When Dzanan Musa joined Dubai Basketball last summer, he had two goals: first, to change the basketball status of the club from the United Arab Emirates, and second, to prove that he is a leader capable of carrying a team to success at the highest level.
EuroLeague Final Four 2022-23: 6.5 points, 1.5 rebounds and 3 assists per game in 17:57 minutes on average.
EuroLeague Final Four 2023-24: 17.5 points, 4 rebounds and 4 assists per game in 27:19 minutes on average.
Two EuroLeague Finals (2023 in Belgrade and 2024 in Berlin), one championship won against Olympiacos, and three successful seasons with Real Madrid. A player with a clearly defined role, fully integrated into the Spanish powerhouse and deeply connected with the Spanish core of the locker room. So why did Dzanan Musa move to the United Arab Emirates?
The Bosnian guard’s decision in the summer of 2025 became a major talking point across European basketball. In the prime of his career (born in 1999), having already proven himself while wearing the heaviest jersey in European basketball, what really convinced Musa to head to Dubai?
Many will point to the money. According to reports, the former Brooklyn Nets player is set to earn €10 million over three years. Was that enough to convince him to move to the cosmopolitan version of the Middle East? Probably not.
The nickname “The Jordan of Dubai” perfectly captures Musa’s impact on the eastern side of the Arabian Peninsula. Carrying the credentials of both the NBA and Real Madrid, he arrived in Dubai with a mission: to help build a basketball culture and give credibility to a project that was still taking its first steps on the European stage.
“Joining Dubai Basketball is an incredible opportunity and a challenge I’m fully prepared to take on,” Musa said when the deal was announced. The reality is that in Jurica Golemac’s plans at the time, Musa was never meant to be just another important player. He was — and remains, even after Golemac’s departure — the central figure around whom the entire project revolves.
And while Dubai narrowly missed out on a EuroLeague playoff berth in its debut season, the club achieved something even more symbolic: it captured the ABA League title in its first appearance in the competition. For a newly established organization representing the UAE, lifting one of Europe’s most competitive regional trophies was a historic accomplishment and clear proof that the project is moving faster than many expected.
Dubai’s first EuroLeague season did not end with a postseason berth, despite the team fighting for qualification until the very last round of the regular season. However, the club’s move to Sarajevo for its European home games brought Musa back to his homeland.
Every EuroLeague game played by Dubai in the Bosnian capital turned into a public celebration of the 27-year-old star. The player who left Madrid to help bring basketball culture to the Middle East unexpectedly found himself back in his home country, experiencing firsthand the endless admiration of his fellow Bosnians.
All indications suggest that the club’s next chapter could include Xavi Pascual on the sidelines. With or without the highly respected Spanish coach, however, Dubai has already found its own version of a “Jordan” in a young man from Bosnia who smiles warmly before dismantling opposing defenses (14.3 points per game during the 2025-26 season).
In just a few months, while leading what remains a developing basketball project, Musa has already managed to light up some of Europe’s biggest clubs. He scored 20 points against Real Madrid on 5-of-8 shooting, dropped 31 points on Panathinaikos while shooting 9-for-11 from the field, added 25 points against Monaco on 8-of-12 shooting, and poured in 21 points against Valencia on 6-of-13 shooting, among many other standout performances.
More importantly, he has delivered tangible results. The ABA League championship was not merely a trophy added to the club’s cabinet; it was a statement. It validated Dubai’s ambitions, accelerated the organization’s credibility across Europe and reinforced Musa’s status as the face of the franchise. In many ways, the Bosnian star did exactly what he set out to do when he left Madrid: help transform Dubai Basketball from an ambitious idea into a legitimate basketball force.
