STOLEN DREAMS. Review 🏀

I'm going to give my personal view of the book titled "Sueños Robados" ("Stolen Dreams") by Juanan Hinojo, born in Barcelona in 1978. It is about basketball in the former Yugoslavia, mainly from the mid-1980s to 1991. That year marked the start of Yugoslavia’s breakup into republics such as Serbia and Montenegro, Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Macedonia.

The book was written in 2011, and in its final chapters, it discusses the basketball future of these republics, correctly predicting that Slovenia would do very well. This has been borne out now in 2017, when Slovenia won the EuroBasket with a splendid "Dragon" Dragic (as Steve Nash called him), the amazing Doncic, although a little immature and injured in the final against Djordjevic’s Serbia, and the awesome shooter Prepelic. By the way, look at how well Dragic trains his core in Miami, on the beach with his bald personal trainer.

"Stolen Dreams" 

The author has a particular liking for basketball player Toni Kukoc, who would win three championship rings alongside Jordan, Rodman and Scottie Pippen, not without the professional jealousy of the latter. In truth, watching Kukoc play was pure poetry: his movements, his assists and his superb shooting.

The book also highlights the play of others, like the talented Vlade Divac; Djordjevic, a point guard, excellent shooter and leader; the surprisingly skilful Dejan Bodiroga; the former Celtics centre Dino Radja; the tall point guard and expert defender Jure Zdovc; the speedy Danilovic; and the long-eared, cigarette-addicted, left-handed Zarko Paspalj, who physically reminds me of a player from Rias Baixas Verde in Vigo called "Jandros." There is also the child prodigy Arijan Komazec, or the towering Stojan Vrankovic, a very good defender but also a bit apathetic. Curiously, however, the author says very little about Drazen Petrovic.

"Stolen Dreams" is more a book about coaches than players. First of all, it has a foreword by Bozidar Maljkovic, which gives an idea of where the book is heading. Coach Aza Nikolic seems to be the origin of all Yugoslav basketball, which is therefore very consistent in its principles. Nikolic taught these principles to his disciples, and they taught their own disciples. This is how his values were passed down through generations.

The book also mentions former players familiar to me, like Delibasic, who played for Real Madrid; Dalipagic, an athletic man who also played in Madrid; and the renowned centre Cosic, who would later coach the national team, although with little success.

I would also like to greet two "Yugoslav" amateur players I have played with: the "rangy" Allen and the Montenegrin "weightlifter" Bozidar.

Jose Romaní, author of this blog

Note: The book is very extensive (over 500 pages), and if you do not know the people involved, it can be difficult to follow. But some of their quotes make it worthwhile.

More basketball books and European players

For another book that explores how coaches think and teach basketball, read my review of NBA Coaches Playbook.

For a closer look at one of the young players mentioned in this review, see Llull’s and Dončić’s moves we practise for Rías Baixas.