By Johnny Askounis/ info@eurohoops.net
The future of European basketball remains unclear. The possibility of a new league has emerged through NBA Europe, the general label on the collaboration between FIBA and the league based in North America.
Sharing his opinion, the team president of Partizan Mozzart Bet, Ostoja Mijailovic, clearly pointed out reasons for required assistance but ultimately rejected NBA plans for an expansion in the Old Continent.
“I have nothing against the NBA, even my son lived in the United States for five years and I watched a lot of NBA games, but I think what European basketball has today with the fans, not just Partizan and Crvena Zvezda, but also Zalgiris, Panathinaikos, Olympiacos, or other clubs,” he mentioned during an appearance on the Euro Insiders podcast on Sunday, “I think we have a unique position in the world, and a different kind o fan culture.”
“I believe we should copy the NBA’s business world and learn from them what they do well so that basketball can become a profitable sport like it is in the United States,” added Mijailovic.
“The biggest issue in European basketball, especially for clubs like Partizan that don’t have a long-term EuroLeague license, is the lack of TV rights compensation. And TV rights are the main revenue source for NBA teams today,” he explained, “We should accept their advice as guidance, but in Europe, we should manage our basketball, because I think we know how to lead it and manage it.”
Mijailovic, 45, also revisited the fallout from the unexpected turnaround in the negotiations with Nikola Mirotic last summer, his relationship with archrival Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet, and his approach to being in charge of Partizan.
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