, not fair, especially if someone is a member or official of an association. I wouldn't want that to be done in my team, so I reacted a bit more vehemently but I still think it was the atmosphere" which she brought and again an uncertain match with one ball where we score a three-pointer for victory and that all contributed to some sort of, I can't even say conflict, but a little squabble. So, I wouldn't like to men

tion names now, we don't even have to mention positions, it doesn't matter, but that person is like an official was heckling you from the bench and when it ended, you went to him... And it's a bit of a specific situation, because Stefan played, my own brother, played last year in Vienna, that's a year ago, two years ago, and played a year before the World Cup, played there and things didn't end on good terms and then that escalated. It escalated little by little and at that moment they were real

ly in conflict, because Stefan wanted to stay, wanted to take some players with him, they simply weren't satisfied with how the organization functioned and because of that a conflict arose... I wouldn't talk about it now, but I think that moment, it wasn't just a moment related to the match, but it kept going, going, going and culminated at the end after the match. And what did you say in the end? I mean, you don't have to quote... Well, nothing rude. I remember even today what I said, "only if

there's something we can talk about now", it's not the time during a match to talk about it. And that's it. In the end, we apologized, what's even more interesting, he was the one who awarded the prize to the best player of the tournament in the end. So we apologized after the tournament. When talking about those tournaments, I've seen some of your interviews, matches are very short. And maybe that's why you excel, sorry, maybe it's a bit of a joke at your expense. that you prefer a short period

of time in which the match is played rather than basketball, where matches last longer. Is that true? Although you play... Well, generally now if I were to come back I was more annoyed during that period when I was supposed to work the most that I wasn't playing and then sitting lasted long, not playing." So, I think it's not that relevant, but... I really enjoy it, it's fast and efficient, crazy things happen, there's not much room for mistakes or hesitations, so I really adapted well and I lo

ve playing basketball. How long does basketball training last? Is it the same as for any other sport? Yes, yes, our training was especially important during the preparation period. and, like, three hours in the morning, then some shooting practice, and in the evening we have training, of course, an hour and a half to two, focusing on tactics, technique, and team work. I always joke, for example, with Marko Ždero, the current coach, who is a former basketball player, a top player, who revealed to

me that the ball, when we were filming a show, is smaller. So I really joke with the basketball players that they play with a women's ball. Yes, it's women's size, just the weight of a real ball. That's how they made it. It's probably another form of FIBA marketing. Wanting to be recognizable for something. And they made a ball with the same weight, just smaller, and left it like that. What else do you like about basketball and why do you think you have adapted better to this type of competitio

n than to basketball? Well, I think it might be a bit easier psychologically, so to speak. In basketball, you have a lot fewer set shots than in basketball. In basketball, it's just sometimes a semi-crazy shot is realistic and sometimes you need to take it, while in basketball, generally, you always come to building a good position to take that shot, except in some extreme situations. So I think it's a transition where more freedom suits me to make some unreasonable move or decision often, while

in basketball, generally, it still has to be More serious, more players, and I believe it has to be that way. So it suits your character more? Yes. Is it the same with your other teammates as well? Do you think it's the same with them too? Because some don't seem, I have to tell you, some seem, your teammates, like people who are completely focused, even not focused, but who don't stand out so much... I know exactly what you're talking about. I would immediately single out Branković and Barać.

They are generally on point and were some players who, I won't say role players, but knew at every moment what they were doing and what their task was on the court. While, for example, I won't talk about Dejan, Dejan does 15 things he shouldn't do in that one basketball game, but all of that is out of some desire and madness and really, Dejan has made so many of those crazy shots that a normal person couldn't, but some educated, really well-educated player, wouldn't even think of taking that sho

t. And somehow, he, whether he was born with that, whether he practiced those shots so much, that to him now there's literally a small difference in percentages between that crazy shot and a shot when he's wide open. Dejan was a guest here and mentioned a kind of healthy rivalry with you and who will take the shot and who to rely on in the end and so on. And he told that anecdote about the sneakers. But tell me, we were talking at the beginning... Twice world champion, twice European champion, h

ow many other tournaments do you have? Have you counted? I really don't know. Ask Dejan the same, Dejan knows because he currently has by far the most (titles) he always had his story for that. Ask Strahinja how many tournaments he has won without me, so this year I was lucky to win both the European and one master without him, so now again... It's not that much, but for a year and a half his main thing was: "Just ask him how many masters he has without me." But I don't know, so I think we're...

That, Excuse me, we're around fifteen, masters. I asked him, he told me he knew" He came and said, ask Strahinja how many titles he has won with and without me. That's it, that's it. One without him... If I'm not mistaken, one without him... And everything else is with him? Maybe everything is with him. European is definitely without him, but now I'm really not sure about the titles. Although it's possible I don't have any without him... oh... But, I say, he is the born winner. Every training s

ession with him is like being on the edge of war. Right? So, we had, well, it's been a while now since we started training together, when we joined forces... I used to come to training relaxed, and from the very beginning he knew he wanted to win. And again, maybe that's what drew us together in the beginning, that every training session, to some extent, not necessarily the most serious, But that every training session was at a high level. Does that mean there were arguments during training? Arg

uments, I must say, were common at one point, but now somehow... Although, Ždero has started to leave the competitive stuff out of training a bit, but really, lately, we probably got used to each other and now they're gone, but they were there for sure. How often do you play three on three during training? During the season, we don't play often, every weekend we're somewhere at tournaments and if we return home, it's usually for 2-3 days at most We use that for recovery, just to shoot some hoops

to stay in shape, do some gym work, and we don't play. During this preparation period, it's literally every day. Again, it depends, sometimes it's strictly basketball, sometimes it's... one team defense, the other offense, with 5-6 offensive plays when we work on tactics, but every day we have at least a bit of gameplay. And now when you train, do you train with players from other teams in Serbia? Currently, during the national team preparations, we're all together, players from Liman are here,

" Mare Milaković and Kova, who are currently playing in Japan, well, in China. This is our 8-9 at the training camp, so we are all together. Generally, during the season and at the beginning of the preparations when we are separated in clubs, it's not like we train together, but there are days when we arrange to have sparring sessions with each other and help each other to get ready as best as possible for the next tournament. each other to get ready as best as possible for the next tournament.

How competitive is the basketball on those sparring sessions? In general... Really, even when we train, we are at a relatively high level and we try to make it as close as possible to the tournament, of course, it doesn't have to be the same every time, but every Basketball is strong and there are discussions on who judged what, why this was called, why this wasn't, but we try to give our best in every basketball game and that's it. do you come for your reward? considering the current order of t

he best teams in the world, do you ever think that the best, that you when you come to that sparring basketball and when the team gathers there, you don't know, depending on ten, fifteen, however many, do you ever think, oh, now we're sparring, and Is this the best basketball in the world that you've played? Well, no, in order to do that. It often happens, for example, that there are situations where, let's say, smaller countries that have started investing in basketball come. Singapore, for exa

mple, the Dominican Republic, Algeria, there are various teams that come to the 3x3 academy you lead, Dero and Dača. And then it pays off for them. They come and in those moments they are at 100%, where we realistically try, when someone new comes, to take it easy, to avoid too much contact. You see mice entering like that... Just to They are happy to have the opportunity to play basketball with us. How many Serbian teams are currently among the top ten in the world? Currently, there are three S

erbian teams. Partizan, Liman, and UB. I really think that all three teams, that they are among the top ten teams, in fact, I think Liman and Partizan will progress this year." How big of a problem is it, as you were telling me, will you explain to viewers or listeners again, greetings to the Truck Drivers from America, who often listen to these things, how much do you think it is, and how much of a problem is it that it's a problem from Serbia? How much harder is it to be the third team in Serb

ia than the first team in another country? Well, it's definitely much harder and now we are almost, when last year there was the championship of Serbia, literally the championship of Serbia reaches a rank. with the biggest tours in the world. In Serbia, besides these three teams I mentioned, you have at least 5-6 quality, very quality teams that also participate in the World Tour, appearing on time and at Masters and Challengers and achieving good results. The Hwanju team, a Chinese team with mo

stly Serbian players, won a Masters last year and young guys who can be the future of this sport. So, generally, when these tournaments come to Serbia, it's more challenging to play. You know, everyone is highly motivated, every time they play against you, Against us, against Liman, it doesn't matter against which of those leading teams. I generally prefer not to play in Serbia, because the game gets rougher and it's somehow easier for me to play abroad against foreigners than here on our courts

. There's always one-on-one basketball. and it's always very intense, tough, So, honestly speaking, I don't like playing in tournaments in Serbia much. Can you explain why it is a problem, for example, to be the second or third team in Serbia? How big of a problem is it on a global level for Serbian basketball? Well, there are more problems now in general. So far there was a problem, for example, that the first 15 teams have the right to apply for participation in tournaments, in challenger tour

naments. Those are second-tier tournaments. The first ones are Masters, the second tier are challengers. And up to the first 20 teams have the right" To sign up to get into the tournament, to participate in that tournament. And it goes with a certain level, how many tournaments you've already won, it doesn't even matter. But until this year, it's been since two, three years ago, no more than Two Serbian teams have earned the right to participate in the tournament. Instead, you had to, you always

have for each tournament a certain even lower level of tournaments that you win and by winning them, you qualify for that tournament. So maybe there are more Serbian teams, but to win a tournament directly from FIBA, only two can. And that's already, let's say, a problem from the start. Serbian teams, but now they said you have 5, 6, 7 Serbian teams participating in the World Tour. The idea is for all of them to apply and mainly Bliman or Partizan to win, since they are better ranked than other

s. But now they introduced a new rule that, excuse me, from that tournament in the end that takes place, the top three teams qualify for the Masters. And until now it didn't matter which three teams, but this year they introduced for the first time that two teams from the same country cannot qualify from the same tournament for the Masters. So I think it will be even harder now and I think for us as Naci it's not ideal, because we have the most teams, we are the pride of Lithuanians and To some

extent, it's a rule that could disrupt Serbian teams a bit. But, again, I think each of these three teams are really good and there will be more of a challenge with them than with others. What does GQ magazine say, who is the NBA player with the most style? In the final, Russell Westbrook and Shea Gilgeous-Alexander faced off and the younger one won. The Oklahoma player is also one of the best basketball players this season. It started with a suit at the draft. Continued with some 2Pac motifs. V

arious colors, long pants, Converse sneakers, all He takes historical play onto the court. In the same sneakers. There were also bold and creative choices, and Converse, which returned to the NBA and wants to play a significant role again, chose him as the face of it. The fact that they even brought back is famously one of the most well-known commercials of all time, when they paired Larry Bird and Magic Johnson with the Choose Your Weapon story. That weapon model has been brought back, specific

ally through Shea. Now, as seen in the photo, first Bird and Magic were back to back, without any intention to reference a song title, and now it's just Shea. Therefore, the question arises, who is the next star that will be hired by the commercial. It's now just a matter of time. This means that in a tournament, finishing in the top three. Serbian teams, finishing in the top three places, only the first goes and the fourth goes. Fourth and fifth. Horrible. Yes, yes, it's horrible and... There i

s even a bigger issue here, and now it turns out the issue of why you are collecting points for the national team through these points. which realistically has always been easy for European world and Olympics, easily qualified, but they had many players and earned many points. Now with this rule, players will also receive Fewer points, but won't qualify for further tournaments. And you have, for example, we were just watching before. shows, in the top ten you have at least four Serbian players,

or five, maybe? I think it's five, but I think there was a time when there were more. Yes. I think at one point Liman and, in fact, at that time, Novi Sad and Liman were the first and second team in the world, so you had up to six, seven players in the top ten team. How much does that bother people in the basketball world? Well, I don't know, I can't say it bothers. Generally, I have never felt that it bothers. It happens to some players, opponents that it bothers, which is normal. Because... I

know that the Lithuanians already despise me for how many times I've beaten them lately in really important competitions and we've taken a few medals that they had hoped for, both in Antwerp at the world and now in Europe. That's normal, but generally I think that" People as people have no obstacles, but that people love Basketball and it matters to them to watch the best basketball. For the first time, you are the whole world. Where is basketball especially popular? Or basketball or whatever? F

rom what we felt, let's say, to me Asian countries. China and the Philippines. left an impression that they really love it and every tournament, we played once in the Philippines in a shopping mall of eight, nine floors and from the eighth to ninth floor wherever they could watch how it was in the middle of the court and everything, it was all packed and watching was madness. Did you see them playing on the street? I stayed in the Philippines, maybe the same. Already somewhere I talked about it,

although I don't believe. I literally think that Filipinos live for basketball. As much as I have felt it so far, when we went and that, and we were at the World Championship Games in case, watching is really crazy. So, that is... I have never seen so many people watching or playing basketball on a court. It doesn't matter if they are in sneakers or Barefoot, whether the ball is rubber, soccer, basketball, but they play basketball. seen in passing, something unforgettable. I was really taken ab

ack when I saw the amount of kids playing basketball, I said. Do they have sneakers, do they not. They play, they try and they have their own story. Did you have that problem when you were a kid? sneakers, gear and so on or did you go like everyone else, even if it's raining, I'm going to play basketball? That's from my brother, let's say, from my brother and dad who played basketball. Dad doesn't play anymore, but when I was really little, I went to watch, and Stefan Was, I can't say, crazy, bu

t he really loved it. And he decided to go before school at 6 a.m. train and that, while I wasn't really... Yes, I loved going to play basketball with friends and that's it. I never had that... Moment to convince myself to go out alone to shoot or train. I didn't have any issues with finding courts and such. There used to be a store on every corner. But have you ever wondered how many there are in Belgrade? On the other corner, there was a court that was already a problem when you were younger,

it was easier to come to play than to go to play. Because you always played good basketball and all the courts were crowded, so you didn't stand a chance when some older guys showed up And even if you beat them, it was still a problem. But is this story true, Deki's and Storović's, that, for a while, you couldn't find a model that suited you to play with a worn-out sneaker? That happened, recently. somehow, I can't say it became a habit or so to say, in general, I really convinced myself, since

I don't wear insoles and such, I never managed to get used to them and They simply didn't suit me, my feet always hurt and I tried a few times to use insoles and such, but I failed. Even when I played basketball, let's say, 7, 8, 9 years ago, I started playing in a circle at six and now I somehow can't switch from them. And I'm trying, we found some in China, no. I can't say brands, but some companies that make Kobe sneakers and I still play in them and listen. How much money do you have? Well,

I don't really know, but I have an unlimited number of quality sneakers, like, they tend to break often, so I need to have some in stock. But luckily, we go to China often, so there's always a shortage. We'll get more. And I see that Nike has started producing again... I watched a video, now they have some crazy colors and... We'll try to find them in the near future. But not at that price. And we'll try, I wouldn't pay that price, no problem. I like having them and I'm really into Tell me which

ones I like, Kobe sneakers and... It's not something... That's... I can't say, I don't mind throwing them away. It's again something that's essential gear. to play and when something suits me, I mean" that you need to invest to feel comfortable on the court. How hard and demanding is it to travel on the world tour? Is it a bigger challenge than training? Well, the hardest part is because the sport is not enough to take you high enough to be able to play like tennis, basketball, to play in Asia,

Europe, America, Australia, to travel a bit, to make it happen. to play everywhere in certain parts of the year, but still it's a sport that is evolving and FIBA, like us players, it's important for them to have more tournaments. And then cities determine some important days, city day, some festivals and so on, so they have tournaments on those days. is it important for them and then FIBA still doesn't have enough interest to maybe reject tournaments Because the location doesn't suit them. But

I think FIBA is progressing a lot in that, now they have made it so that July, August, this year is an Olympic year so it won't be, but July, August in principle is for Europe and all the most important tournaments in that period are played in Europe. And then it's a piece of cake. The problem is when you have to play in Japan, Europe, Canada. That's madness and then you don't even know if you've arrived, where you are, what you're doing. How do you adjust to the time difference? We talk about h

ow many tournaments you have in Asia now, But you have to return to Novi Sad. Well, we don't really have that. Whenever we can, we try to leave earlier. For example, for the first most important tournament, i.e. it's not the most important, but the opener, which is the first tournament of the year played in Japan in Tsukomiji. We will go to China 15 days earlier, or we have Chinese sponsors, we go there, train a bit with their Chinese teams. we prepare for the tournament and get used to the time

zone. But generally during the season on the day before the tournament you arrive, sleep as you can, sleep on the plane, try to adjust the plane to the time zone so... When it's night there, you sleep on which day, To endure it longer, so when you get there you hit it and how much you sleep." Ali... You really get used to it, and it means a lot to me. It's much easier now than it would have been at the beginning. I will never forget, that was probably the toughest period, by far. Back then, we

were called Vrba, my first year, Marko Branković and I played in the team, before we joined forces with Deki and Savkita at that moment. We were playing a tournament in Taiwan, Saturday and Sunday, Wednesday, Thursday in Debrecen, Saturday and Sunday in Korea, We arrived in Korea, I'll tell you. At 10 pm their time, the games start at 11. Literally, they woke us up at two minutes to 11. There, there, go to the court. We slept for 12 hours, we didn't know where they were. We went to the court, so

me Japanese guys were wrapping us up, nothing was clear to us. You mentioned sponsors, how important are they to you. the sponsor you have and what does it currently cover for your team? Well, I'll say it again, we really managed to monetize the whole cosmos regarding 3x3 basketball and what we are currently doing in the world of 3x3 and to establish some serious grounds where we have partnered with the company Huishan which, let's say, covers most of our expenses and where we have created a sto

ry that we really have 11 out of 12 people working in the entire collective of our team, besides the players, there are two strength and conditioning coaches, two basketball coaches, a physiotherapist, and a team manager, so it's a really serious and healthy story and I am honestly very proud of everything we have achieved and how we push ourselves to that level and stick together even when we had nothing and now that things are really good and that chemistry remains and everything is just like

it was at the beginning. How does the chemistry affect the fact that you now play Yamb for hours against each other? There was a lot. Well, those are some things, now I'm going back again, I'm talking about Dejan, but we played cards for a while and it came to the point that It was like, now you wore this, you threw it, the card fell, it can't be like that. And now we came to the night. We eliminated all games involving chance." We should have been rolling the dice, but that's not happening. It'

s more about luck, no one can cheat, steal, and so on. It interested both of us and relaxed us. We soon became good friends and spent a lot of time together, exploring different hobbies and activities. I learned a lot about her and myself during that time, and I will forever be grateful for those wonderful moments. It calms us down and makes us have fun You know, to hang out and enjoy it in every free moment and now everyone, so to speak, started and now it's already... Should we throw one or wa

it to shoot? Who's the best? I have to say it's me. I'm not currently the best in terms of results, where it's bad and losing a bit on all fronts, which is important to me. I owe Vraković lamb for the jam. Yes, he tricked me, but it's okay. I didn't know at the time, we were playing, we were playing And he took the lead 10-9 in the final tournament. And he said, enough, the season is over, we said this season we play 10-9, for me we don't play anymore Until the development, then we start from th

e beginning of the new season. So, now we started from scratch. And Dan leads... Dan leads everything, absolutely. Absolutely leads everything and... He likes to know it. it's always written down, always documented. He still stands in the table, he led now. 63.35 for him in victories. But he probably will send you a message. Oh, it's not that much, it's 62.24. Doesn't matter, right? But it's always written down and... They mainly... always throw some jokes. And, remind me now, I don't know if De

jan told me or someone else, I can't remember, or did I imagine it, which wouldn't be surprising, is it true that someone got angry at some table or some cards and stormed out of the room? It's not that Dejan would surely tell, because that's the question. It was, it was, we were playing cards. At a tournament in Abu Dhabi, I think it was Abu Dhabi." It probably is. I've arranged some cards and now... Den has this thing, that everything must be in place. like a song, everything must stay where i

t is, have its place And we always have a rule, now they can't touch those cards. And they have to endure, constantly guessing and constantly hiding, every time you guess wrong twice. And at one point, I don't know what happened, then. Savki was with us and Savki shouted at him, he threw it and went to his room. So they were connected, the rooms only had one door, like a big suite. And he went, lay down in bed, went straight out of the room. I don't want to play with you anymore, I'm honest, I d

on't want to play." So it was really interesting. Tell me, how much do you manage to have fun during the match? Do you sometimes manage to enjoy the game? Or is it all so fast? How long does the match last? Generally, there's no time to enjoy, it's more tense. It's really hard to get back into basketball if you start a bit more relaxed. For example, last year we played against the Philippines, whom we beat 21-89, where they took the lead 11-2, 11-3. Instead of finishing the match, saying you're

saving energy for tomorrow, you go all out eight minutes before the end and that basket is even harder to make than Maybe in a semifinal or final with a close score, you have to, every ball matters. So generally there's no room for enjoyment. Of course, there are some basketball games, you lead by a lot so there's a bit... let's say, a more relaxed period in the game, but generally every basket is taken seriously and We try to do that because of the opponents. Is it true, I mean actually true. I

t surely is, but maybe you can explain to me once again why It's harder and why you exert more in defense than in offense? Well, in defense, again, old basketball when everything starts from defense. Generally, that energy from defense transfers to offense. But in offense, like in basketball, at some point you can hide, to" You go to the corner, let those two collaborate, but here you have to always stay close to your player. Our principle, speaking for myself, well, not really. I'm talking abou

t others, it's a bit harder for me in defense, but We try to play that defense, follow or tracking. In basketball, there's always more contact, and there... It's much harder to play defense when you have help simply, than when you don't. And then you really exert yourself physically, defensively, to... To defend yourself. Tell me one more thing about basketball that seems quite interesting, and that is, yes, I think you mentioned that in an interview I heard, and that is that sometimes you simpl

ify basketball to two on two. Generally, you, again, like somewhat in basketball, have a system you play, but... In the last 10 seconds, if there wasn't a shot, the center sets a pick in basketball, and here, since it's shorter, you generally, if you don't enter well in the attack, if you're not quick enough from Nea, if You're not quick enough from dribble to ball, it comes down to either 1-1 or pick and roll. Which generally, I believe, most of us have, that individual In principle, it's much

easier to gain an advantage from that some play, collaboration of two players from pick and roll, And that's why in basketball, the majority, to Say, either directly pick and roll happens, or collaboration of two players decides. So basically, collaboration of two players is most common. in basketball and that's something we strive to do the most. whether in attack, when you're in attack, to or... And how much improvisation is there considering the game is so fast? Well, there is, there's really

a lot of improvisation and it depends a lot on defense. Is... It's much easier to deceive the defense again, I'm talking about. in basketball, in basketball, because there's no third player to help. It's very expensive for that duo for you to help from the third, leaving that one alone. And then... It generally depends on how the defense guards you. Sometimes they... Everyone hears, sometimes it happens" They go for it and a lot depends on that, you have to improvise. Because, that is basically

the biggest advantage to outsmart the defense, to create an advantage, a good position for yourself or your teammate. Whether, when the ball reaches Deke, does he pass or stay there? Same as I was talking about Deke. Chances. No, no. Deke is truly, now we can say, a player who is one of the best shooters on the tour and he has it in him. And we all believe that when he takes that shot, although his dribbling is a bit weaker, the coach has now taken him out of playing pick and roll, but when the

ball comes to him, in general, he finishes in the way he should, either by shooting or by making a dribble and shooting, which he really does best. And it seems that you two are somehow players who, if I may say so, score the most points, and you told me that, for example, you would always like to have players like Barać and Branković on the team, you somehow feel secure. Let's explain a bit their role in that. some balance in that team, in that composition. Yes, well generally, Deke and I are,

let's say, two ball players. who play with the ball more than they set screens, I'm talking first about offense. And those two are basically the ones who read what's happening. Whether they will come to play a pick and roll with two players without the ball or will they run to me and Deke in the pick and roll at that moment. Whether they will roll or... roll, come for a layup or come for a three-pointer. And... My opinion is that in those moments the two-on-two game they play creates an advanta

ge. It happens that they create an advantage for me, it happens that they create it for themselves, but I think that their role of reading and overviewing the whole situation is very important. While defensively, Nemanja is the one who is the pillar of our defense and who in most cases guards the best players of the opposing team. As for rebounding, those two are there to" They're chasing after all those balls and bringing that toughness to Deki's name in Defazino, because, let's say it again, t

hose two are a bit tougher and physically stronger than the two of us. I think the team was really put together so we have everything we need in one team. Uroš Luković was here on the podcast and talked about how much he loves basketball. He thought he wouldn't be interested in it, But he says he thinks his future lies in basketball and training. We were just talking about whether there was a reward for the letter I received from the Olympic Committee, so he wrote me something and told me that h

is plan for the season is to try to find a team and start seriously focusing on basketball. Many players who have tried it, really like it. For example, I have two players from my team, Neranđić who plays for Dinamiko this year, played in FM, was the captain of FMPA. Ibarać, Ibarać is also a pretty good basketball player played in Škerir, has three, four titles with Inter from Bratislava. played a bit in the Czech Republic, was a serious basketball player again. And both of them have that, I can

't say. they regret it, but like I didn't start playing basketball early, like I knew Probably I would have started earlier. But again, it comes back to, it's much easier now to talk and that's what I admire about the Novi Sad and Liman teams. So they really started when there were even five times fewer rewards and when they didn't have sponsors and all. Now somehow it's easier to make the decision to switch to basketball. I have a personal problem with my godfather, Stefan. Savić, who played in

Vojvodina, captain of Vojvodina. I can't convince him to switch, I For the second, third year in a row, I love playing basketball and that's it. And I generally think that... what he offers in basketball would contribute much more in basketball and, again, I come back to his financial situation, and successes and everything, whereas for basketball I come back I will never be able to add to a higher level, let's say, too serious. So, you're suggesting to players who have a feel for basketball, b

ut aren't top-notch in basketball, that for them in a professional sense, in terms of achievement, player achievement, and financial sense, it would be better for them to switch to basketball in the next year, two, three? I know it's a question... It's not, it's very difficult to start in positions. If someone comes to us or to the Liman team, I would suggest. And starting from scratch is really... It's problematic at the beginning. how you lobby for your team. No, no, no, but it's easier, much

easier for people. to come right away and already have secure 20 tournaments this year than to join a team where you have, where you have to go and win a tournament in Serbia or Bosnia or Bulgaria, it doesn't matter, to go to the next tournament that you have to win in order to go to a serious tournament. Where are we Partizan and Liman are already at a great advantage compared to other Serbian teams from last year's positions. Because the position is scored, right? The position is scored and by

position at the beginning of each year you get a certain number of tournaments, plus what I was talking about throughout the year, you Have the right to request second-tier tournaments to participate in. How much, for example, I won't ask for you, but, for example, out of the top ten players on the ranking list the top twenty, how much do those who are not Serbian earn Players, not to mention yours? How much can they earn on average, just to give an idea? I can't, I can't give at all. In princi

ple, all those players who play, let's say, Belgians and Dutch, they have salaries from the federation, they have a professional contract from the federation to play for their teams and that's their full-time job, so to speak, that's their job and besides that, they play tournaments, they strive and work hard to qualify their country for the Olympic Games. That's the goal, in principle, of each of us basketball players. And I really couldn't say roughly how much." Tournaments are already around

40, 50. $20,000 per tournament, so it's possible to earn decently. Why aren't there as many Lithuanians currently signed up for the tournament this year? Lithuanians here and there, if they're not there, neither are Latvians. For example, not a single Latvian who are Olympic gold medalists from last year, none of them registered to play this year, because all clubs in China, in Japan and America have their own leagues separate from FIBA's organization and they don't have the right to play in any

of those leagues throughout the year if they register and sign up to play FIBA competition. and I don't know, maybe some I know, some I don't know, but it's much more profitable for them to play, let's say, in China, where they will surely have some big guaranteed contract, plus they will have tournaments from which they will also earn in China, rather than registering for FIBA and depending solely on tournament results to make money. they can compete with the best teams. That's why it's import

ant to focus on training and improving their game. They can qualify for the Olympics. What's the situation there? Well, generally, as a federation, they can. If you play, it just won't contribute to your game. The federation won't have your points. But in basketball, the problem is that only the pre-Olympic year is directly significant for the Olympic Games. And then, for example, last year everyone played, because it was important for everyone to qualify. And now, this year already, of course,

when Except for the Olympic Games, generally, the points you collect mean nothing. So it's a problem for them this year not to participate in the FIBA World Tour, but just to prepare and play in the Olympic Games. And then go somewhere to play. So, many of these players who have not registered, who could be competitive" for an Olympic medal, now they only train for the Olympic Games. You just train for the Olympics, play sure, some national team tournaments, which doesn't matter, let's say, with

teams and all, but national team competitions, and they only prepare for the Olympics. And since we've mentioned the Olympics several times, how does that feel to you now, although there is still quite some time, How do you view the Olympic Games? How does the team see it? Well, there's no doubt. It's a bit arrogant to talk, but we really know Why we're going and why we're preparing. And I know that every individual of all those who are currently in training, especially those who go to Paris, w

ill give their all to come back with a gold medal and why we're doing all this training, so I hope that only injuries won't stop us, that we'll continue working at this pace. as we do and that we'll succeed in our goal. You know how it was last time, were there tears? Well, generally, I wasn't there, but generally, I mean, tears of failure. I mean, failure. I can imagine what that's like. It wasn't a failure. I mean, not for me. Yeah, it wasn't a failure. That's it, winning a medal at the Olympi

c Games is truly an incredible thing. But the problem is that all those players, like now, probably we'll go for it. We have a goal for what we're going for and we know why we're going. And to some extent, people around us and let's not forget all the people in the country and all those who love, expect us to come back with that gold medal, which definitely won't be easy at all. Especially now, everyone has started bringing in some Players to play for their national team. The news just came out

that Duncan Robinson from Miami will play for America and is on the roster. So it will definitely be, not yet. we know, we don't have any official formations yet. Tupan, who also played for Houston, for Toronto," who played for last year... for, I'll send you, not for Milan, not for Virtus, for the third team, for Sarija, for some now on the list of the French national team. So surely everyone will try to come as strong as possible in the lineup and to prepare as best as possible. Where again I

believe our advantage lies. because we have been playing for a long time and we know each other well enough and that is again some of our advantages regardless of them being certainly quality players, playing at a high level in basketball. But I think that is also our advantage that we will be able to reach our goal through our basketball experience. Just tell me, in the end, how do you view the future of basketball. It is clear to me that you are thinking about it this year. Primarily in the ne

xt six months. I think the Olympics start on July 26th. I think you are mainly looking at that period, But how do you see the future of basketball? Well, I think that FIBA as FIBA can hardly survive as it is. Because, again speaking from my personal perspective, I think every year more and more thinking about the organization itself rather than the players and teams. So I think more players will leave for other leagues or something new will happen, something will explode, where players will find

it much simpler to create, let's say, a good financial life and everything through that new organization. But in any case, you see that the game is evolving and finding its way in any form. My game is certainly evolving, that is not a question at all, the team will find out what will be next Two years surely with the Olympic Games, if I understood correctly, the Olympic cycle. I think more and more teams will play. and more and more will develop because it is very dynamic, very interesting for

viewers and again, I have not yet experienced the experience of someone coming to play basketball at a professional level and saying, I don't like it." Some say, maybe I didn't quite catch on basketball is easier for me, but generally he says he doesn't like it and I haven't experienced it yet. So I think it will grow from year to year and will become more popular each year. Thank you of course to Vernjan, thank you to Merkurik Stipe, Gratitude to Merkurik Stipe for the two-year collaboration an

d gratitude to everyone who helped make this podcast happen. Great thanks to them, of course, for everything They have helped and supported so far. Strahinja, thank you very much. Well, I hope it will be. I wish you all the best, what can I say to you. Your success is real and the success of all of us, but just keep going and all the best, all the best, really. Well, first of all health, and then everything else, there. Thank you very much, so let's see if everything goes well after Paris. Every

thing will be fine, you'll see. However it turns out, it will be fine. Call the team, of course, you don't have another training today, that's a bit easier? A bit easier, we don't have one today, but two tomorrow. two each day, we're traveling to China this weekend, continuing preparations there. And that's it. How much time will you spend traveling to the Olympic Games? Have you calculated, maybe? Well, we haven't calculated yet. I know that in the next, let's say, two months, twenty days we'll

be at home, the rest we'll be on the road, but we'll definitely travel less than usual, the base will be in Novi Sad and we will strive to spend as much time at home as possible and focus on training. Thanks once again. That was another conversation on YouTube channel Alesto, thanks again to Vernjan and of course thanks for the two-year collaboration Merkur and Xtip and thanks to everyone in that company. Goodbye until next time. Goodbye.