Serbia is one of the biggest basketball countries in the world. At the Paris 2024 Olympics, they lost to the US in the semi-finals and then won the Bronze medal. For years, Serbia has produced amazing basketball players, headlined by the current best player in the world, Nikola Jokic. In Serbia, basketball is more than a sport, and the latest attendance rates show they can compete with the NBA.
Serbian Teams Have Higher Attendance Rates Than NBA Teams
Serbia has two teams in the top 10 according to attendance rates at home games. They have higher attendance rates compared to some of the most popular franchises in the NBA, including the Los Angeles Lakers, Golden State Warriors, and the Boston Celtics. In fact, only four NBA teams have a better attendance rate than K.K. Partizan. Those are the Dallas Mavericks, Chicago Bulls, Philadelphia 76ers, and the New York Knicks. Mavericks top the list with an average attendance rate of 20,124 fans.
K.K. Partizan has an average attendance of 19.782 per game in the EuroLeague. When compared to NBA teams, K.K. Partizan slightly edges the Denver Nuggets for the fifth spot. K.K Crvena Zvezda (Red Star) has an average attendance rate of 19,200, edging the Boston Celtics with 19,156.
We have to note that NBA teams get a much higher viewership from television and streaming deals. There is no comparison in terms of money and viewership. The NBA just signed an 11-year, $76 billion media rights deal. At the same time, watching games in attendance is a completely different experience in EuroLeague and the NBA.
Basketball in Serbia
Jokic is the most accomplished NBA player to come out from Serbia, but the success of Serbian basketball goes way back. Vlade Divac was one of the best centers in the 1990s, but Serbia has had great players dating back to the 1960s and 1970s. The team has won silver at the Olympics two times, in 1996 and 2016. They have also won the FIBA World Cup two times, in 1998 and 2002, and EuroBasket three times, 1995, 1997, and 2001.
Watching Partizan’s and Cvezda’s EuroLeague games is a joy. Even NBA teams are trying to replicate that atmosphere, the latest being the Clippers. Their owner, Steve Ballmer, came up with the “Wall” idea for special fans where cheering is mandatory. Even that cannot compare with the atmosphere at home games in the EuroLeague.
Last season, Partizan and Zvezda led the EuroLeague in attendance and were solely responsible for the 17% increase in attendance. This season, things are looking even better.
NBA Players Love Playing in Serbia
In the last few years, Serbia has become a great destination for NBA players in their late years. Just this year, there are three former NBA players playing for Partizan and Zvezda. Those are Frank Ntilikina for Partizan and Milos Teodosic and Isaiah Canaan for Zvezda.
Of course, those are not First-Team NBA stars, but they are still former NBA players. In the NBA, Canaan had his best year playing for Philadelphia during the 2015-16 season, when he averaged 11 points. Ntilikina was drafted by the New York Knicks, he last played for the Charlotte Hornets last year. After playing around 15 minutes per game in the NBA, he is having a much bigger role in Partizan.
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