ABA League responds to Zvezda, receives severe criticism from Serbian league director / News - Basketnews.com

Following Crvena Zvezda's fiery announcement against the ABA League, the league's director responded to the club. At the same time, the Serbian league's director accused the regional league of showing disrespect towards Serbia and basketball.

Credit: ABA League/Dragana Stjepanovic Credit ABA League/Dragana Stjepanovic

An avalanche of statements and announcements was triggered by the decision of the ABA League to determine the dates of the finals that conflict with the schedule of the Serbian Super League.

Points this season

46%77,2Points made:77,2Accuracy:46,0%Place in standings:14Record max:94Record min:56Best scorer:Nemanja NedovicTeamEuroLeagueStatisticsSchedule

First,Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgradewent public with a message that they will definitely skip -at least- the first two games of the finals of the ABA League, as well as that they will not back down from the idea of first playing the Super League.

Not long after, the Super League's director Aleksandar Grujin issued a statement condemning the move of the ABA League's management.

"The Basketball League of Serbia is unpleasantly surprised by the announcement issued by the ABA League which determines the terms of the finals, which are in direct collision and overlap with the terms of the finals of the Super League of Serbia. We regret to note that this act also showed great disrespect towards the Republic of Serbia, Serbian clubs and Serbian basketball as a whole," the announcement reads.

Grujin says the ABA League's intention was "to humiliate Serbian basketball, the Serbian league, but also our country, which allocates large funds for the development of basketball and is the bearer of the highest quality in the ABA League."

He clarifies that the Serbian leaguewill not deviate from its dates, "not only because of self-esteem, but also in order not to disrupt the already disturbed calendar that threatens the end of the season, and the beginning of the preparations of our national teams."

However, ABA League sports director Milija Vojinovic also reacted to Crvena Zvezda's edgy announcement.

"Unfortunately, as we all know, the timing of the ABA League with the national championships is nothing new," he mentioned.

"The best current example is Cedevita Olimpija, who will play two matches of the Slovenian Championship playoff final between the second game vs. Partizan. Croatian clubs play the domestic championship and ABA League all season, which clearly brings great challenges for the calendar. However, we've managed to solve all these challenges through constant and intensive communication, in the interest of the clubs and of course the interests of the ABA League," Vojinovic told Mozzart Sport.

The Serbian executive and former referee doesn't understand why the Serbian league decided to change the calendar instead of letting the playoffs be held after the ABA League finals.

"It was their internal decision, which was not communicated to me, but I learned about it from the media," he argued.

"Regardless of that, as the sports director of the ABA League, if playoff games coincide, I will have to act as an interlocutor in order to find the best possible solution and protect the integrity of both competitions. There is no room for any kind of conditioning and unilateral decisions," Vojinovic continued and further pointed out that he was taken aback by Red Star's reaction.

"Certain dates of the playoff finals were communicated all the time with Crvena Zvezda, as well as potential participants of the finals, Cedevita Olimpija and Partizan. In this regard, I must admit that I was surprised by the attitude and tone of Crvena Zvezda. Then, respecting their position, I presented and explained all the factors that conditioned decisions regarding the calendar," he stressed.

Vojinovic recalled that in 2016, Zvezda were granted one month of rest between the ABA League semis and the finals due to their EuroLeague playoff obligations.

"In any case, regardless of the attitude of Crvena Zvezda, I hope that we will be able to find the best solution and crown the ABA League champion on the court," he said.

"Let's wait for the second finalist. What's certain is that I will protect the integrity and interests of the ABA League," he concluded.

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