Vladimir Lucic spoke to Basketball Sphere about the upcoming season, changes in Bayern, and he also touched upon the situation with Partizan.
“Does Partizan have the capacity to develop a roster among young players and coaches that could give us a new Bogdan Bogdanovic, Nikola Milutinov…?”, was the question posed by Sputnik to Dusko Vujosevic three and a half years ago, alluding to the renowned coaching school of the longtime strategist of the black-and-whites, aimed at developing future EuroLeague and even NBA stars, as it turned out.
“Vladimir Lucic maybe too!”, Vujosevic didn’t even wait for the question to finish before he quickly responded. ,,I’m not highlighting this by chance because if there’s someone who represents that school of basketball, it’s him,” said the former winner of the Alexander Gomelsky Award.
Always with fighting spirit and energetic, ready to take responsibility and be a leader — qualities he honed during his time with Partizan as captain of super-talented youngsters in global and European basketball, who, under Vujosevic, hinted at great things—Vladimir Lucic is once again gearing up for a new season in his career, this time in the jersey of Bayern Munich.
“It was wrongly reported why I missed the Olympics”
Since 2016, he hasn’t changed his colors. He frequently mentioned that he did not expect his career path to take such a turn and that, after leaving Partizan and departing from his basketball father in 2013, only Valencia and Munich would be his destinations. Now a 35-year-old veteran, he has gone through a demanding period marked by minor but also severe injuries, such as the one from last year (hand), which caused him to miss as much as eight months.
It was a challenge he had not faced before. Although the odds were higher that he would not return to the court, he managed to overcome it all and now looks forward with optimism to what lies ahead—a new EuroLeague season and the opportunity to further establish himself as an absolute legend of Bayern and be one of the pillars of the new project of the German club, which opted for numerous changes during the summer.
“I returned in December last year after surgery, and since then I haven’t missed a single practice or game, which, for me as a veteran at this level, is a success,” Vladimir Lucic began his conversation with Basketball Sphere. “I haven’t had any such problems since then, although some journalists reported that I missed the Olympics due to injury. That has nothing to do with the truth, but I no longer fight against headlines saying I’m injured or that I have some issues. I’m healthy and feeling good,” emphasized the captain of the Bundesliga champions, who is currently at a very high-quality preparatory tournament in Ljubljana.
Vladimir Lucic about the changes in Bayern
So, everything is set for the forward to try to contribute to the new effort by the German team to make a breakthrough. This has been announced by the new coach and former Germany national team head coach, Gordon Herbert, who replaced Pablo Laso on the bench. And that’s not the only major change at Bayern, as the team was recently strengthened by Shabazz Napier, Johannes Voigtmann, and several others. All this comes alongside the arrival of Dragan Tarlac as the new sporting director.
“Over all these years, you get used to such changes. The main reason is that financially, Bayern struggles to compete with the budgets of the big clubs, which is why it’s not able to retain players who sign one-year contracts, have a successful season, and then become targets for many top teams. On the other hand, the primary change has occurred in the form of the head coach, who came after achieving great success with the German national team.
The adaptation to him will be quicker since the domestic players already know him from the national team. For now, it’s too early to make any conclusions because Shabazz just recently joined us. We’ve played four friendly matches. The preparatory period is ongoing; it’s important that the intensity is there and that we stay healthy. This will be a process in which we need to believe and continually progress.”
New things in European basketball described by Vladimir Lucic
European basketball will take on a different look in the upcoming season. This change has been influenced by the promotion of Paris as the newest EuroLeague project, Dubai’s entry into the ABA League, the financially strengthened Hapoel Tel Aviv and Bahcesehir, and on a more local level, the example of Spartak Subotica. With the help of private capital and quality organization, Spartak has achieved historic success and will play its first game in the top tier of the Adriatic League in less than a month. One of the most responsible for this achievement is Vladimir Jovanovic, with whom Vladimir Lucic had the opportunity to work and is well acquainted with his system.
“Players and basketball are gravitating toward financially powerful clubs and owners. I’m mainly thinking of the Dubai project. I’m in contact with some players from there since I know most of the Serbians. Paris is targeted as a major market, just as France and Germany are significant for the EuroLeague, which seeks to attract and bring in clubs with financial potential and infrastructure in terms of the city, airport, arenas, and population size. Because of this, it’s good that Paris has become a part of it all. For me, it was initially very strange, as I had the opportunity to play against Tuomas Iisalo several times, both when he was coaching Crailsheim and later Bonn, and his teams always played exceptionally well.
I was quite surprised that someone brought in a head coach who came to Paris with six or seven of his players, and that it all worked out immediately. I’m not sure which direction it will go now that Iisalo is in the NBA, but it’s good for them to be part of the competition as a global metropolis. As for Spartak, it’s about businessmen and people who love basketball and are willing to invest. Such people are always welcome. It’s also an opportunity for players, as well as our good coaches like Vladimir Jovanovic, to have the conditions to build the team they want and to have what is necessary for the level of basketball they play.”
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On Partizan’s shift and why derbies are crucial
Speaking of changes, Partizan has seen the most. A double-digit number of new players have signed for the black-and-whites, and in the upcoming season, they will try to meet all the demands that come with playing for Zeljko Obradovic and the large fan base. As someone who left a significant mark on the Serbian team, Vladimir Lucic has closely followed everything that has happened in his former club this summer.
“Learning from last year’s experience, there has been a huge shift in philosophy. Obradovic, as one of the best and most successful coaches in this region, has always favored an offensive style of basketball, with players who could create advantages and were talented in that part of the court. This time, it looks different. The team is defensively oriented; when we look at their size, everyone is very big for their positions and defensively very strong. Of course, there is also offensive talent, as many of them have played at the highest levels and in the NBA, and have had impressive careers in the EuroLeague. It’s a new project, with only Balsa Koprivica remaining from before.”
The Bayern captain particularly emphasized one thing as crucial in determining whether the season for the black-and-whites will be successful or not.
“It will definitely take some time for them to adapt to Belgrade, the fans, and the overall pressure that comes with wearing the Partizan jersey. I hope they manage to get everything right as quickly as possible. The continuation of the season will also depend on how they start, especially on the results in the first derbies. I always say, from my experience playing for Partizan, that a derby in Belgrade, whether it’s the Serbian Basketball League, the ABA League, the Cup, or the EuroLeague (although I didn’t have the chance to play against Crvena Zvezda in the EuroLeague at that time), is something that can turn the season one way or the other,” said Vladimir Lucic.
What Isaac Bonga brings to Partizan and about his contact with the ex club
In such a defensively oriented team, the recent teammate of the 35-year-old veteran at Bayern, Isaac Bonga, could prove to be one of the most significant additions to Partizan. The value of the German national team player was also highlighted by Herbert, who once expressed regret over Bonga’s departure and the fact that Bonga had already finalized his deal with the black-and-whites before the world champion from Manila took over the Munich club. And Herbert isn’t the only coach who holds a very high opinion of the new acquisition for the Belgrade team.
“Andrea Trinchieri had a term for such types of players — ‘elite team player.’ Bonga fits into that category. He can do many things, and he’s outstanding in the locker room. Winning is the most important thing for him; he doesn’t care much about individual performance. He can cover multiple positions, switch on defense, has good basketball IQ, and his shooting depends on his confidence, which he doesn’t lack. He’s a competitor, great with the ball, with long legs, but with excellent technique. In a team like Partizan, he can play a very important role.”
Since Vladimir Lucic left the black-and-whites, almost every summer has been filled with rumors about his potential return. This summer, it seemed particularly intense, something even acknowledged by Partizan’s assistant coach, Vladimir Androic, who is well aware of the importance of having a quality domestic player in a EuroLeague team.
“I have one more year left on my contract with Bayern. Some people forwarded that statement to me, even Leo Westermann, though I don’t know how he got it (laughs). The statement wasn’t fully defined, and I can only say that this was indeed the first summer where there were some contacts, but I am still a Bayern player.”
Vladimir Lucic, known for his energy, fighting spirit, leadership, and emotional involvement on the court, has always been deeply committed to representing Serbia. His tears after losing to Slovenia in the 2017 EuroBasket final are a testament to how much playing for his country means to him. Whenever he was available, Vladimir Lucic was seen as one of the key players for the that squad. Despite Serbia’s great success at the Olympics, his absence was felt in Paris. The decision to skip the tournament was not an easy one.
“When you reach a certain age, things change. There were factors that influenced what was probably the hardest, or one of the hardest decisions in my career, as I told Svetislav Pesic. As the captain, I had the chance to lead my country at the Olympics, but I decided not to play. I had important reasons, many of which were related to my private life, and unfortunately, I couldn’t be there. On the other hand, I was a fan and I’m really happy for what they accomplished, just as they did last year, with an extraordinary achievement. The game against the USA was great, and there’s regret about the final outcome.
We deserved to reach the final and play against France. Still, it was a top-level tournament with excellent team chemistry. The moment of the medal ceremony was especially interesting. The atmosphere was great. The organization of the Olympic Games and the early bronze medal game gave the guys too much free time to relax, which is understandable. Through social media and other sources, I followed everything live—who sang what, who requested which song, the anticipation of whether they would appear on the podium… I saw that some criticized them for it, but the whole event reflects the atmosphere they had, and I’m genuinely happy with this year’s results, just like last year when they played in the FIBA World Cup final.”
Next year brings another chance for a gold medal. Will Vladimir Lucic play in EuroBasket, or is it too early to say?
“I’m not thinking about it now. The things that happened in my private life will, in some way, change my thoughts about the future and how I plan my free time. It will be my decision, but perhaps more than ever, it will be made in agreement with my family.”
Vladimir Lucic, reflecting on his career, often recalls the significant impact Dusko Vujosevic had on him, particularly during his time at Partizan.
“Vujosevic has these phrases that we still repeat today, especially when talking to foreigners, particularly the French. Whenever we meet or chat, that last year’s team—Dragan Milosavljevic, Nemanja Gordic, Leo Westermann, Bogdan Bogdanovic, Joffrey Lauvergne, Djordje Gagic, Dejan Musli—remains very close. We always bring up those moments. I was just discussing something with Bogdan recently. He sent me some videos of old drills asking, ‘Do you remember this?’ We talked about how I’m not sure I could endure all of that under the current regime”, concluded Vladimir Lucic in his conversation with Basketball Sphere.
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