Joffrey Lauvergne, before returning to Belgrade where he cherishes fond memories, revealed some untold stories to “Basketball Sphere”.
If you wanted to list all the foreign players who’ve passed through Serbian basketball as part of the “eternal” rivals and truly felt the essence of the club as if they had been there since childhood, you could count them on one hand’s fingers. One finger should definitely be reserved for a Frenchman who evokes a unique emotion in the hearts of all those loyal to the black and white – Joffrey Lauvergne.
Soon, it will be a decade since he was a part of Partizan, but he always fondly recalls that period in his career. Truth be told, the team coached by Dusko Vujosevic at that time is considered one of the most talented Partizan generations in recent history. The majority of the players from that squad paved their way to the “basketball Olympus” and, like true “conquistadors,” set out to conquer the basketball world.
Among them is the current player for Asvel, who returns to Belgrade to face a well-known rival, Crvena Zvezda, in the first round of the new EuroLeague season. The whims of fate sometimes play out in peculiar ways, as we realized when looking at the competition schedule. In the very next round, Asvel will host none other than – you guessed it right – Partizan.
An emotional return to Belgrade and the effort to overcome emotions
For Joffrey Lauvergne, this won’t be the first time he returns to Belgrade, something the author of this piece was well aware of even before posing the question. However, when a period in your life gets “under your skin,” marked by both beautiful and challenging memories, it’s hard to maintain focus without recalling those moments. Emotions indeed play a significant role in many aspects of our lives, complicating things, and this is true in professional sports as well.
“Of course, I’ve always said that Belgrade and Serbian basketball hold a special place in my heart. It will be intriguing to kick off the season there. I anticipate an incredible atmosphere, because playing in Belgrade is unlike anything else in Europe. Honestly, I try to set aside those unique emotions and the rivalry I had with Crvena Zvezda while I played for Partizan.
It will undoubtedly feel special, but they are a formidable team. They have many talented players, and we will, as always, give our utmost to win that game. Starting any competition with a win is crucial. It surely won’t be easy, and I believe the ambiance will be extraordinary. Many of Asvel’s players have never experienced such a thing in their careers, and it can be a shock for them. We’ll see, but in any case, we aim to give our best on the court.”
“Again, after so many years…”
Besides, Joffrey Lauvergne is returning to where it all genuinely began for him, at least in terms of his basketball career. The double crown with Chalon before joining Partizan is certainly memorable, but it’s clear that his performances in the black and white jersey marked him as a sought-after acquisition in the market. And there’s another returnee. Though he became a fan favorite of Partizan less for his on-court performances, Boris Dallo is a name that always elicits genuine smiles from those who support the black and whites.
A special anecdote from their first joint training, involving Dallo and Sasa Pavlovic, remains etched in memory. During a gym session, the affable Frenchman approached the newly-arrived NBA star and cheekily asked him, “Sasa, do you have a million dolars?” encouraged by some “mischievous” teammates. In a very short span, he learned the Serbian language, even managing to read it. Today, ten years later, Joffrey Lauvergne speaks Serbian, and from that generation, there’s also Davis Bertans. The Latvian sniper once inadvertently gave himself away, a story retold with a smile by coach Vujosevic.
“Again, after so many years (laughs). Boris had a very solid last season in the French League. I’m genuinely happy he’s back and that he’s made that leap in his career. We’ve always been supportive of each other, and I can say we fondly reminisce about our time in Partizan. He has advanced in many aspects, and he’s still young. There’s a lot of room for him to further improve his game.” – Joffrey Lauvergne said with a smile.
“The best European player in the EuroLeague history…”
Besides being Asvel’s center, Lauvergne once again gets the opportunity to share the court with a EuroLeague icon, also in the point guard position. Nando de Colo and Joffrey Lauvergne know each other exceptionally well, and everyone is crystal clear about the importance of the connection between the point guard and the center.
“We played many years together in the French national team’s jersey, as well as in Fenerbahce. Now, we’re on the same team again. We know each other very well, and he’s undoubtedly one of the best European players ever to play in the EuroLeague.
In my opinion, he might even be the best. Offensively, he makes the game so much easier for you when he’s your teammate. He always finds someone open on the court, which gives every opponent a massive headache (laughs).”
In 2013, Joffrey Lauvergne won the EuroBasket with France, and his teammate was Nando de Colo. That same season, the French center also won the ABA League winner and the Basketball League of Serbia. A year later, he added the bronze from the FIBA World Cup to his collection. Then, in 2015, he made room in his trophy cabinet for a bronze from the European Championship.
Lifelong Friendships
Before the start of the season, the author of this article had a conversation with Dragan Milosavljevic. In the interview for “Basketball Sphere”, the former Partizan captain spoke about his time in the black-and-white jersey as the best period of his career. Joffrey Lauvergne confirmed the same sentiment. Interestingly, due to unfortunate circumstances surrounding Milosavljevic’s injury, the honor of becoming the first foreign captain of Partizan was given to Lauvergne.
“We use our free time throughout the year to meet up with everyone from that team. I saw Dusko Vujosevic last year when we played with the national team against Montenegro in Podgorica. We weren’t able to gather this summer due to national team duties, but our shared time in Partizan is a fond memory for all of us.
Nothing I’ve experienced later in my career can compare to that time; it’s not even close. In every club I’ve played for, I’ve always had two or three friends among my teammates. However, nothing like that has ever happened again, where all of us in that Partizan team clicked so well and remained such close friends. It’s truly incredible.”
Emotional departure and the letter still talked about
At the beginning of this story, we mentioned how emotions can greatly complicate every life decision. Additionally, besides fond memories, it’s inevitable to sometimes reminisce about the sad moments. Returning to the court of the “Stark Arena” won’t be easy for the Frenchman, even after all these years. We realized this after Joffrey Lauvergne mentioned the defeat in the semifinals against Cedevita during his last season with Partizan.
Back then, Nolan Smith, in a way, altered the recent history of the black and whites and left them without a spot in the EuroLeague. Interestingly, this happened on the anniversary of Dusan Kecman’s legendary three-pointer in Zagreb. We’ve already noted how fate sometimes toys with the lives of mere mortals.
As we continued our conversation, we couldn’t help but touch upon the emotional letter with which Joffrey Lauvergne said “goodbye” to Partizan. With an incredible sense of belonging to the club, he packed his bags. Those words still echo in “Humska”, and we will recount a particularly memorable part:
“I can’t find the right words to describe even a fraction of what I feel for you. Thank you for believing in me, working with me, building upon what I brought from home and from France, both personally and professionally, for showing me what love, passion, and dedication are, and for making me the man I believe I am today.
My Partizan – remain grand and mighty and never stop dreaming! Days of glory will continue both here and on the European stage. Before, during, and after that, there will be hard times, crises, and lack of funds, but all of this only strengthens character and spirit, which is a prerequisite for everything.”
A farewell that hits hard
The “Back to the Future” perspective brought such an earnest answer that Joffrey Lauvergne still feels the bitter taste of the defeat against Cedevita. Besides, he doesn’t hide his wishes to return to the black and white jersey, but reality paints a different picture.
“Honestly, I was really sad. It was hard for me to leave Partizan and Belgrade, even though I knew it was good for my career. I simply had to do it. I couldn’t have dreamt that such an experience was possible. I was particularly saddened because we lost in the ABA League semifinals. I took that loss personally and felt like I owed the club. If we hadn’t won the national championship title after that, I doubt I could have left the club, at least not until the next trophy.
Even though I gave my all, as did my teammates, leaving the club in such a way that they no longer played in the EuroLeague was tough. I’ve said several times that I’d love to play for Partizan again. That won’t happen, but I know I’d love the chance to play just one more day.”
“My decision was to return to Europe…”
The Frenchman spent nearly four years in the NBA, accumulating 208 appearances during that time. On average, he recorded 5.6 points and slightly fewer than four rebounds per game. His basketball rssums boasts jerseys numbered “77” from the Denver Nuggets, Chicago Bulls, Oklahoma City Thunder and San Antonio Spurs.
“That was another exceptional experience in my career. After my rookie contract expired, I changed environments but played in every team I was with. I signed a two-year deal with the San Antonio Spurs, and after the first season, I had the option to decide whether to extend my stay. I chose to return to Europe.
I must say, I resonate more with European basketball than the NBA. That’s the main reason I joined Fenerbahce at the time. My dream was to play both in the EuroLeague and the NBA, and I’m happy I achieved both and experienced that level of basketball. Overall, my impression of the top-tier league is fantastic. It was great being a part of it.”
“Let me tell you a story…”
When asked about which NBA player had most “shocked” him, what followed was a response and a tale that we had never heard before. Amidst all the “beasts” he shared the court with, like Kevin Durant, Steph Curry, LeBron James (to name just a few), it was Nikola Jokic that most positively surprised the Frenchman.
The amusing preface, “Let me tell you a story” truly held promise. These are moments when someone whose job is sports journalism turns into all ears, guessing which name the speaker would utter. And I’d be lying if I said I anticipated what was coming…
“Let me tell you a story. In my second season with the Denver Nuggets, they drafted Nikola Jokic. During a team-building session before the season started, while getting acquainted with the coach and the staff, they introduced him to the rest of the team. They mentioned he was from Serbia and that he wouldn’t be practicing with us for a while since he wasn’t quite ready yet.
‘We seriously count on him for the next season…’
Just a month after that, he was already the best player on that team. It was genuinely impressive to me, and seeing all he has achieved in his career in the subsequent years, I’m immensely happy for him.” – concluded Joffrey Lauvergne at the end of our conversation.