hear someone say that they don’t like New York or some other American. Bogdan ex- plains to us that America is a great place to live, but... - You know what was “wow” for me there? The fact that everything’s fast. I’m used to sitting in a restaurant and not get- ting up from the table for two or three hours. I leisurely eat lunch or dinner, while everything goes according to the prin- ciple, enter-exit, done! Why would they waste time in restaurants and bars? Okay, that does have some advantages, but I grew up under different conditions, so I needed time to get used to that. Bogdanović played 82 matches last season and traversed the length and breadth of American cities. - I can’t talk about whether I like a city or not, as I’m not really a lover of strolling and sightseeing. But I can tell you which halls I like the most in America, he says with a smile. It was not necessary to pose any fol- low-up questions. We knew the answer for ourselves ... - Madison Square Garden in New York is beautiful. It’s a pleasure to play there. And I particularly recall the Sta- ples Center in Los Angeles and the are- na of Oklahoma City. As someone who has relocated to plenty of countries and defended the col- ours of several clubs, he didn’t escape clashes with the different home cultures of his teammates. One club and one jer- sey, however, occupy a special place in his heart. - Partizan. That’s family. Love at first sight. Love for the shirt, fans, teammates. We were all locals with just a few foreign players. The season that’s just ended was tough for them. I follow everything, but I can’t comment because I’m not in the club. I know that they will play in the Euro- Cup next season and I hope Partizan can cause an upset and reach the EuroLeague. Although Partizan is family, Bogdan has pleasant experiences from other clubs where he’s played - especially when the country he lives in he has many other bas- ketball players that he knows. - From Partizan I went to Fenerbahçe, where they accepted me as one of their own. At Sacramento we’re all foreigners, but we hang out constantly. Basketball brings us together. I generally don’t care who belongs to which nationality or reli- gion. We all love the same thing – sport. I socialise with everyone, but still mostly with our people in America. I always like to see Jokić, Bjelica, Teodosić, Marjano- vić. We Balkan people stick together as much as we can.
B ogdan Bogdanović was an adored Partisan youngster. All those with black-&-white in their hearts recall his masterful play, loyalty and love for the club. From that adored boy, he became a man to whom they bowed at Fenerbahçe, and then a leader at the Sacramento Kings. That’s why at the mention of the word “kings” you no longer think instantly of only Vlade Divac and Predrag Stojaković. Bogdan has arrived! Although his first season in the world’s strongest league saw him select- ed in the second-best rookie team of the generation of debutants and voted MVP at the All Stars in the Rising Star match, Bogdan is not satisfied with the season at Sacramento. - It was limp at the beginning. I was tired and drained after my commitments for my club and the national team, so I needed to get into the rhythm. It might have looked good to you from the out- side, but the team didn’t make it into the playoffs. And despite all my individual ac- knowledgements, the team didn’t achieve success. And that’s why this season isn’t a success. Anyone who goes “across the pond” is thrilled by America. It’s rare that you’ll
UVEK UZ REPREZENTACIJU U vreme kada smo razgovarali sa Bogdanom, naša fudbalska reprezentacija je uveliko vodila borbe na Svetskom prvenstvu u Rusiji. – Zanimljivo je biti navijač. Uvek sam za to da se bodri reprezentacija u bilo kom spor- tu. Kad god navijam za druge reprezenta- cije, zamišljam da baš tako i nas ljudi podr- žavaju kada igramo. Navijam, naravno, za Srbiju, ali mislim da će Francuzi osvojiti Mu- ndijal. Oni mi deluju kao da mogu da izne- nade, a ja volim te što iznenađuju. At the time we spoke with Bogdan, our na- tional football team was doing battle at the FIFA World Cup in Russia. - It’s interesting to be a supporter. I’m always in favour of cheering for the national team in any sport. Whenever I’m cheering for our oth- er national teams I imagine that it’s exactly the same as the way people support us when we play. I’m supporting Serbia, of course, but I think the French will win the World Cup. They seem to me like they can cause a sur- prise, and I like those who cause surprises. ALWAYS WITH THE NATIONAL TEAM
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