I think we would all agree that Saša Đorđević was a truly great player, and as the story I am about to tell shows, he was also a man who knew how to recognize immense value.

Like that of Slobodan Janković, our own Boban, who since April 28, 1993 had been confined to a wheelchair—“Guza” was never destined to walk again. Boban himself, with a sense of disappointment, used to say that after the tragic incident he received countless promises of support, but in the end, most people forgot him. Not, however, Aleksandar Đorđević.

On July 3, 2005, in Belgrade at Hala Pionir, 8,000 Serbian fans filled the stands to thank and at the same time bid farewell to Saša, who was bringing the curtain down on a great twenty-year career. Two teams, made up of former teammates and opponents—including true legends of the sport such as Dino Meneghin, Toni Kukoč, Predrag Danilović, Zoran Savić, Clifford Luyk, Žarko Paspalj, Richard Dacoury, Dino Rađa, Dejan Bodiroga and Jure Zdovc—played a friendly match in honor of “Sale Nacionale.”

The man of the evening had prepared commemorative T-shirts with the date printed on them, intending to distribute them to friends who were not participating in the game, stopping from time to time to personally hand them out.

At some point toward the end of the match, after Đorđević had already given away several T-shirts, he took one and walked toward the right side of the front rows of the stands, where Boban’s wheelchair was. Saša approached him, handed him the T-shirt, embraced him, and said a few words.

The entire arena, along with all the players, rose to their feet, applauding and chanting Boban’s name—many with tears in their eyes. Janković himself was also in tears and deeply moved, showing just how much the gesture meant to him and how profoundly he was touched by Đorđević’s act.

Wanting to thank him, he stated a few days later:

“There is only one Saša Đorđević. He is one of the few people who never forgot me, when things were much harder for me than they are today. This night will remain unforgettable for me, and as it turned out, my old rivals from Partizan Belgrade, like Đorđević and Danilović, who organized the charity match in Novi Sad, are the ones who helped me the most.

When players like Saša, Danilović, Rađa, and Kukoč bring you out of obscurity because they remember and honor you, I suppose it means that as a player of Red Star Belgrade and a member of the national team, I was somebody. Đorđević became a legend that Sunday. He could have easily played for another five years, but he retired at the right time—he chose not to push himself further. I regret that I never played with him, even for one season, so that we could have won a title together.”

That night in Belgrade was the last chance for Partizan Belgrade fans to say their own farewell to an old “enemy” whom they always respected. One year later, Boban stood firmly on his feet again and flew high, with the certainty that we would never forget him…