Djoko Salic spoke with Basketball Sphere about the upcoming season and all the challenges that lie ahead of him and Borac Cacak.
The center born in Bosnia and Herzegovina had a turbulent career, as he has changed clubs as many as 12 times in the past 10 years.
Djoko Salic is undoubtedly best known to basketball fans in the region for his two spells with Partizan, where he began his professional career. He first donned the black and white jersey in the 2013/14 season under the coaching of Dusko Vujosevic, and he returned to the club three years later.
Borac Cacak’s head coach Dejan Mijatovic said that Djoko Salic is the right player for Borac in the upcoming season, resulting in the return of the powerful center to the ABA League after five years of playing mostly outside the region.
“The head coach’s call was crucial in my decision”
Salic doesn’t hide that the decisive factor in negotiating with Borac was the call from coach Mijatovic, who has high ambitions with the team from Cacak.
“I’ve had a period of playing for foreign clubs. I can say I carry some good and bad experiences that no one could influence. Regarding my return to Serbian basketball and signing with Borac Cacak, Dejan Mijatovic’s crucial in my decision. I had a great collaboration with him in the junior national teams of Serbia, so I easily made the decision to join his team. Borac is a club with a rich history and a fantastic atmosphere at home.”
His commitments in other clubs didn’t leave Salic much room to follow the developments in the ABA League in recent seasons.
“I didn’t follow the happenings in the ABA League much, so I can’t say too much about what has changed in the past five years. Certainly, Partizan and Crvena Zvezda have raised the league to a higher level. Their organization and the teams they put together are the best the ABA league has ever seen.”
Borac had a season where they narrowly secured their survival in the regional league. There’s no doubt that under Mijatovic’s coaching, their goals in the upcoming period will be significantly higher.
“My ambitions are to help the team achieve the best possible results in the upcoming season. The team has undergone many changes, we are all motivated, and we want to give our best in every game. We hope for good performances and results.” – Salic emphasized in his conversation with Basketball Sphere.
Partizan, alongside Crvena Zvezda, has been singled out as a favorite to win this competition. Salic wished them luck in all their games, except when they face Borac.
“Partizan has always been fantastic to me. The team is excellent, and they work really well in all aspects. I wish them a lot of luck in the season, except when they play against Borac Cacak, of course. They are certainly favorites to win, along with Crvena Zvezda.”
The beginning of the war in Ukraine
Certainly, the most difficult point in Salic’s career is his departure from Cherkasky due to the onset of the war in Ukraine. The Serbian center managed to leave the country at the last moment, and he crossed the border on foot.
“I’ve been through a lot in my career, but that season and the beginning of the war in Ukraine are definitely the worst things that happened to me. I traveled for 16 hours to the border with Romania, and then I crossed over on foot. The whole process of waiting in lines took about six to seven hours. My stay in Ukraine was excellent until that unfortunate moment.”
At the end of the conversation, we touched once again on the chances of teams in the ABA League to win the trophy in the upcoming season.
“Partizan is my favorite alongside Crvena Zvezda, that’s how it stands currently. It’s possible that there might be a surprise because the other teams also have quality.” – said Djoko Salic in his interview with Basketball Sphere.