An article by Javier Balmaseda | Cover photo Miguel Ángel Forniés
Thanks to the testimonies of José Antonio Arízaga, Quique Villalobos and Pep Cargol, we will delve into the most human side of Drazen Petrovic and discover who was, possibly, his best friend.
Real Madrid faced the 88/89 season with the incorporation of a player who would not leave anyone indifferent, Drazen Petrovic. He Genius from Sibenik He would sign for the white team although in principle everything indicated that he would wear the Barcelona shirt. Drazen joined the team in early October 1988; However, his signing began to take shape much earlier, in September 1986 during the legendary Puerto Real Tournament, as recalled by the man who made it possible, his agent José Antonio Arízaga: “Yugoslav players could not leave their country until they were twenty-eight years old. We had to pay for the age to be lowered to twenty-four years old. Once the paperwork was arranged, I wanted to bring him to Spain. I spoke with Salvador Alemany (in charge of Barcelona’s basketball section), with whom he had a very good relationship, and he happily informed me that it is part of his plans regarding the financial issue, but he needs Aíto’s approval. So he asks me for fifteen days to make the decision and then another fifteen. Finally, he called me and told me that it was not possible, against his will, because the coach was not happy because Drazen was a very special guy who could undo the team’s unity. I asked him if he wanted to sign Petrovic, to which he replied: ‘Tomorrow, but wasn’t he signed by Barcelona?’ La Cibona was playing in Barcelona in a few days and we stopped in Madrid. We signed in a Madrid restaurant. The signing was for four years and for the same amount that he was going to earn at Barcelona, around 300,000 dollars (about 40 million pesetas) per season. Drazen didn’t care about playing for Barcelona or Real Madrid, but he was clear that he wanted to come to Spain, because he loved our country.”
Once in Madrid, the Genius from Sibenik He established his residence in the northern area of Castellana, very close to the old Sports City Pavilion. During his stay he would not share many moments with his new companions. Drazen was a very homely person and was not very attracted to going out. Despite everything, in three months he learned the language. Quique Villalobos was one of the few players who shared with him moments that had nothing to do with basketball: “He was a very clingy person and he never put a phone in his house. I was the one who lived closest to him and every time there was a change of schedule in training, I went to his house to tell him. From those comings and goings, we generated a closer friendship than the one he had with the rest of the team. His mother practically lived with him, and so did the girlfriend he had at the time. “I spent a lot of time with them. Every time I went to their house their mother told me: ‘Have a drink,’ and that made us have a closer relationship.”
Petrovic and José Antonio Arízaga. Author MA Forniés
But if there is a transcendental testimony to understand what the Croatian was like, it is that of José Antonio Arízaga: “He did not have great friendships among his teammates. He was very cold in relationships and a man focused solely on basketball. I told him: ‘But, don’t you go to the movies or somewhere else?’ And he always answered me: ‘Basket, basket, only basket.’ He was a true professional, he took great care of himself and did not take or drink anything that could harm him. I remember that when I was at Cibona, during strength exercises I carried Arapovic, who was 2.15 meters tall, to push himself harder. He was a sick man, a crush of basketball. I told him that it was very boring.”
Finally, Pep Cargol’s testimony gives us clues as to who Drazen’s best friend could have been: “Petrovic was obsessed with basketball, with improving, with training, with learning. His dedication to basketball was maximum. At that time, training in the mornings was voluntary. Obviously, we young people were always there in the mornings, but he was always there in the mornings. And he would shoot, shoot and shoot. He didn’t stop shooting. Curiously, at that time there was a Croatian who came with him and He helped him pass and shoot, which was Neven Spahija, a good friend of Drazen, perhaps his best friend. He spent time in Madrid with Petrovic. I remember that he trained with us and helped Drazen. We played two against two, three against three, Drazen shot and we all passed him the ball, and Neven was also there passing and training.
Drazen Petrovic. Foto M.A. Fornies
An article by JAVIER BALMASEDA
JGBasket Contributor
MIGUEL ANGEL FORNIÉS He was born in Badalona on September 18, 1952. He studied at the Salesianos Badalona and at the Colegio Badalonés. Military Service in Campo Soto, Cádiz.
Devotion photojournalist. He collaborated with Eco Badalonés, 5Todo Baloncesto. Since 1981 with Nuevo Basket as a photographer. First photojournalist to travel to see and photograph NBA games in 1984. European Championship in 1973, five Junior World Cups (from 1983 to 1999). Fifteen months working, living and playing basketball in Algeria (Sidi Bel Abbès).
World Cup in Spain 1986, World Cup in Argentina in 1990. Barcelona Olympics 1992 as deputy basketball press chief. He has written two books, Chronicle of an Hallucinating Journey (in 2009) and Vivid Memories (in 2015). For 19 seasons (1996-2014), press officer of the Joventut Badalona Club.
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