The NBA world was shocked Wednesday by the sudden dying of Golden State Warriors assistant coach Dejan Milojević, a fixture of basketball in his native Serbia and around the globe for the final 30 years.
Notably shaken was Toronto Raptors coach Darko Rajaković, a good friend and countryman of Milojević’s; their birthplaces are just below two hours aside by automobile. After the Raptors’ 121–97 win over the Miami Warmth on Wednesday, Rajaković revealed that Toronto had run its first play of the sport in honor of Milojević.
“I informed my guys I cherished them,” Rajaković mentioned. “Our opening play within the sport was an ATO that—Decky (Milojević’s nickname), my good friend, I discovered that play from him. That is what he dropped at the NBA. That is what he dropped at Golden State. I stole that play from him, and that was our opening play tonight and we have been capable of rating on it as soon as.”
Coach on his pre-game phrases and the primary play 🖤 pic.twitter.com/wL9QQeCdDh
— Toronto Raptors (@Raptors) January 18, 2024
Rajaković closed his reply by dedicating his win to Milojević, whose play resulted in guard Gary Trent Jr. swishing a three-pointer to open the scoring.
In response to Milojević’s dying, the NBA has postponed a pair of Warriors video games in opposition to the Utah Jazz and Dallas Mavericks.
