Svetislav Pesic responds to rumors he will coach Dubai's new team / News - Basketnews.com

Pesic said there hadn't been any negotiations going on between him and the new Dubai team. The veteran coach shared he hasn't decided whether he will even continue coaching after the Olympic Games in the upcoming summer.

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With a team from Dubai seemingly on the verge of entering the EuroLeague system, rumors started spreading about who would coach the newly formed squad.

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The Serbian national team's head coach, Svetislav Pesic, was named as one of the candidates. The veteran coach addressed the matter after the EuroBasket 2025 Qualifiers matchup against Finland on Friday.

"I've heard [about it], yes, it's being talked about... It's always being talked about, everyone here knows and cares about other people's concerns," Pesic said about Dubai's team in the post-game press conference. "Well, nothing is happening. There are Olympic Games in front of us, in front of the national team, in front of these players, and in front of me. I really don't know what will happen then, I'm not planning anything. If you're asking about Dubai, I'm not planning [anything]."

Although Kari, as he's often called, admitted he's received several offers to coach in club basketball, there are no negotiations going on with a future team from Dubai.

"I'm really not planning anything, I don't know what I'm going to do. I have a lot of offers, or a few offers, but... Until now, I made the decisions in my family, but from now on, my family will decide. I want to concentrate and give what is expected of me in the preparations for the Olympic Games. We have a good atmosphere, everyone wants to play. Our chances are great - not in terms of medals, but to assemble a good team. These are short-term plans, and I don't plan anything after that," the veteran coach said.

Pesic admitted having contacts in Dubai, but nothing is concrete at the moment.

"As far as I know, there are no negotiations. Neither did I start them, nor did anyone else. There were offers during the EuroLeague [season], but I decided to put the Olympics in front of me, in front of the club, and really say that I have no plans other than the Olympics. What will happen after that? I don't know. I'm not fooling around, either. I don't know if I'm going to be a coach at all," the coach said.

"There will come a time when I have to say, 'Enough is enough.' Even before I became the coach [of the Serbian national team], I didn't want to be, so Marko (Pesic's son, currently FC Bayern Munich's GM) convinced me to [do it]. Then, they (the Serbian Basketball Federation) convinced me to be the national team's coach. I have friends in Dubai, I help them as much as I can, but I don't know whether I will be the coach of Dubai," Kari concluded.

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