Žakelj: We have an ambitious team, we want to win

Immediately after the end of the previous season, the basketball club Budućnost Voli announced that the current coach, Andrej Žakelj, had extended his cooperation with the Montenegrin champion for another two years.

Žakelj took over the "blues" in November 2023, in the 2024/25 season. he was named the best coach in the ABA League, and in the upcoming one he will face another big challenge. The Eurocup format has been changed, the league has been expanded to 32 teams, and Budućnost is in Group C, which also includes Brugge, Tofaš, Trento, Napoli, Neptunas, Chemnitz and Šljonsk. When it comes to the AdmiralBet ABA League, the "blues" are in Group A, which includes Crvena zvezda, Cedevita Olimpija, Cibona, Igokea, FMP, Borac Čačak, Krka, Široki and Slovan Bratislava.

Buducnost began preparations two days ago, and Žakelj spoke about the upcoming season at today's conference.

"Every year we have better working conditions and more opportunities for progress. I'm not just talking about this season. I believe that this is the direction in which the club should develop in the coming seasons. It is certainly necessary. The coaching staff and I fully support the club's approach when it comes to putting together a team and achieving results. The most difficult part of the summer for us was forming the playing staff. As the president said, the management provided us with a larger budget. However, the market has also become more expensive and player prices across European basketball have increased this year. That was an additional challenge for us, but I believe we did a good job," said Žakelj.

Yogi Ferrell, Fletcher Magee, Juwan Morgan, Jerry Butijsel and Axel Butej have extended their contracts with the "blues". Zoran Nikolić, Skylar Mays, Nikola Tanaskovic, Rashid Sulajmon and James Thompson have left.

"First of all, we managed to keep a few players that we wanted to keep and I think that was the most important thing. Five players have already spent the whole season with us, which gives us a very good basis. It also shows that they feel comfortable here and that the environment, the system and the whole project suit them. At the same time, I am glad that some of the players who left our club have moved to stronger teams and signed better contracts. It is another confirmation that everyone at the club is doing their job well."

When it comes to reinforcements, Emir Hadžibegović (SC Derby), Iverson Molinar (Cluj), Justin Smith (Hapoel Jerusalem), Marijal Šajok (Altiri Ciba) and Stefan Đorđević (Szlínsk) arrived at Buducnost.

"When forming the team for this season, we tried to find players who suit us – not only good basketball players but also good people, with strong character. We wanted to bring in a few more players, but they were either too expensive at the moment or had different ambitions. However, this is a completely normal part of the process when putting together a team. I believe that the players we have brought in are at the level that our club requires. Some of them have already played at a very high level and can contribute a lot to our team. I would not speak about each player individually, but I believe that we have put together a group of people with very good character. They are ambitious, they want to progress and they want to win. This is extremely important if you want to achieve results," emphasized Žakelj.

Buducnost has not completed the transfer window, and Žakelj is satisfied with the squad.

"At the moment we are happy with the team's appearance. We don't want to bring in a player just to sign someone or fill out the squad. We want every player to fit our system, plans and ambitions. Of course, players also have their own desires and expectations, which means that not every player is suitable for our club. We are looking for someone who can truly strengthen the team. I am very satisfied for now. We have started preparations according to plan. Our group is currently still relatively small, with six first-team players, while several other players help us in training. The players are healthy and have a lot of energy and desire to progress. They are working well, ambitious and fully committed," said Žakelj.

The coach of Buducnost points out that the team faces a difficult season.

"The league is getting stronger every year, but we will try to create the right chemistry within the team and build a positive atmosphere. I believe we have started well. For now, the most important thing is that the players stay healthy and that we continue to work in the same way," concluded Žakelj.

ŠEHOVIĆ: IN JUNE WE ONLY HAD THREE PLAYERS UNDER CONTRACT

Deputy Executive Director for Sports Affairs, Suad Šehović, said that Buducnost will be complete in early September, when players with national team commitments join.

"Blues" will be in Kranjska Gora from September 3rd to 10th, where they will play two friendly matches - on September 6th, their rival is Cedevita Olimpija, and on September 3rd, later today, Triglav.

Buducnost will then participate in the “Ljubo Jovanović” Memorial Tournament in Podgorica, where Bosna, Turk Telekom and SC Derbi will also play, and then in the “Mirza Delibašić” tournament in Sarajevo, where, in addition to Bosna and Buducnost, Timisoara and Borac will also participate.

"I'll go back to the beginning of June when we only had three players under contract. They were Saša Kovlijar, Đorđije Jovanović, with whom the situation regarding the college was uncertain, and Mateo Drežnjak, who was returning from a loan from SC Derby. We had a lot of work to do during the summer. I think the coaching staff's job was much easier because we kept eight players from last season, plus Mateo Drežnjak who knows the system well, and coach Andrej Žakelj," said Šehović.

He explained how the transfer window went.

"First, we extended the contract with the head coach for two seasons and entered into continuous talks with the players we believed deserved to wear the Buducnost jersey. We extended the contracts with six of them, and the seventh was Zoran Nikolić. We offered our national team player a new contract, but Zoran refused, because he was looking for a bigger role in the team and found a new club," explained Šehović.

PAJOVIĆ: MONTENEGRO SHOULD BE PROUD OF ITS FUTURE

The sports director of the "blues", Gavrilo Pajović, said that Montenegro should be proud of Buducnost.

"I have been at Buducnost with small interruptions since 1985 and I can say that in terms of the organizational part, to the financial part, the situation at the club has never been better. I think that everyone who works at the club, through the army of fans, and even the whole of Montenegro should be proud of a collective like Buducnost," said Pajović.

Pajović is satisfied with how Buducnost handled the transfer window.

"We did a good job in the transfer window, we brought in quality reinforcements, but it doesn't end there. We plan to bring in a few more players in certain positions, primarily in the playmaker position, in order to relieve the pressure on Jogi Ferrell and Saša Kovlijar."

There has also been a change in the coaching staff.

"Igor Đaletić left for Japan. We reacted quickly, we strengthened the coaching staff with Vaso Milović, former assistant coach of Mornar, so I think that along with Vladimir Todorović, fitness coach of Music, we have quality coaches, capable of responding to the challenges that Budućnost brings."

Pajović said that Budućnost is facing a demanding season.

"We have a demanding season ahead of us, the Eurocup has never been stronger, our group is quite high quality, but Buducnost is also a name, not only in regional but also in European basketball. We will give our maximum, I hope that this season we will have great support from the stands, like my generation had. The audience has always been the sixth player for Buducnost in 'Morača'," concluded Pajović.