The ABA NLB League 2008–09 season was the 8th season of the

Liga ABA The ABA League, renamed the ABA League First Division in 2017, is the top-tier regional men's professional basketball league that originally featured clubs from former Yugoslavia (Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Montenegro, North Macedoni ...

. This season saw a return to the competition system in use in 2003–04, when the Final Four Tournament was played at the end of the regular season. A total of 14 teams from

Slovenia Slovenia, officially the Republic of Slovenia, is a country in Central Europe. It borders Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the south and southeast, and a short (46.6 km) coastline within the Adriati ...

Montenegro , image_flag = Flag of Montenegro.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Montenegro.svg , coa_size = 80 , national_motto = , national_anthem = () , image_map = Europe-Mont ...

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina, sometimes known as Bosnia-Herzegovina and informally as Bosnia, is a country in Southeast Europe. Situated on the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula, it borders Serbia to the east, Montenegro to the southeast, and Croatia to th ...

Croatia Croatia, officially the Republic of Croatia, is a country in Central Europe, Central and Southeast Europe, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. It borders Slovenia to the northwest, Hungary to the northeast, Serbia to the east, Bosnia and Herze ...

and

Serbia , image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg , national_motto = , image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg , national_anthem = () , image_map = , map_caption = Location of Serbia (gree ...

participated in the NLB League season: Union Olimpija, Helios, Krka, Cibona, Zagreb, Zadar, Split, Bosna, Crvena zvezda, Partizan, FMP Železnik, Hemofarm, Vojvodina, Budućnost. There were 26 round played in the regular part of the season. The best four teams later qualified for the Final Four Tournament, which was played in Belgrade between April 16 and April 18 (Partizan, Cibona, Hemofarm, Crvena zvezda). Partizan became the 2009 League Champion.

Team information

Venues and locations

Regular season

League table

Incident

On Tuesday, 20 January 2009 around 10:40pm at the

Split Airport Split Saint Jerome Airport (; ), also known as Split Airport (), is an international airport serving the city of Split, Croatia, Split, Croatia. It is located from Split, on the west side of Kaštela Bay, in the town of Kaštela, and extending i ...

, Red Star Belgrade players were attacked by a group of 20 Croatian hooligans, members of

Torcida Split Torcida Split is a HNK Hajduk Split supporters' group in Croatia with the branches in other countries, mostly, (but not exclusively) among Croat communities. Founded on 28 October 1950, Torcida is the oldest supporters group in Europe. The ...

hooligan firm, and supporters of

KK Split Košarkaški klub Split (), commonly referred to as KK Split or simply Split, is a men's professional basketball Sports club, club based in Split, Croatia, Split, Croatia. The club competes in the ABA League and the HT Premijer liga, Croatian Leag ...

. The attack occurred inside the airport building as the players and club staff were checking-in for the charter flight back to Belgrade after beating KK Split 62-67 earlier that night in Gripe Hall. The hooligans entered the airport building, stormed the main hall, and attacked the Red Star group with sticks, glass bottles, and rocks, before escaping out of the building using another entrance. The attack did not appear to be organized. No serious injuries were reported except for Red Star's American shooting guard Andre Owens who got a

laceration A wound is any disruption of or damage to living tissue, such as skin, mucous membranes, or organs. Wounds can either be the sudden result of direct trauma (mechanical, thermal, chemical), or can develop slowly over time due to underlying diseas ...

on his knee as he jumped over the check-in counter to avoid the charging hooligans. In a press release prompted by the incident, KK Split's management distanced themselves form the behaviour of their fans, expressing regret over the incident. Club president

Dino Rađa Dino Rađa (alternatively Radja, ; born 24 April 1967) is a Croatian former professional basketball player. He was a member of the Jugoplastika team of the late 1980s and early 1990s, which he helped to win two FIBA European Champions Cup champ ...

also publicly apologized.Dino Rađa i KK Split: Izvinjavamo se
mondo.rs, 21 January 2009

Stats Leaders

Points

Rebounds

Assists

Ranking MVP

MVP Round by Round

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Zagreb Zagreb ( ) is the capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Croatia#List of cities and towns, largest city of Croatia. It is in the Northern Croatia, north of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the ...

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Miroslav Raduljica Miroslav Raduljica ( sr-Cyrl, Мирослав Радуљица; born 5 January 1988) is a Serbian professional basketball player who last played for Maroussi B.C., Maroussi of the Greek Basketball League (GBL). He has also represented the Serbia ...

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Vojvodina Vojvodina ( ; sr-Cyrl, Војводина, ), officially the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina, is an Autonomous administrative division, autonomous province that occupies the northernmost part of Serbia, located in Central Europe. It lies withi ...

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Split Split(s) or The Split may refer to: Places * Split, Croatia, the largest coastal city in Croatia * Split Island, Canada, an island in the Hudson Bay * Split Island, Falkland Islands * Split Island, Fiji, better known as Hạfliua Arts, enter ...

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Marko Kešelj Marko Kešelj ( sr-Cyrl, Марко Кешељ, born 2 January 1988) is a Serbian politician and retired professional basketball player serving as the state secretary in the Ministry of Sports since 4 November 2022. He previously served as a memb ...

, ,

Crvena zvezda Fudbalski klub Crvena zvezda ( sr-cyrl, Фудбалски клуб Црвена звезда, lit=Red Star Football Club), commonly referred to as Crvena zvezda () and colloquially referred to as Red Star Belgrade in anglophone media, is a ...

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Dragan Labović Dragan Labović ( sr-Cyrl, Драган Лабовић; 20 April 1987 – 9 May 2025) was a Serbian professional basketball player. A native of Prokuplje and a tall power forward, he rose to prominence during his teenage years, where he won four ...

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Novica Veličković Novica Veličković ( sr-cyr, Новица Величковић; born 5 October 1986) is a Serbian former professional basketball player who last worked as the team manager for Mega Basket of the Serbian League (KLS) and the ABA League. He also ...

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Rok Stipčević Rok Stipčević (born May 20, 1986) is a Croatian former professional basketball player. Standing at , he played at the point guard position. Professional career Stipčević grew up in Zadar, Croatia, where he started to play basketball for KK Z ...

, ,

Zadar Zadar ( , ), historically known as Zara (from Venetian and Italian, ; see also other names), is the oldest continuously inhabited city in Croatia. It is situated on the Adriatic Sea, at the northwestern part of Ravni Kotari region. Zadar ...

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Helios In ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology, Helios (; ; Homeric Greek: ) is the god who personification, personifies the Sun. His name is also Latinized as Helius, and he is often given the epithets Hyperion ("the one above") an ...

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Lorinza Harrington Lorinza "Junior" Harrington Jr. (born October 2, 1980) is an American former professional basketball player. Pro career The guard (basketball), guard from North Carolina's Wingate University began his professional career as an undrafted free ag ...

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Charron Fisher Charron Fisher (born November 15, 1985) is an American former professional basketball player. College career After attending Roman Catholic High School in Philadelphia, Fisher played college basketball at Niagara University. During his four-year ...

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Final four

Matches played in,

Belgrade Belgrade is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers and at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin, Pannonian Plain and the Balkan Peninsula. T ...

Serbia , image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg , national_motto = , image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg , national_anthem = () , image_map = , map_caption = Location of Serbia (gree ...

Semifinals

Partizan vs. Crvena zvezda

Cibona vs. Hemofarm STADA

Final

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Partizan
3rd Title

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:ABA 2008–09 2008–09 in European basketball leagues 2008–09 in Serbian basketball 2008–09 in Slovenian basketball 2008–09 in Croatian basketball 2008–09 in Bosnia and Herzegovina basketball