Stories about Partizan - POP 34

POP 34 - "One call changes everything"

The basketball transition period in Yugoslavia in 1985 was marked by the transfer of the great scorer of Olimpia, formerly Jugoplastika, former national team player Peter Wilfan to Partizan. The popular Pera spent only one season in the jersey of our club, but he remained fondly remembered by all fans of the black and white basketball dynasty.

Partizan did not win a single trophy that season, although in the semi-finals of the playoffs, against the great favorite Cibona, they won the famous game with two overtimes (124:123), with a fantastic farewell game from the Belgrade crowd, Vilfan (33 points), who along with Savović (31 points), Grbović and Marić, led the team to victory. What was more significant than the results of that season was the bringing of an ace like Vilfan at that moment and the announcement of a series of moves by the new director Dragan Kićanović and the management, which a year later would result in the creation of Partizan's second golden generation. Then, the already experienced Savović, Grbović, Obradović, along with the super-talented Đorđević, were joined by the trio Divac, Paspalj, Nakić and the core of the team was formed, which in 1987, led by the young coach Vujošević, won the title of national champion, and a year later won participation in the Final for the European Champions Cup.

How important the authority of Partizan's director was, is also shown by Peter Vilfan's memory of joining the ranks of the black and whites:

"One call was enough. It was an invitation from Dragan Kićanović, with whom I also played in the national team. Kića called me on the phone to Ljubljana and I was already a Partizan player in half an hour."

Peter Wilfan in the 1985/86 season. played 41 games for Partizan and scored 1,007 points. With an average of 24.6 points per match, he is third on the club's all-time list in that category, right behind Dragan Kićanović and Dražen Dalipagić.