By Nikola Miloradovic / info@eurohoops.net
As a college basketball star, Jabari Parker played under the legendary Mike Krzyzewski with the Duke Blue Devils before becoming the second overall pick in the 2014 NBA Draft. He was projected to be the cornerstone of the Milwaukee Bucks alongside Giannis Antetokounmpo, but things didn’t unfold as planned.
Battling injuries, Parker couldn’t fulfill his enormous potential in Milwaukee. He later moved on to the Chicago Bulls, then the Washington Wizards, Atlanta Hawks, Sacramento Kings, and Boston Celtics. Yet frequent injuries prevented him from ever securing a stable role. By 2023, Parker decided to take a different path.
Barcelona came calling, and he answered — beginning a European adventure that reshaped his career. In the EuroLeague, Parker proved himself as an elite scorer, finally leaving injuries behind and staying healthy. Yet, despite two strong seasons in Catalonia, something was missing: championships.
That search brought him elsewhere — to the city often called the capital of basketball, Belgrade, Serbia. Last summer, Parker signed a two-year deal with Partizan, a historic club with passionate fans and a legendary coach: Željko Obradović, the nine-time EuroLeague champion.
With his new teammates, the 30-year-old power forward is set to begin another EuroLeague campaign, with Partizan visiting Dubai in Round 1 of the top continental competition. Ahead of this new chapter, he shared his story with Eurohoops, starting with first impressions of his new surroundings.
“I like our team. I knew our team. I knew guys on our team way before I even decided that this was a place for me. Me and Sterling [Brown] played together, I’ve known him since I was eight years old. I know Carlik [Jones], being in Chicago, seeing him around, being in the gym together. Duane [Washington], too, I watched him growing up. So it’s pretty much an easy assimilation, trying to get in, trying to understand where I am right now, because I’ve known certain guys on the team for a long time,” Parker told Eurohoops.
Jabari is especially looking forward to working with coach Obradović. The preseason alongside the experienced tactician has already left a strong impression on him.
“No players surprised me because I had experience with the guys, but Coach really surprised me. He did a lot because… He reminds me of Coach K [Mike Krzyzewski] a lot. The things that he does, and the way he explains things. But I enjoy it because he only wants to bring the best out of you. And that’s the only reason why I came here — if I’m having a bad game, somebody else deserves to play. So all I’m about is winning, and hopefully, we can bring back winning to Partizan.”
After two years, it seems that European basketball suits him. Last season, he averaged 12.4 points and four rebounds in 39 EuroLeague appearances with Barcelona.
“I think it’s not soft, right? Like, European basketball is way more physical, and I’m used to playing that way, being from Chicago. We don’t call fouls, but out here, they don’t call the ticky-tack fouls. I don’t complain to refs, and it’s like second nature nowadays that the game isn’t soft out here. Right? Like, you can bang a little bit, and I enjoy the physicality of the game, too. It reminds me kind of of the ’90s, you know? The flagrant fouls, you get some hard fouls, too. So I think it’s just all for competition. It’s a great thing.”
He is also becoming more familiar with Europe beyond the court. He had two seasons to explore Barcelona, and now he will have a chance to get to know Belgrade. He particularly enjoys discovering new places, cultures, and people.
“I ask a lot of questions. Because the world is a lot bigger than just America. Us as Americans, we have everything available to us. We speak the language, everybody has to learn English, or everybody has to try to figure out what we’re doing, based on the economy, based on politics. But the world is a lot bigger. We have, like, what, two-three million people here in Belgrade? So just to see their culture, see the things that they’re accustomed to is important. In this world, Partizan and Red Star is all that matters, not NBA, they don’t really worry about college or anything else going on. So it’s good to be in a new place, a good situation.”
Two seasons at Palau Blaugrana were special for Jabari. He even once said that Barcelona’s jersey would be the only one he would keep.
“This was a special place because it was, like, my resurrection. It was like my rebirth of basketball. I don’t even have my rookie jersey. But this brings… Barcelona brings back my life full circle, just shows where I’ve been, and how I had to grow mentally, to be where I’m at right now. So that’s why it’s special in that place. It’s not that it was a favorite place. It’s just where I was in that part of my life. I valued it very much, because I had to grow up as a person.”
During his stay with the Catalan team, he played with some former Partizan players like Jan Vesely and Kevin Punter, who was also captain of the Belgrade team.
“People never had negative things to say once we arrived in Belgrade. It was always good. It was always a place where people looked forward to going. And it’s something special about the city that I want to experience myself.”
He also shared a locker room and court with Nikola Kalinić at Palau Blaugrana, with the experienced Serbian forward now one of the leaders of Partizan’s biggest rival — Crvena Zvezda.
“That was one of my closest guys when I got to Barcelona. We were locker mates, we sat next to each other for a year. And I asked him a lot of questions, just about life, and how he views things. Kalinić is a very intelligent person. He’s very intelligent. People don’t know that about him. But he’s playing on Red Star. That’s like home for him. So it’s not like anything personal. It’s just that the situation made it where Partizan was available for me. But that’s always gonna be a friend of mine.”
The derbies are something special. The whole of basketball Europe stops when Partizan and Crvena Zvezda meet on the biggest continental stage. Those are some of the most exciting games of every season, and of course Parker is looking forward to being part of the great Serbian rivalry.
“I’ve done it in high school. We were one of the best high school teams and we had to play against our rival, which was Morgan Park. In college, playing at Duke, playing against North Carolina. That was important. A little bit with Milwaukee and the Bulls, just because it’s 90 minutes away. And now, you know, being in Partizan, playing against Red Star, it’s just, like, all going back in the same direction again. I look forward to that.”
Looking back, Parker recalled his days in the NBA with the Milwaukee Bucks and playing alongside Giannis Antetokounmpo.
“Basketball does a lot of special things. It builds relationships. You don’t know who you’re gonna be with. And that was somebody that I’m very happy and fortunate enough to have been a part of my life, as he helped me in my life. And I know his family very well, too. So it goes beyond just the game of basketball. I was there when he first met his wife. We were in Vegas. So it’s a thing special for the game. I want to play my part to help the game grow in Europe, and he helped the game grow in Europe through playing in the States. So that’s where I want to just try to do it myself, try to build this game for the better.”
Going back even further to his high school days, Jabari had great success as one of the leaders of Simeon, where his teammate and co-star was Kendrick Nunn. Together they showed tremendous potential, leading their team to four straight Illinois state titles.
“Тhat’s my boy. Just like I said, it goes beyond the game of basketball. That’s somebody whose house I can go to. He’s been over my house plenty of times. And not only did we play at high school together, we played on the under-16 and under-17 team for USA. So we were roommates, and I’m happy and fortunate that we used this game to get opportunities in other places. Whether it’s going to college, getting degrees, playing in the NBA — we both played in the NBA, which was a dream come true for both of us.”
Fast forward to 2025, they are EuroLeague stars, fighting for the biggest trophy in European club basketball.
“I don’t take it for granted, being able to play in EuroLeague, ’cause there’s a lot of guys who’ve been in my situation, been proven in the NBA, that may start off in second division, or just play domestically. So just to be here in one of these top European teams… Basketball is global now. It’s very global. We saw at the Olympics that the world caught up with us, and that’s the truth. So I don’t take it lightly. I play against great competition out here, and we just want to grow the game, grow it in a way that is respected, like football.”
Jabari mentioning the Olympics sparked another question — how did he see the USA–Serbia game at the Paris semifinals? It was a close battle, going down to the wire, with the Serbian team coming very close to a stunning and historic victory.
“You got these All-Stars. They make a ton of money, right? I’m not taking anything away from them. But how is it that these Serbians, from this small country — I’m not talking about, like, a region — are able to compete with the so-called best? That’s just to say the world has caught up. And we’re gonna see that through these next years that basketball is global now. It’s not just the United States. And I see it up front by playing EuroLeague and ACB — I get everybody’s best game. And they are who they are for a reason. I respect the game. I respect these players out here, too.”
Parker wrapped up the conversation with Eurohoops by answering the question on everyone’s mind — what are his goals with Partizan Belgrade?
“I want to win a championship, right? I’ve been in the playoffs twice. I was able to help my team get to those game fives, but that’s not enough to be at a game five. We gotta try to get to Final Four. And I know, from my experience, that I can try to help, and I know, from my teammates, that they can help me. Together, we can do something special. So that’s what I’m looking forward to,” Jabari Parker concluded.