One unfortunate development has beset the Golden State Warriors organization in the lead-up to their Wednesday night contest against the Utah Jazz. According to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, Warriors assistant coach Dejan Milojevic has been hospitalized due to a “sudden and serious” health issue.

Per Wojnarowski, “the health episode” for the Warriors assistant coach occurred when players and coaches were dining together with the team being on the last leg of a four-game road trip that began in Chicago and is ending in Salt Lake City.

According to unconfirmed reports made by Sport Klub, a sports website based in Belgrade, Serbia, Dejan Milojevic reportedly suffered a heart attack. Thankfully, the Warriors assistant is reportedly in stable condition, although it remains worrying that Milojevic has suffered a serious health condition that required hospitalization and operation, per reports.

The Warriors put out this statement on the matter: “Golden State Warriors assistant coach Dejan Milojević 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.”

Dejan Milojević's background

The Warriors brought in Milojevic into their coaching staff back in June 2021, hiring him after a stint as a head coach for Budućnost VOLI in Montenegro. Milojevic is most commonly known for being one of Denver Nuggets star Nikola Jokic's coaches back in his formative years as a basketball player.

Milojevic coached Jokic as a teenager for three seasons and was instrumental in fleshing out the Nuggets star's game way before he arrived in the NBA as a burly 20-year-old rookie. The 46-year-old assistant coach is one of the best player development personnel in the NBA, and his arrival for the Warriors organization signaled their belief back then in James Wiseman.

Dejan Milojevic was a professional basketball player in Europe for 15 years, plying his trade for Serbian and Montenegrin teams from 1994 to 2009. As a head coach, Milojevic has had success as well, coaching Budućnost VOLI to a championship before he made the trip stateside to become a Warriors assistant coach.

A veteran of the game both as a player and a coach, Milojevic's style of development is not to mold players into a rigid archetype, but rather letting them develop into the best version of themselves.

Prayers up for Dejan Milojevic and his family in what everyone should hope is a speedy recovery for the 46-year-old Warriors assistant.