Episode 233: Dejan Milojević, Decision Making, Rebounding, Jokić, and Collaborative Coaching

Guest: Dejan Milojevic, Golden State Assistant Coach

Golden State assistant coach Dejan Milojević joins the Basketball Podcast to share insights on decision-making, rebounding, Jokić, and collaborative coaching.

After his 2009 retirement from a very successful professional career, Dejan Milojević became a head coach for Mega Basket of the Adriatic Basketball Association (ABA). There, he coached future NBA All-Star and NBA MVP Nikola Jokić. Milojevic had a major impact on Jokic’s basketball upbringing and is one of Jokic’s role models. Some of the reads and passes Jokic makes today were originally taught to him by Milojevic, a Serbian legend himself and three-time Adriatic League MVP who helped Yugoslavia win gold at EuroBasket 2001

In 2021, he won Montenegrin League and Montenegrin Cup titles with Budućnost.

In addition to club coaching, Milojević had a coaching stint with the Serbian national team from December 2019 until September 2021, assisting head coach Igor Kokoškov.

Golden State Dejan Milojević was tasked with working with squad members playing closer to the basket that the team deploys in stretch four, power forward, forward-center, and center positions. For Milojević, that meant primarily focusing on Golden State's recently-drafted young center James Wiseman as well as their established squad players Draymond Green and Kevon Looney. Milojević won the NBA championship in 2022 making him the second Serbian assistant coach (after Igor Kokoškov) to win an NBA ring.

Breakdown

1:00 - Jokić Quote

4:00 - Jokić Development

6:00 - De Facto Point Guard

8:00 - Connecting Skills and Decision

13:53 - 14:32 - JUST PLAY ADS

14:00 - Developing Passing

18:00 - Golden State System

21:00 - Game Situations

23:00 - Competition Within Practice

25:00 - Adjusting Small Details

28:00 - Small-Sided Game