“I truly believe this is the beginning of something big.”
Those were the words of Džanan Musa just minutes after Dubai lifted the ABA League trophy in the cauldron of Belgrade Arena.
Words spoken in the euphoria of celebration, certainly.
But they were also words grounded in everything we saw during Dubai’s debut EuroLeague season.
When the club was founded in 2023, many around European basketball imagined Dubai as a billionaire’s toy – a team that would throw money around and offer contracts so large they would make your head spin.
Something along the lines of Manchester City or Paris Saint-Germain in football.
That never happened.
Two Gems Dubai Found
Dubai’s budget is significant, but it is far from extravagant. Aside from Džanan Musa – and to some extent Filip Petrušev and Dwayne Bacon – the club did not sign many players who belonged to the very top tier of European basketball.
Few clubs get two signings as good as McKinley Wright and Mfiondu Kabengele in the same summer.
Both were playing their first EuroLeague seasons, yet each emerged as one of the best players at his position in the entire competition.
Dubai narrowly missed out on the Play-In Tournament, finishing with a 19-19 record.
Fast-paced basketball, a clear offensive identity and a defense that still had a lot of room for improvement – Dubai felt like a breath of fresh air in its debut season and comfortably earned a passing grade.
New Coach – Soon
An unusually high number of injuries, even by EuroLeague standards, particularly in the early stages of the season, complicated matters. So did the war in the Middle East.
Given all that, Jurica Golemac’s dismissal came as a surprise. In October, he signed a contract extension through 2028. In April, he was gone.
The interim solution was Aleksandar Sekulić, who ultimately delivered the ABA League title.
“Changing coaches in the middle of the season was not an easy decision for us, but winning the ABA League championship showed that it was the right one,” Dubai general manager Dejan Kamenjašević told SKWeek.
Kamenjašević speaks highly of both Golemac and Sekulić.
Still…
“We are very grateful to coach Sekulić, but the fact is that at this moment we do not have a head coach. We will find a solution very soon, one that can match the club’s ambitions.”
Reports suggest that former Barcelona coach Xavi Pascual is among the leading candidates for the job.
With roster planning tied closely to the new coach’s vision, Dubai is unlikely to wait long before making its choice.
After a dominant ABA League playoff run and plenty of encouraging signs in the EuroLeague, the core of the team is expected to remain intact.
But not necessarily unchanged.
“The team proved it has championship DNA, but our analysis also revealed both strengths and weaknesses. We have a quality roster, but we also have ambitious goals. Our decisions will reflect that.”
Will the War Change How Players View Dubai?
European basketball has never been the most stable environment – neither financially nor organizationally.
In that sense, Dubai felt like something different.
Then the war happened.
Throughout the season, club officials repeatedly stressed that Dubai was not among the EuroLeague’s biggest spenders. At the same time, they pointed to life in Dubai as a major recruiting advantage.
After everything that has happened over the last few months, it is fair to wonder whether that remains the case.
Kamenjašević insists it does.
“It has not made negotiations with players any more difficult. Dubai BC – now one of the symbols of the country we represent – will continue to demonstrate that life is returning to where it was before February. At no point this season did we encounter problems convincing players to live and work in Dubai, and that is very reassuring for us,” he says.
Then he adds:
“The 22,000 fans who attended the two ABA League Finals games against Partizan showed that this region has awakened again after everything that happened, and basketball has played a role in that.”
There Were Doubts, But…
One gesture from the very beginning of the season remains particularly memorable.
Mouhammadou “Mam” Jaiteh suffered a serious injury and missed the entire campaign. Dubai could have moved on. Instead, it offered him a new contract.
There were doubts.
There was skepticism.
But in its first EuroLeague season, Dubai passed the test.
Not only on the court, but also in the way it treated players, opponents and the media.
There is still plenty left to prove. But Musa has good reason to believe all of this is only the beginning of something bigger.
