Virtus general manager Paolo Ronci spoke to Basketball Sphere about construction of the team from Bologna, the most pleasant surprise in the EuroLeague this season, went and touched on the club’s parting ways with Sergio Scariolo. There was also talk about the hiring of Luca Banchi and Ognjen Dobric, as well as how much Sasa Djordjevic is responsible for the status of today’s Virtus, with reference to Jaleen Smith’s departure to Partizan.
In addition to the standard challenges related to the departures and arrivals of both players and coaches, EuroLeague teams had to adapt to the new financial fair play of the elite competition before the start of this season. According to those rules, it is forbidden for player salaries to exceed 65 percent of the budget, and one shareholder cannot bring more than 50 percent of the budget to the club.
Fitting into such a system required a certain change in the financial structure, as in the case of Virtus, which reduced the budget by about 20 percent and from such a situation tried to create a team competitive for the EuroLeague level.
When, in such circumstances, the conditions were created to form a quality squad, other problems surrounded the giant from Bologna. Due to certain disagreements, the club parted ways with Sergio Scariolo, with whom long-term cooperation was planned. An Italian expert was one of the central people in the new project of Virtus, which was additionally supposed to strengthen itself in the place of the giants of European basketball.
The market was additionally shaken by Panathinaikos, financially much more powerful compared to the previous period, with the desire of Ergin Ataman to have in his composition the best that Europe could offer.
About the big challenges before the start of the season
One of the best Virtus players from last season, Tornike Shengelia, was the “target” of the big rush of the Greek team, Crvena Zvezda was also in the mix and it seemed that the Georgian was on the way out.
So the financial factor before the start of the season, the sudden departure of Scariolo and the increasing demand for Shengelia. Virtus managed to overcome all that and become not only a competitive participant in the EuroLeague, but also a dominant European force and an absolute hit in the competition. The team from Bologna is currently in second place, when it comes to the EuroLeague, with a score of 14-5.
Shengelia stayed, and Scariolo was replaced by Luca Banchi, who came to the Virtus bench as the best coach of the FIBA World Cup, someone who made Latvia the fifth power on the planet. Those two moves, as well as giving an early role to the neglected Iffe Lundberg, have been key for Virtus this season. While Banchi controls everything from the bench, Shengelia accompanies it all perfectly on the court. The standings show how well it worked, but also the fact that the Georgian is the third most valuable player in the league.
All those moves had to be pulled by someone, and that someone is the general manager of the team from Bologna, Paolo Ronci, the architect of the EuroLeague’s most pleasant surprise and a kind of alchemist, who, as part of the triumvirate together with CEO Luca Baraldi and president Massimo Zanetti, from the material out of proportion to the current position in the standings, made the basketball gold of Europe.
“When you can collect the guys that really want to come…”
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At the beginning of the conversation with Basketball Sphere, Ronci addressed the financial challenges of the preseason, which were related to the aforementioned budget cuts, and along the way he explained his optimism after a comeback season in which Virtus went 14-20, which was enough for only the 14th position in the elite competition (now they have the same number of wins in 11 games less).
“To stay in the EuroLeague, we agreed to a settlement that has to take care of the financial part. Financial fair play is good, that should be applied more and more. Financial stability is the most important, to secure good future to every club and create a good image of the league in front of investors. Based on that plan, we had some ideas on how to build a team.
Maybe certain ideas were presented to the media and fans as a little bit less attractive at the beginning due to some departures, but what we have created is a very good team spirit, with a selection of players who really want to be in Bologna. We were more positive than the average media and fans, because usually when you can collect the guys who really want to be here and look at it as a mission, something interesting can come out,” said Ronci, who has been with Virtus for five years.
Luca Banchi as the only option
In the competition of more financially powerful clubs, it is not easy to attract a top player to choose Bologna. However, Ronci has its trump cards, which became more and more significant as the organization grew, which returned to the elite society in 2022, after a 15-year break.
“Our budget is a little bit lower but respectable. We have veterans in the squad, who give us stability. First, Bologna is a well-known basketball city and I believe most players know what the atmosphere is like in Bologna. Also, in the last five years we have brought Virtus to a very high level. We won almost all the competitions we participated in, reached the EuroLeague and won with different coaches.
First with Sasa Djordjevic, then with Sergio Scariolo, then we won the Italian Super Cup with Luca Banchi, when he arrived. When a club is able to show that, despite coaching changes, results are coming, the players feel that there is something behind the club. I believe that is the main reason. We have a good organization, which is also recognized by ELPA (Euroleague Players Association). We know it is respected, we present good coaches, who also help players make good choices.”
![Bruno Caboclo](https://basketballsphere.com/en/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Bruno-Caboclo-2.jpg)
The surge of Virtus has been going on for years and this season experienced full momentum with coach Banchi, whose engagement the general manager of the team from Bologna touched on in more detail. The season was starting, and three weeks before the first game in the EuroLeague, Virtus was left without a coach. One Italian expert was replaced by another.
“At that moment, we needed someone who wanted to take over the team immediately and bring a lot of energy and enthusiasm. Banchi just came from a great FIBA World Cup, where he was the best coach. It was a good combination. We did everything very fast and we are happy. The coach and the team have found each other, we have good chemistry. The decision was easy at that moment. Considering that we were somehow obliged to do it, we made a good choice.”
There were rumors that Andrea Trinchieri was Virtus’ first option, which Ronci denied.
,,No. Andrea is a great coach, but at that moment we only talked to Luca.”
About the Dobric transfer and the situation with Scariolo
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One of the very important players in the Banchi system is Ognjen Dobric. The engagement in Bologna is his first abroad, which he decided on after several seasons in Crvena Zvezda, in which he left a deep mark.
“He had a great game against us and we talked afterward about how he ‘killed’ us (laughs). It was easy to sense his desire to try himself abroad. Coach Scariolo liked the idea, because Ognjen is a versatile player who can help the team in many ways. He is a very good professional and we are happy to have him, to bring the Balkan spirit to our team.
I spent years in Serbia and the Balkans, I have many connections, and I know many people. My whole experience in Bologna has something Serbian in it. Starting with Sasa (Djordjevic), Stefan Markovic, Milos Teodosic… They gave us a lot and did a lot to restore the reputation of Virtus. It is always good to have a Balkan school and a Balkan spirit in the team”, said Ronci.
Talking about Scariolo and his ideas regarding the signing of players, Ronci described how he sees the situation regarding the parting ways with the Italian expert, who left Virtus after declaring that the team was “building the management of the club”.
“Everything has already been said. I can only say that it’s easy on this level to understand that no one player arrives in a team without the coach’s agreement. The level is too high to even think about it. We can argue that every coach would love the number one player on the list, which is understandable. It is the coach’s right to try to have the best. Sometimes it is possible to bring him, sometimes not.”
“Jaleen Smith was an option, when Iffe Lundberg was not”
Veteran Marco Belinelli, who is playing the season of his life, plays a big role in the top results of Virtus in the EuroLeague. At 37 years old, he is one of the most reliable shooters in Europe and a perfect part of Banchi’s system. He is averaging 14.3 points, shooting a very high 43.4 percent from three.
“Marco Belinelli is our captain and has a central role, he is doing very well and is respected everywhere because of his rich career. The most important thing is to see how he practice every day, how much he still loves basketball. His enthusiasm is something incredible. After so many years, to see a player of that level come every day with that approach, you can learn a lot,” said Ronci.
This season, Virtus was mostly successful with reinforcements, both on the bench and on the court. However, not everything could be perfect, considering that Jaleen Smith, an acquisition from Alba Berlin, did not fit well with the team. He left the club faster than he expected and recently signed for Partizan.
“Jaleen Smith is a player with EuroLeague experience. Very good guy, professional. He came in a situation where the lineup did not include Iffe Lundberg as a possibility. Then the situation changed and he couldn’t find the role. We allowed him to explore the market and find a place where he is happier. He gave 100 percent for Virtus and I can only say the best about him. Partizan is an excellent team, with an excellent style of play. I told him he would enjoy the atmosphere. We’ll see. He’s a good player, I’m sure they’ll know how to use him.”
“The role of Sasa Djordjevic is very important”
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Big things are ahead of Virtus. The results of this team are monitored by the organization, so the Italian team will, as predicted, get a new home at the end of this year. The construction of the new “Segafredo Arena” complex will cost around 50 million dollars, and Virtus will not participate financially in its construction, but will be a long-term tenant. According to projections, the hall should have a maximum capacity of 12,000 seats.
Five years will pass from the FIBA Champions League to the magnificent building as the home of the team that represents the power of the EuroLeague. At the beginning of that period, Sasa Djordjevic sat on the Virtus bench, not long after Ronci arrived and, according to the general manager, was the catalyst for the upcoming success of the Italian giant.
“The role of Sasa Djordjevic in all this is very important. I came to Virtus in January 2019 and a few months later, he came. We immediately won the FIBA Champions League. It was a good moment for rebuilding the international image of Virtus. President Zanetti gave a big impulse to that, and after that CEO Baraldi and I steered the club in one direction, as did Sasa. Since then, we have only been making progress.
We played in 11 finals, won six trophies and everything is going up. When a coach leaves, and the situation is better than when he arrived, we can only thank him. We won a lot together, it was a good first impulse to present Virtus on the international map.”
Big challenges are yet to come
Big challenges are behind Ronci, but they seem to be even bigger ahead. It seems that the European basketball structure is changing, taking into account the effort of Dubai to become a member of the EuroLeague, the increasingly loud talk that Paris and London will be part of the elite, and recently Bahcesehir and Besiktas have shyly interfered in all this. The situation becomes even more interesting when the status of the Russian clubs is taken into account, which surely at some point would like to return to the competition. It is unknown what changes will affect European basketball in the coming period, for which those who want to be or remain part of the best society will have to be ready.
“I’m not that good at politics and I don’t like to talk too much. The last time I talked this much in Belgrade was two years ago (laughs). We’ll see. Anything that creates new and greater interest in basketball must be well received if it will contribute to financial stability, because it brings income. We all hope that the interest that the EuroLeague attracts will give the teams the opportunity to have more income. After that, the competition is open. We all just need to stay focused on our work, do the best we can, and find a good role in all that,” Paolo Ronci concluded in his interview with Basketball Sphere.