On January 17, 2024, the basketball community lost one of its most beloved and well-respected members. News of Dejan Milojević’s death took the basketball fraternity by storm, with many feeling shell-shocked, especially everyone related to the Golden State Warriors and Serbian basketball. Milojević died after he suffered a heart attack at a team dinner in Salt Lake City.

After almost a month after his tragic passing, the GSW assistant coach was buried in his native Serbia, with several basketball figures in attendance, including Steve Kerr and Zaza Pachulia. Kerr flew from San Francisco to Belgrade to attend Milojevic’s funeral. Apart from attending Milojevic’s funeral, Steve Kerr also led the Warriors’ emotional tribute to the Serbian coach.

As a part of the tribute, all the Warriors’ players and staff wore black shirts with the Serbian word, ‘brate’ written on the front. Brate means brother in English. An emotional Kerr also addressed the Chase Center. In his speech, Kerr said, “The world lost a beautiful soul last week”. “Deki was a wonderful friend, a hell of a basketball coach, a great man, and most importantly, a beautiful grandson, son, husband, and father … What he meant to us was a huge part of who we are. He’s a part of our soul.”

Kerr also requested fans to give Milojevic a standing ovation after holding a minute’s silence. Klay Thompson and Draymond Green were visibly distraught during the tribute, which hits home the fact how good of a coach Milojevic was.

Dejan Milojević’s coaching brilliance

Dejan Milojević, popularly known as Deki, was one of the most beloved and well-respected figures in European basketball. He became an influential figure for European teams such as Partizan, Valencia, and Galatasaray, during his playing career. After working as a head coach for Buducnost, Milojević joined the Golden State Warriors in 2021 as an assistant coach. He played a key role in the Dubs’ 2022 NBA title triumph.

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Milojević also coached 2x NBA MVP Nikola Jokić during the initial stages of his career. He coached Jokic when he was coaching Mega Basket from 2012 to 2020. His impact on the club was such that they renamed their training facility from Mega Factory to Dejan Milojević Training Center. Apart from Jokic, several other European big men like Ivica Zubac, Boban Marjanović, and Goga Bitadze also consider him a mentor.

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