Drago Pašalić (pronounced [drǎgo paʃǎliːt͡ɕ]; born June 23, 1984) is a Croatian former professional basketball player. He is the current technical director of Donar. Standing at 2.08 m (6 ft 10 in), he played both power forward and center positions. In the beginning of his career he played for the Croatian national team. He is a one-time Croatian League and two-time Dutch League champion.

Drago Pašalić
Pašalić with Bilbao Basket, in 2009.
Donar
PositionTechnical director
LeagueBNXT League
Personal information
Born (1984-06-23) June 23, 1984 (age 40)
Split, SR Croatia, SFR Yugoslavia
NationalityCroatian
Listed height2.08 m (6 ft 10 in)
Listed weight107 kg (236 lb)
Career information
NBA draft2005: undrafted
Playing career2000–2020
PositionPower forward / center
Number33
Career history
2000–2005Split
2001–2002Solin
2005Ülkerspor
2006–2007PAOK
2007–2009Bilbao
2009–2010Obradoiro
2010Cibona
2010–2011Azovmash
2011–2012Helios
2012–2013Türk Telekom
2013Hapoel Gilboa Galil
2014Široki
2014–2015Al-Arabi
2015Czarni Słupsk
2015Zadar
2016Dąbrowa Górnicza
2016–2019Donar
2019–2020ZZ Leiden
Career highlights and awards
Medals
Men's basketball
Representing  Croatia
FIBA Europe Under-18 Championship
Gold medal – first place 2002 Germany U-18 Team
Mediterranean Games
Gold medal – first place 2009 Pescara Team Competition

Professional career

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His first five years as a pro, Pašalić played with his hometown team, Split. In the 2002–03 season, he won the Croatian Championship with the club.

He was an early entry candidate in the 2004 NBA draft but withdrew and became one again in 2005 but was not selected.[1] On June 29, 2016, he signed with Donar Groningen of the Dutch Basketball League.[2] After the 2016–17 DBL regular season, he was named to the All-DBL Team.[3] In April 2017, Pašalić extended his contract with two more years.[4] His contract was not renewed after the 2018–19 season.[5] Pašalić won two DBL championships with Donar.

On August 14, 2019, he has signed with ZZ Leiden of the Dutch Basketball League. [6] After the 2019–20 season was cancelled due to the coronavirus outbreak in March 2020, Pašalić retired.[7]

Executive career

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In July 2021, Pašalić became the head of technical business of Heroes Den Bosch's youth academy.[8] On March 15, 2022, Pašalić signed with Donar to become its full-time technical director starting from the 2022–23 season.[9]

Personal

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Pašalić has three children; two daughters, Kiara and Kinge, and a son, Ivan Pašalić.

On September 30, 2020, it was announced Pašalić had suffered a cardiac arrest.[10]

Career statistics

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Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field-goal percentage  3P%  3-point field-goal percentage  FT%  Free-throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  PIR  Performance Index Rating
 Bold  Career high

EuroLeague

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Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG PIR
2010–11 Cibona 7 6 23.4 .525 .235 .833 4.7 0.4 0 0.6 9.1 5.6
Career 7 6 23.4 .525 .235 .833 4.7 0.4 0 0.6 9.1 5.6

Honours and titles

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Club

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Split

Donar

Individual

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References

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  1. ^ 2013 NBA Draft Media Guide, pp. 223-225.
  2. ^ "Donar signs Drago Pasalic". Donar.nl (in Dutch). 29 June 2016. Retrieved 29 June 2016.
  3. ^ "Jeter: MVP van het seizoen". Basketballleague.nl. 11 April 2017.
  4. ^ "Slagter en Pasalic twee jaar langer bij Donar". oogtv.nl. 2017-04-11.
  5. ^ "Bericht van het bestuur: We will bounce back". Retrieved 29 June 2019.
  6. ^ Borghesan, Ennio Terrasi (August 13, 2019). "Leiden sign Drago Pasalic". Sportando. Retrieved August 14, 2019.
  7. ^ "Het plotselinge einde van een lange basketballoopbaan". Basketball League. Retrieved 26 March 2020.
  8. ^ "Drago Pašalić en Teska Dinkla voorzien Heroes Basketball Academy van nieuw elan - Heroes Den Bosch - Basketball". Heroes Den Bosch. Retrieved 16 May 2022.
  9. ^ Buurke, Karel-Jan (15 March 2022). "Oud-speler Drago Pasalic wordt fulltime technisch directeur bij Donar (update)". www.rtvnoord.nl (in Dutch). Retrieved 16 May 2022.
  10. ^ "Tužna vijest iz Nizozemske: Drago Pašalić u induciranoj komi". crosarka.com (in Croatian). 30 September 2020. Retrieved 30 September 2020.
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