Giannis to Miami, Luka to LA: the summer that relocated the stars

Giannis to Miami: the trade even his brother didn't see coming

Twenty years at one club, two MVP awards, one title - and then, out of nowhere, the end. Giannis Antetokounmpo is officially a Miami Heat player, wearing number 7, after an entire career spent in Milwaukee. How out of the blue was the move? So much so that not even his brother Thanasis, his longtime teammate at the Bucks, knew it was coming. „The crazy part is that I didn't know. I didn't know,“ Thanasis admitted on his podcast. „It's hard and exciting at the same time. Anyone who says it isn't - that person isn't human.“ Greece sent another of its own to basketball's biggest stage, and the Balkans read stories like this as their own - a local kid who goes far and stays exactly who he was.

The Lakers are building the Dončić era - LeBron is gone, now it's his team

In Los Angeles a new chapter has begun. After LeBron James' departure, the Lakers are rebuilding the roster around Luka Dončić - and that means defense. The biggest move was landing center Walker Kessler from Utah in a sign-and-trade, on a deal worth four years and 130 million dollars. The club sees him as Dončić's long-term partner in the paint. They also brought in a new assistant coach, Zach Guthrie, who led their G-League affiliate to the best record in the league. The message isn't hard to read: this is no longer LeBron's team. This is an attempt to build something new - and something solid.

Red Star signed a former first-round NBA pick

The region doesn't rest, not even in summer. Red Star of Belgrade signed Patrick Baldwin Jr., a wing player who was drafted 28th overall in the 2022 NBA draft by Golden State. The 23-year-old played 102 games across four NBA seasons, but he put up his real numbers in the G-League - an average of 21.3 points, 8.4 rebounds and 2.9 assists last season, on 50.3 percent from the field. Once again Red Star is trying to catch a player with an NBA past who wants to prove himself in Europe. Whether it works out remains to be seen, but the ambition of Balkan clubs to chase names like this is already a story in itself.

Young Macedonian basketball players: ninth place and one „yes“ away from the top eight

Macedonia's under-20 national team finished the European Championship in Division „B“ in Bratislava in ninth place, with five wins and two losses. In their final game, for placement, our side beat Bosnia and Herzegovina 91:81 - leading almost the whole way, with a biggest lead of thirteen points. But the regret lingers: one loss in the second round, against Ireland, pushed them away from the quarterfinals and from a spot among the eight best. Head coach Nikola Velev said the result isn't the true picture of this generation - and, judging by the play, it's hard not to believe him.

A win dedicated to a man: the coach who stayed with the team through his greatest pain

And behind the numbers was a story that outweighed them all. The head coach of the youth national team, Nikola Velev, lost his father during the championship - and still chose to stay with the squad and take them to a final win. The basketball federation sent its condolences, and the players dedicated the win over Bosnia and Herzegovina to him. „The energy, the faith and the strength he passed on to us every single day, today we give back to him,“ the team said. There are moments when the result fades into the background. This was one of them.