2023-24 Roster Rundown: Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade

After barely missing the playoffs last season, almost no team extended itself in the summer signings market quite like Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade, which added no fewer than 10 new faces for what will be its first season that starts from training camp with veteran head coach Dusko Ivanovic. His ability to jell his mostly veteran newcomers with a core of emblematic Zvezda players will determine how soon and how deeply the team will become a factor in the upcoming season's playoff race.

BACKCOURT

Serbian icon Milos Teodosic, one of the off-season's marquee moves, brings offensive creativity and veteran know-how to the team he supported since childhood. He will be counterbalanced by defensive ace Adam Hanga, as of last spring a former EuroLeague champ like Teodosic. The balance they offer is mirrored by the only two returning guards, scoring threat Nemanja Nedovic and lock-down defender Branko Lazic. On top of those veterans, Zvezda brought in another pair of point guards with pedigree. Shabazz Napier put up 15.0 points per EuroLeague game upon joining EA7 Emporio Armani Milan in mid-season after extensive NBA experience. And Yago Dos Santos was the EuroCup's eighth-best performer last season (17.6 PIR) before leading ratiopharm Ulm to a historic German League crown as MVP of the finals. He's now starring for Brazil at the World Cup. In the swing positions are Stefan Lazarevic, another defensive ace; multi-faceted Serbian international Dejan Davidovac; and Rokas Giedraitis, who has averaged 11.9 points over his four-season EuroLeague career. Teenage rising star Nikola Topic will also be on hand if needed.

FRONTCOURT

Change is even more pronounced on the frontline, where the only returnee ranked among Zvezda's top 13 in minutes played last season is power forward Luka Mitrovic. Veteran centers Ognjen Kuzmic and Miroslav Raduljica are back, too, but were used sparsely last season. The same goes for young forward Dalibor Ilic. Two big men coming as reinforcements are familiar to Zvezda fans. Jumping jack center Joel Bolomboy already won the EuroLeague once and came within a shot of doing so again with Olympiacos Piraeus last season. Mike Tobey won the EuroCup title before becoming a per-minute impact player the last three seasons with Valencia Basket and FC Barcelona. Last but not least, 2.13-meter Montenegrin international Marko Simonovic could well become a difference-maker, especially on the boards, where Zvezda lost three of its top four rebounders last season.

PLAYER TO WATCH

All eyes will be on Milos Teodosic in his long-awaited debut with Zvezda. The 36-year-old passing virtuoso will be instrumental in helping Coach Ivanovic get the best out of this deep lineup. Teodosic conjures easy baskets for others, which is nothing short of gold dust in the Euroleague due to the many high-pressure situations that arise when every game matters. He played almost 20 minutes per game last season with Virtus Segafredo Bologna and no doubt will be deployed in situations when Zvezda needs to keep pace offensively or sustain leads at the ends of quarters. Teodosic's ability to read a game is like a sixth sense. How his new teammates adapt to receiving passes sometimes only he sees coming will determine how quickly Teodosic can unlock the offensive talent around him.

OUTLOOK

So many new players usually means a longer adjustment period, but Coach Ivanovic has been there and done that many times. The larger challenge is distributing roles and minutes on such a deep roster. The crowd of perimeter talents will likely mean that Ivanovic chooses to play up-tempo often and rotate in players like Davidovac, Giedraitis and even Lazarevic at power forward to juice the pace. Having solid on-ball-defenders like Hanga, Lazic and even Napier gives Zvezda the ability to frustrate opponents early, play smaller inside, run often and substitute a lot. Don't be surprised if Zvezda's bench has a revolving door meant to keep players fresh and keep opponents wondering how to match the rhythm.