He
is without doubt the signature player of the first half of this
Euroleague decade, and going into the second half, you would be
forgiven for not knowing that Dejan Bodiroga of Lottomatica Roma is a
couple months shy of his 34th birthday. If not for entering late to
help save victory in a a game he had been sitting out due to injury,
Bodiroga would be ranked among the Euroleague's best 10 performers in
his return to the competition this regular season. Which is to say that
Bodiroga - three-time champion, multiple MVP and all-everything - is
still Bodiroga. And that means he is perhaps the player to watch in
oh-so-close Group B, where Lottomatica is locked in a four-way tie as
it hosts Bodiroga's old team, undefeated Panathinaikos, on Thursday. In
this Euroleague.net interview, the player known that they call "god" in
his native Serbia is motivated to lift up yet another team to success.
"No extra motivation is needed," Bodiroga told Euroleague.net. "I am
always motivated to win."
Hi Dejan. First,
congratulations on another excellent season. We know you prefer to win
more often, but how are you enjoying your return to the Euroleague this
season?
"I am enjoying this a lot. It's a competition
that I always loved a lot for the great quality of play and great teams
it has, again. Our group is very competitive and difficult, but I am
thankful that I feel good physically and can play full-time. Yes, I
wish we were winning more, but sincerely I have to say that I feel good
about everything and being part of this competition on the court again
this season."
Again, you are ranked among the
Euroleague's top performers again, playing a lot of minutes and leading
your team. Did you ever expect to still be contributing so heavily at
33 years old?
 "Well,
at beginning of the season, coach and I talked about it and we thought
that it would be better if I played fewer minutes. Due to
circumstances, injuries, changes in the roster, the team not doing so
well and so on, the bottom line was that I was playing a lot more.
Since I find myself well and am happy with the way I'm playing, I can't
say the minutes are any kind of problem. I am doing more of what I want
to do than I expected, maybe, and whatever the coach wants I am ready
to try to give."
Lottomatica has won two Euroleague
games in a row for the first time all season, beating Maccabi like in
the old times. How do you see the team's chances of reaching the Top 16
now?
"We can say the our group is still wide open in
many ways. We want to be sure to get at least two more victories to
improve our options to reach the Top 16. It's true that we certainly
have a tough calendar, with Panathinaikos this week, two games away and
then Cibona at home to finish the regular season. But the truth is we
are confident that we can achieve our objective."
Is
there something in Lottomatica's game that is different than earlier in
the season and gives you hope for surviving those four tough games your
team has left?
"I just think that our game in general
has gotten a lot better. As our coach has said before, with so many new
players, the team was looking always for an identity for itself. Lately
we have played some good games, including the one against Maccabi, and
I think it is becoming a case of the team knowing each other better. We
are still short of players, I think, getting by with nine or 10 most of
the time. But still I think we can win two more games and stay in this
race."
Lottomatica is part of a four-way tie in Group
B and it would help tremendously if you can beat your old team,
Panathinaikos, this week. Do you get extra-competitive playing against
your former teams?
 "I
wouldn't say I get extra-motivated to compete against them. I am always
competitive, so nothing extra is needed against Panathinaikos. Since
they have not lost so far this season in our group, they are the clear
favorites. Not only do they have a roster with up to 12 players
contributing in any given game, but also I would say that their second
five players would make a team to reach the Top 16, without the
starters. They are favorites and the game will be tough, but no extra
motivation is needed. I am always motivated to win."
When you see teams like Panathinaikos and Barcelona among the best in the Euroleague, do you feel proud?
"I
think about my actual team and how to get the best possible results
this year. Sure, I wish the best to my old teams when they aren't
playing us, but I feel like I did what I had to when I was with those
teams. We won a lot at Panathinaikos and with my help Barcelona won,
too. My dreams came true with those two teams, and I want the best for
them, but like I said, the focus is on my team now."
With
your 34th birthday just a couple months away, are you thinking about
your future plans and how long you plan to continue playing?
"I
have very clear ideas about what I'll do after the season, but right
now I am concentrating on playing as well as I can, so I am not
thinking ahead. This is the time to play, and then we'll see after, but
as I said, my ideas are very clear for after this season."
You
started an important off-season initiative last summer with the Dejan
Bodiroga camp, the first with your name on it. A lot of personal
planning went into it, what are your goals for the camp?
"I
want the camp to become a tradition and to make everyone as happy as it
did last year, when we had almost 300 kids attend. The plan for now is
to improve and upgrade on what was a real success last year. It gave me
great satisfaction to work with young kids. The idea was something that
I had for a long time in my head and I think we managed it well last
year. Now it's time to continue working on a project that makes me
happy and makes the kids happy. Any help I can give in making the kids
happy is all I want from the camp."
With all that you have won until now, is there some memory on the basketball court that your save as the most special?
 "There
are too many, so it's difficult to choose. Overall, I am very happy
with the consistency I have had in my playing career and the titles
that have come with it, also in the manner in which my teams were able
to win them. With the national team, the World Championships in
Indianapolis was something very big, and with each of my clubs there
were some victories that stand out, each one important in its own way.
The two Euroleague titles with Panathinaikos and the one with
Barcelona, the club's first, were great memories, as was the first
Italian League title with Stefanel and other league titles. All were
important, and it's difficult to highlight one in particular, but I do
like to remember them all."
And let's not forget that you are a father now. Has that changed you at all?
"It
has changed me quite a lot. My son Nikola is now two-and-a-half, and
being a father is something that can't be compared with anything else
at all. It's so special that everything else falls to a second level. I
am just happy that he's growing well and is healthy. He'll play all
positions when he's older. If a team wants to sign him, they have to do
it soon, before his price goes up!"
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