Although a small country with under 7 million people and a couple of hundred thousand more worldwide, Serbia has a ton of sports talent. Just look at Nikola Jokic in the NBA and Novak Djokovic in tennis. Their volleyball and water polo national teams constantly win medals, and individual athletes shine in all big tournaments. Still, basketball is Serbia’s most popular and dominant sport due to its long and storied history, which continues from the old Yugoslavia to this day. However, players are not the only talent to come out of Serbia, as the small Balkan country has some of the best coaches around, with long lists of accomplishments, medals, titles, and hall-of-fame careers under their belts.
A Long List of Serbian Greats
From Duda Ivkovic and Zeljko Obradovic to Svetislav Pesic and Aleksandar Djordjevic, these legends have won medals at the most significant stages for their clubs and the country. Right now in the NBA, there are four coaches from Serbia: Atlanta Hawks assistant coach Igor Kokoskov, Denver Nuggets assistant coach Ognjen Stojakovic, Toronto Raptors assistant coach Ivo Simovic, and head coach of the Toronto Raptors for the third season Darko Rajakovic. The history of great coaches continues with him. Although he is still only beginning his actual career as a head strategist for a franchise, glimpses of his potential are already showing.
Leading the Rebuilding Raptors
The Toronto Raptors are still somewhat riding the remains of their stunning 2019 title run, and the city and the fans are very proud of it. While the team is entirely different and utterly unrecognizable roster-wise, the lone Canadian team’s lone title did wonders for the franchise. Right now, they are rebuilding but seem to be ahead of schedule. Much of it concerns the coaching being done by the 45-year-old Darko Rajakovic, one of the most interesting coaches in the league. While his team is 13th with 17 wins and 38 losses, among the worst in NBA championship odds, they focus solely on development and lottery to build for the future.
Earning his degree in basketball coaching from the Belgrade Basketball Academy in 2004 and his degree in sports management from Alfa BK University in 2006, he has been in the NBA for over a decade. His first job overseas included a two-year stint with the Tulsa 66ers, now Oklahoma Blue, of the G League. He was promoted to assistant coach of Oklahoma City Thunder in 2014 and remained until 2019, being the NBA All-Star Game assistant coach in his first year. He was then the assistant of Phoneix Suns from 2019 to 2020 and for the Memphis Grizzlies from 2020 to 2023. His most significant role yet, the current one where he is the one in charge on the bench, happened on June 13, 2023.
As the 10th head coach in the club’s history, he is very popular among the players and fans, both for his basketball prowess and developing the young players the Raptors have and for some of his antics that are part of his coaching. On January 10, 2024, he was fined $25,000 after speaking out against the referees in a post-game interview following a tough 132-131 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers. He lets himself be heard and is not a stranger to yelling and showing emotion, a signature of European coaches, especially those from Serbia, Greece, and Turkey.
