CSKA Moscow officially announced the signing of Dusko Vujosevic. The Montenegrin coach has signed 3-year contract. Although no financial details were given, as TalkBasket sources suggest the entire coaching staff will be receiving about five million euros for the entire duration of the deal.
Vujosevic started his career in age 17 with Partizan Belgrade junior teams. He was named black-and-whites head coach in 1985 for the first time and won Yugoslavian championship the same season. His team won Korac Cup in 1989. He changed the clubs several time after that with stints at Granada, Brescia, Pistoia, Scavolini, Crvena Zvezda and Radnicki.
He returned to Partizan in 2001 to win 9 Serbian Championships in a row, 4 Adriatic League titles. He was Serbian National Team coach during Eurobasket 2003 campaign. Vujosevic was named Alexander Gomelsky Trophy winner as the best Euroleague coach of 2008-09 season. He took Partizan back to the Euroleague Final Four in 2010 after 12-year pause.
Andrey Vatutin, PBC CSKA President:
Dusko Vujosevic is one of the best European specialists, well-deserving winner of the trophy named after legendary Alexander Gomelsky. We talked a lot to Dusko this past days and made sure that he fully corresponds with our point of view and besides consider it a great chance to work for CSKA. Vujosevic is a system-building coach, and he is known not only for his skills of building the team’s game, but he is a magister of training the young players. Due to correct roles distributing, choice of tactics, ability to control the team in difficult situations, his trust in young players together with tough discipline, Dusko reached great results and opened the road for many talented players.
I do not intend to hide that this decision is dictated not only by our care about today’s needs but by the thought about the future. This is what our team needs on the verge of generation change. The contract of our long time leaders will expire next summer, and Dusko understands perfectly all the difficulty of the tasks in front of him, the necessity to build the new championship team of European level and to continue CSKA winning traditions. He is ready to leather away on the job. I am glad that Dusko does not intend to limit himself by the main team, but he want to pay more attention to young players, to reserve. We plan to strengthen the Russian direction of scouting in our club. Our team is reach in talents, but the work with them lacks ideas and system.
I am sure that if the invitations of star foreign player to play on problematic positions will help Russian players to develop – that is where Vujosevic is especially strong, that will help CSKA to see the bright future and will help the Russian National Team, no doubt. This is a painstaking work which is require the patience from all of us, from the fans first of all. But we should think not only about today but about our basketball in perspective. Still we will aim at maximum goals, as usually.
Dusko Vujosevic, CSKA Moscow head coach:
I’m exceptionally satisfied and honored to continue my coaching career at such a reputed club as CSKA. My move to Moscow definitely marks a step forward in my career, but I do believe that what I’m bringing with me to CSKA will also contribute to my new club’s better and bigger achievements.
Russia holds tremendous potential in all aspects, including plentiful basketball talent, and I truly hope that my experience in working with youth, coupled with hard day-to-day work and dedicated commitment on the court, will help these talented Russian youngsters develop into real players. Naturally, alongside those efforts we will also have to fight our competitors every day as we strive to achieve top results. I have won many trophies in my career, but I still lack the Euroleague trophy.
I have been dreaming about winning it and I hope that my dream will come true during my contract with CSKA. I sincerely hope that CSKA and Russia will show me the same kind of love that I feel coming into my new club and your country.
