Dejan Milojević hospitalized, Warriors game postponed
Here’s hoping that Golden State’s assistant coach is okay.
Update: In tragic news, Dejan Milojević has died at the age of 46. The following article was written before that news was reported.
Very sad and scary news hit the Golden State Warriors on Tuesday night, when assistant coach Dejan Milojević suffered a medical emergency while out at dinner with the team. Milojević was hospitalized, though the team has not revealed his current status or what the medical emergency was.
Golden State Warriors assistant coach Dejan Milojević (DAY-hahn mi-lo-yo-vihch) was hospitalized last night in Salt Lake City, Utah, after suffering a medical emergency at a private team dinner. An update on Milojević’s status will be provided as appropriate.
— Warriors PR (@WarriorsPR) January 17, 2024
It’s very clearly a serious issue though, as the NBA announced that Wednesday night’s scheduled game between the Warriors and the Utah Jazz had been postponed. No date has yet been given for a makeup game.
The following has been released by the NBA. pic.twitter.com/guxyNJDUBP
— NBA Communications (@NBAPR) January 17, 2024
According to a Serbian news outlet, Milojević suffered a heart attack.
Some additional notes on tonight's postponement
— Andy Larsen (@andyblarsen) January 17, 2024
- Serbian outlet Sportsklub reported that Milojevic suffered a heart attack last night.
- SF Chronicle reporting Warriors team is "shaken," "in prayer mode." They'll fly back to California "later Wednesday."
I will discourage anyone from speculating too heavily, but it’s very easy to draw conclusions about the severity based on the game being postponed, as the NBA is not very quick to take that action.
According to a report from the San Francisco Chronicle’s Connor Letourneau, a team spokesman described the team as being “shaken” and “in prayer mode.”
Milojević is in his third season on the Warriors bench, after nearly a decade of coaching in Serbia and Montenegro. He has earned a lot of credit for his role in the development of now two-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokić, whom he coached for a few seasons before Jokić came to the NBA. Milojević has also been an assistant coach on Serbia’s successful international team. He’s a very well-respected coach, and Warriors players are quick to sing his praises.
We’ll keep you updated on Milojević as the Warriors and the league release information. And we’ll all keep Dejan in our thoughts.