KK Mega Basket

Košarkaški klub Mega Basket (Serbian Cyrillic: Кошаркашки клуб Мега Баскет), commonly referred to as KK Mega Basket or as Mega Mozzart due to sponsorship reasons, is a Serbian men's professional basketball club based in Belgrade. The club is a founding member and shareholder of the Adriatic Basketball Association.[1]

Mega Mozzart
LeaguesKLS
Adriatic League
FoundedDecember 23, 1998 (1998-12-23)
HistoryKK Avala Ada
1998–2005
KK Mega Basket
2005–present
ArenaRanko Žeravica Hall
Capacity5,000
LocationBelgrade, Serbia
Team colorsPink
 
PresidentVelimir Mihailović
General managerGoran Ćakić
Team managerMilenko Tepić
Head coachVlada Jovanović
Affiliation(s)OKK Beograd
(2018–present)
Championships1 National Cup
Websitebcmegabasket.net

In addition to Belgrade, the club also played its home games in Kruševac (2012–13 season), Smederevo (2013–14 season), and Sremska Mitrovica (2014–2019). The club participates in the KLS and the ABA League.

History

The Avala Ada era (1998–2004)

KK Avala Ada was established on 23 December 1998 by a group of basketball enthusiasts, all employed at the Avala Ada packaging factory. The club started out in the lower ranks of the FR Yugoslavia basketball system, functioning as part of the Avala Ada sports society that was formed simultaneously. In the early summer of 1999, the club won the Belgrade Municipal League (summer league), thus qualifying for the Serbian Second League (4th-tier competition on the FR Yugoslavia basketball pyramid). Playing the 1999–2000 season in the Second League, the club set an ambitious goal of gaining promotion on its first try and succeeded.

The 2000–01 season was played in the Serbian First League, finishing third and barely missing out on promotion. The following 2001–02 season, Avala Ada finished third again. In the 2002-03 season, the club again missed promotion based on the league standing but managed to qualify to federal First B League through playoffs in Novi Bečej, beating Vrbas and KK Zeta.

Playing its first season, 2003–04, in the federal rank in the First B League (Serbian group), Avala Ada finished third thus missing promotion to the top league. Before the start of the 2004–05 season, the most significant development in club's short history occurred—it was taken over by the BeoBasket sports agency led by Miško Ražnatović.

The Mega Basket era (2005–present)

At the end of the 2004–05 season, the club has qualified for the highest competition level in the country. In December 2005, the club changed its name to KK Mega Basket. At the same time, the club signed a sponsorship agreement with the Ishrana bakery company based in Smederevo, and in the period from 2005 to 2007, the club officially was named Mega Ishrana. Later, also due to sponsorship reasons, the club was called Mega Aqua Monta in the 2007–08 season, and Mega Hypo Leasing in the 2008–09 season.

In August 2009, before the start of the 2009–10 season, another Belgrade-based club KK Vizura merged into KK Mega Hypo Leasing, and the club was renamed KK Mega Vizura. In 2016, Mega Leks won its first trophy ever when it beat KK Partizan 86–80 in the Serbian Cup Final.[2] In 2017, the club changed its name to Mega Bemax due to sponsorship reasons.

On June 14, 2018, the club signed a contract on sports and technical cooperation with OKK Beograd.[3][4] Later that summer, on August 11, 2018, the club played a pre-season preparation game under NCAA basketball rules against the most recent NCAA Tournament Southern Regional semifinalist University of Kentucky men's basketball team at the Imperial Arena on Paradise Island in the Bahamas, losing heavily 100–64.[5] Some ten days later, on August 23, 2018, Mega played the University of Michigan men's basketball team, recent NCAA Tournament runner-up, this time under FIBA rules, in Sant Julià de Vilatorta, Spain and winning 81–73.[6]

As an organization focused primarily on showcasing its roster and providing a springboard platform for player transfers to bigger clubs in Europe and the NBA, in summer 2019, Mega continued the pre-season practice of travelling to the Bahamas to face off against top U.S. collegiate teams in preparatory games. This time, it was two games against the Texas Tech University basketball team, most recently the NCAA Tournament runner-up; Texas Tech won the first contest 94–92 on August 16, 2019 at Imperial Arena on Paradise Island while Mega won 73–76 four days later at the Kendal Isaacs Gymnasium.

On September 15, 2020, the club changed its name to Mega Soccerbet for the 2020–21 season due to sponsorship reasons.[7][8] On October 28, 2021, the club changed its name to Mega Mozzart for the 2021–22 season due to sponsorship reasons.[9]

Sponsorship naming

The club has had several denominations through the years due to its sponsorship:

  • Mega Ishrana (2005–2007)
  • Mega Aqua Monta (2007–2008)
  • Mega Hypo Leasing (2008–2009)
  • Mega Vizura (2009–2014)
  • Mega Leks (2014–2017)
  • Mega Bemax (2017–2020)
  • Mega Soccerbet (2020–2021)
  • Mega Mozzart (2021–present)

Home arenas
Main article: Ranko Žeravica Sports Hall
Ranko Žeravica Sports Hall

Mega Basket plays their ABA League domestic home games at the Ranko Žeravica Sports Hall, located in the Belgrade municipality of New Belgrade. The arena, then named New Belgrade Sports Hall, was built in 1968. It has a seating capacity of 5,000. Mega Basket plays their BLS home matches at the Mega Factory.

The club has had several home arenas through the years in four cities:

Players

Current roster

Note: Flags indicate national team eligibility at FIBA sanctioned events. Players may hold other non-FIBA nationality not displayed.

Mega Mozzart roster
PlayersCoaches
Pos.No.Nat.NameHt.Wt.Age
G 44 Bogavac, Luka (TW) 1.95 m (6 ft 5 in) 91 kg (201 lb) 18 – (2003-09-20)20 September 2003
SG 20 Cazalon, Malcolm 1.98 m (6 ft 6 in) 96 kg (212 lb) 20 – (2001-08-27)27 August 2001
G/F 13 Cerovina, Luka (C) 2.01 m (6 ft 7 in) 99 kg (218 lb) 22 – (2000-04-08)8 April 2000
SF 9 Đulović, Asim 1.98 m (6 ft 6 in) 16 – (2005-07-30)30 July 2005
SG 21 Đurišić, Nikola 2.03 m (6 ft 8 in) 97 kg (214 lb) 18 – (2004-02-23)23 February 2004
SG 5 Jović, Nikola 2.08 m (6 ft 10 in) 95 kg (209 lb) 18 – (2003-06-09)9 June 2003
G 8 Kočović, Nikola 1.97 m (6 ft 6 in) 83 kg (183 lb) 26 – (1996-04-17)17 April 1996
F/C 17 Matković, Karlo (L) 2.08 m (6 ft 10 in) 105 kg (231 lb) 21 – (2001-03-30)30 March 2001
PG 77 Mušicki, Andrej 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) 17 – (2005-02-14)14 February 2005
F/C 33 Mušikić, Mihailo (TW) 2.13 m (7 ft 0 in) 103 kg (227 lb) 20 – (2002-03-25)25 March 2002
PF 6 Rudan, Matej (L) 2.08 m (6 ft 10 in) 105 kg (231 lb) 21 – (2001-03-21)21 March 2001
SF 4 Ruzhentsev, Samson 2.01 m (6 ft 7 in) 92 kg (203 lb) 20 – (2001-10-23)23 October 2001
PF 22 Simanić, Boriša 2.11 m (6 ft 11 in) 99 kg (218 lb) 24 – (1998-03-21)21 March 1998
PG 11 Smith, Scoochie 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in) 84 kg (185 lb) 27 – (1994-11-11)11 November 1994
PG 7 Uskoković, Aleksa 1.90 m (6 ft 3 in) 86 kg (190 lb) 22 – (1999-08-30)30 August 1999
C 3 Vujić, Mladen 2.05 m (6 ft 9 in) 120 kg (265 lb) 23 – (1998-08-14)14 August 1998
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Team manager
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (L) On loan
  • (TW) Two-way affiliate player
  • Injured
Updated: February 26, 2022

Depth chart
Pos. Starting 5 Bench 1 Bench 2 Bench 3 Inactive
C Karlo Matković Mladen Vujić Mihailo Mušikić
PF Boriša Simanić Matej Rudan
SF Luka Cerovina Nikola Jović Samson Ruzhentsev Asim Đulović
SG Malcolm Cazalon Nikola Đurišić Nikola Kočović
PG Scoochie Smith Aleksa Uskoković Luka Bogavac Andrej Mušicki

Players at the NBA draft
See also: List of NBA drafted players from Serbia
* Denotes player who has been selected for at least one All-Star Game and All-NBA Team
# Denotes player who has never appeared in an NBA regular season or playoff game
Year Rnd. Pick Player Pos. Drafted by
2007 2 60 Milovan Raković# C Dallas Mavericks (traded to Chicago Bulls)
2014 2 41 Nikola Jokić* C Denver Nuggets
2014 2 52 Vasilije Micić# PG Philadelphia 76ers (traded to Oklahoma City Thunder)
2014 2 54 Nemanja Dangubić# SF Philadelphia 76ers (traded to Brooklyn Nets)
2016 1 24 Timothé Luwawu-Cabarrot G/F Philadelphia 76ers
2016 2 32 Ivica Zubac C Los Angeles Lakers
2016 2 35 Rade Zagorac# SF Boston Celtics (traded to Memphis Grizzlies)
2017 2 49 Vlatko Čančar SF Denver Nuggets
2017 2 58 Ognjen Jaramaz# PG New York Knicks
2017 2 60 Alpha Kaba# PF/C Atlanta Hawks
2019 1 18 Goga Bitadze C Indiana Pacers
2020 2 44 Marko Simonović C Chicago Bulls
2021 2 50 Filip Petrušev# PF/C Philadelphia 76ers

Coaches
Avala Ada
Mega Basket

Season-by-season
Season Tier Division Pos. Postseason W–L National Cup Regional competitions European competitions
2006–07 1BLS First League 3 SL 6th 16–20 Quarterfinalist — —
2007–08 1BLS First League 5 — 12–10 — — —
2008–09 1BLS First League 5 — 15–11 — Balkan League3rd6–6 —
2009–10 1BLS First League 8 — 13–13 — — —
2010–11 1BLS First League 4 SL 8th 18–22 Quarterfinalist — —
2011–12 1BLS First League 4 SL 6th 22–18 Quarterfinalist — —
2012–13 1BLS First League 2 Semifinalist 30–13 Semifinalist — —
2013–14 1BLS Super League 3 Semifinalist 9–7 Runners-up ABA League812–14 —
2014–15 1BLS Super League 4 Semifinalist 7–9 Runners-up ABA League1011–15 —
2015–16 1BLS Super League B2 Semifinalist 4–4 Winners ABA League2nd19–12 —
2016–17 1BLS Super League 4 Semifinalist 9–7 Semifinalist ABA League611–15 Champions League 7th 4–10
2017–18 1BLS Super League A3 Quarterfinals 8–6 Semifinalist ABA 1st League98–14 —
2018–19 1BLS Super League B2 Semifinalist 7–5 Semifinalist ABA 1st League510–12 —
2019–20 1BLS Super League Abandoned Semifinalist ABA 1st LeagueAbd6–15 —
2020–21 1BLS Super League NH Runners-up 5–3 Runners-up ABA 1st League614–12 —
2021–22 1BLS Super League NH Semifinalist ABA 1st League1010–16 —

Trophies and awards

Trophies

Individual awards

Management and staff

Current officeholders are:

Current head coaches are:[10]

  • Senior team: Vlada Jovanović
  • U18 and U19 teams: Dragoljub Avramović
  • U16 team: Petar Radonjić

Notable players

Note: Flags indicate national team eligibility at FIBA sanctioned events. Players may hold other non-FIBA nationality not displayed.

Criteria

To appear in this section a player must have either:

  • Set a club record or won an individual award while at the club.
  • Played at least one official international match for their national team at any time.
  • Played at least one official NBA match at any time.

See also

References
  1. "Company registration info: ABA LIGA j.t.d." aba-liga.com. Retrieved 30 July 2019.
  2. ISTORIJSKI KUP KORAĆA ZA MEGU! (in Serbian)
  3. "Mega i OKK Beograd potpisali ugovor o saradnji". b92.net. Retrieved 27 July 2018.
  4. "POTPISANA SARADNJA Megini talenti u OKK Beogradu". sport.blic.rs. Retrieved 27 July 2018.
  5. "UK Basketball hammers Mega Bemax". aseaofblue.com. Retrieved 8 June 2021.
  6. "UK Basketball hammers Mega Bemax". The Detroit News. Retrieved 8 June 2021.
  7. "PROMENILI IME! Košarkaški klub Mega Bemaks se od danas VIŠE NE ZOVE TAKO!". sport.blic.rs. Retrieved 16 September 2020.
  8. "Soccer novi glavni sponzor Mege". sportklub.rs. Retrieved 16 September 2020.
  9. "MEGA I MOZZART PONOVO ZAJEDNO!". bcmegabasket.net. Retrieved 29 October 2021.
  10. "Juniori i kadeti KK Mega Soccerbet". bcmegabasket.net. Retrieved 17 September 2020.
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