SAN FRANCISCO — When the Hawks visit the Warriors on Wednesday night, they’ll help their hosts pay homage to a man who meant much to the organization.
One week ago, beloved Warriors assistant coach Dejan Milojević, 46, died after he experienced a heart attack at a private team dinner in Salt Lake City. Milojević’s death came suddenly, and it sent the team reeling. The Warriors postponed their next two games, against the Jazz and the Mavericks, as they mourned their loss.
Milojević was in his third season as an assistant with the Warriors and was a member of the team’s coaching staff during its run to the 2022 NBA championship.
Before joining the Warriors, Milojević spent the 2021 season as head coach of KK Budućnost in the Adriatic League in Montenegro. He also served as head coach for KK Mega Basket in Belgrade, Serbia, for eight seasons (2012-20). In December 2019, he was named an assistant coach for the Serbian national team under now Hawks assistant Igor Kokoškov. Milojević was a member of the Hawks’ Summer League staff in 2016, the Spurs in 2017 and the Rockets in 2018.
A native of Belgrade, Milojević played 14 years internationally, earning the Adriatic League MVP award three times (2004-06). He is survived by his wife, Natasa, as well as two children, Nikola and Masa.
When the teams take the floor at 10 p.m. ET Wednesday night at Chase Center, it will be the first time the Warriors have suited up for a game in eight days.
For Hawks coach Quin Snyder, the fact that the Hawks face the Warriors in the first game since Milojević died feels right in some ways. With two members of the team having close ties to Milojević, it allows them to continue celebrating his life in the way they formed their relationship.
The Serbian basketball community, particularly in the NBA, is a tight-knit group. Both Kokoskov and Hawks wing Bogdan Bogdanovic shared a special bond with Milojevic through, of course, their shared love of the game, but also the community and bond that came from it.
“Well, I think, where both Bogi and Igor and the importance of, given their relationship with Dejan, the importance of the ceremony, the celebration for them, actually it’s apropos on some level,” Snyder said at the team’s shootaround Wednesday. “We’re fortunate, I should say is the better way to put it, that we are playing because of those two guys, within the league, I think, have that connection.
“And I think, a portion of the evening that is dedicated to his memory stands alone. The game, both teams are coming in to compete to try to win the game. But you really, I think conceptually, those things are severed. That we happen to be having a game on the same night, but they’re just such different things, with such different meanings.”
Milojević played for the same club for which Bogdanovic started his career in Serbia, Partizan, though at different times. For the Hawks wing, Milojević was the greatest Partizan player. Though he never got the chance to be coached by him, he remembered the many times he went up against his team in games, and he recognized the impact he had on young players.
So, walking into Chase Center for the team’s shootaround still felt surreal because he understood the positive impact that Milojević left behind.
Credit: Photo courtesy of Golden State Warriors
Credit: Photo courtesy of Golden State Warriors
The Warriors will wear a ‘DM’ patch on their uniforms for the remainder of the season in honor of Milojević. Additionally, the “DM” logo will appear on the Chase Center court apron for all remaining home games this season, beginning with the game Wednesday.
“Honestly I still cannot believe,” Bogdanovic said Wednesday. “But seeing this logo on the floor, getting into the arena, knowing ... it’s weird. But you got to look at it from the positive way as well, what this organization, not just this organization, but the league and the world respect Deki, it just makes me proud that I have a chance, for him, to play here in front of him. Basically that’s, that’s all I can say right now.”
Before the game, the Warriors will hold a ceremony to honor Milojević. Both teams will line up on the court from baseline to baseline, and the Warriors will play a tribute video to Milojević. Warriors coach Steve Kerr will give a brief speech before the Serbian and American national anthems play, one after the other.
As Bogdanovic continues to navigate the grief, ceremonies such as Wednesday’s, as well as the many he has seen over the past week, give him comfort of Milojević’s impact.
“I mean, I’ve been watching the Serbian news, everyone, it’s crazy how many good different stories he had, with different people,” Bogdanovic said. “He was impacting everyone in so many different ways. You know, that just makes us all proud and we’re gonna miss him. We lost a really, really good person.”
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