The Atlanta Hawks have named Neven Spahija an assistant coach, it was announced today by President of Basketball Operations/General Manager Danny Ferry. Per team policy, terms of the agreement were not announced.
“Neven is one of the most successful coaches in Europe and we’re thrilled to add him to our staff,” said Hawks Head Coach Mike Budenholzer. “As an organization, we have great respect for international basketball and we will benefit tremendously from his perspective and his wealth of experience.”
Spahija, a Croatia native and former Croatian Coach of the Year with nearly 30 years international coaching experience, was most recently head coach of Cibona Zagreb (Croatia) last season.
Spahija had previously guided Cibona from 2000-01, additionally serving as head coach for five other Euroleague teams since that time – Krka Novo Mesto (Slovenia), Lietuvos Rytas (Lithuania), Maccabi Tel Aviv (Israel), Tau Ceramica (Spain) and Fenerbahce Ulker (Turkey).
He has won domestic league titles in six countries – Slovenia, Croatia, Lithuania, Spain, Israel and Turkey.
Spahija has also spent time as head coach of the Croatian National team (2001-05) and the Under-22 National Team (2001).