Former Mavericks player Yogi Ferrell re-signed with Slovenian team Union Olimpija for the 2022-23 season.
Slovenia Rumors
Christos Tsaltas: Goran Dragic is in Slovenian preliminary squad ahead of the Eurobasket 2022. He’s ready for one last dance with Slovenian national team. Dallas Mavericks superstar, Luka Doncic, is in the list, of course. #EuroBasket #Slovenija pic.twitter.com/UYiYcaEeQk
Goran Dragic undecided about playing in the 2022 Eurobasket
Goran Dragic still hasn’t yet made a decision on whether he will participate in the EuroBasket or not. “We’ll see. First I have to finish some personal things and we’ll see,” Dragic said. “There’s a desire to play in the EuroBasket, now that I returned after five years. I was a little emotional, especially in the last game in front of our fans. But what makes me happy was that it wasn’t just a farewell game but a must-win game. It was very nice, full arena with fans. Now there’s a little pressure on me to play in the European championship.”
The reigning European champions had no problem dominating the game from the second quarter onwards, making a statement against an opponent with many offensive issues. In the end, Slovenia won 90-71 ((27-23, 26-14, 24-11, 13-23). Luka Doncic was the winner’s first scorer with 12 points (4/12 FG), plus 7 rebounds and 5 assists, while Goran Dragic added 11 (3/5 FG, 4/4 FT, 4 AST). Italy played with many new faces and were competitive only for ten minutes.
Luka Doncic and Goran Dragic are ready to help their country in the upcoming FIBA window, but the Slovenian basketball federation (KZS) faces unexpected hurdles. At the beginning of May, KZS’ president Matej Erjavec told that the amount of insurance for Luka Doncic’s contract for FIBA World Cup qualifying games is still unknown. However, the situation remains the same to this day.
KZS’ Secretary General and legendary Slovenian basketball player Raso Nesterovic didn’t hide his frustration while talking to STA. “We have one of the biggest stars in the basketball world on the team, who are ready to sacrifice their days off in the middle of summer, but we have not yet received information on where, how, and by when we have to register and insure celebrities such as Luka Doncic and Goran Dragic,” Nesterovic said.
Siol.net also reports that the insurance cost will be even higher due to the new Doncic contract with the Dallas Mavericks, which is worth 207.1 million US dollars. KZS will reportedly need to cover 100 000 dollars for Doncic’s insurance and 15 000 for Dragic’s.
