It's truly over: Zvezda legend retires!

Exactly one year ago, Branko Lazić departed Crvena zvezda Meridianbet as a club legend, after 14 years donning the red and white jersey.

He hadn't played anywhere in the past year, but he hadn't officially bid farewell to basketball. That changed on Friday evening.

It was then that Branko Lazić, via video message, announced his official retirement, confirming we won't see him on the court again.

Lazić won the ABA League championship seven times with Zvezda, and also secured nine Serbian championships and Cups.

The head of Budućnost didn't mince words, addressing a pressing issue: the relationship between the ABA League and Europe's top competitions. Bokan emphasized the significant problem that winning the regional championship no longer guarantees a spot in the elite.

Teams in the region, he highlighted, live in complete uncertainty as the criteria for entry into the EuroLeague, EuroCup, FIBA Champions League, or FIBA Europe Cup are entirely unclear before the season even begins. He therefore directly demanded concrete answers and a future plan from EuroLeague and FIBA officials, citing the entry of the project from the United Arab Emirates as a vivid example.

The Podgorica president publicly questioned how a club like Dubai, which hasn't even existed for two full years, could swiftly receive an invitation and a place in the elite, implying that money has become the sole entry parameter in European basketball.

“So, I need 50 or 100 million euros, and I can do whatever I want,” Bokan sharply concluded in his characteristic style.

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