Navarro Before Hapoel: Moneke and Baldwin in Doubt

Ibon Navarro stood in front of reporters in the Arena’s locker room ahead of Tuesday’s clash with Hapoel, and the first thing he addressed wasn’t tactics. It was the injury list. Red Star Belgrade Meridianbet’s head coach said both Chima Moneke and Patrick Baldwin Jr. could miss the Euroleague’s second round matchup, with question marks hanging over both names.

“We can’t put a player who is fifty percent ready on the court and leave three guys out of the roster just because of one player who is, you know, fifty-fifty. So we have to be sure. Also, Chima had a problem yesterday, he was injured. They had training, you know, not the whole training, but we have to talk to the doctors, the physiotherapists, and make the final decision, which we’ll make tomorrow,” Navarro told the assembled reporters.

That means the final word won’t come until Tuesday, matchday itself. Red Star takes on Hapoel at Belgrade Arena starting at 8 p.m., in a game that gives the red and whites their first shot at an opening win this Euroleague season. In the competition’s opening round, Zalgiris won 83-77, and because of that game, or more precisely the punishment the club served over it, the stands were empty. That’s about to change.

Why is the Arena bursting at the seams this time?

Because Red Star already served its punishment for the Zalgiris incident on opening night, both games of this week’s double round, Tuesday against Hapoel and Thursday against Anadolu Efes, will be played in front of a packed Belgrade Arena. Two Euroleague nights in three days, both tipping off at 8 p.m.

The club has also opened ticket sales, online through tickets.kkcrvenazvezda.rs since Saturday at noon, with tickets now available at physical points of sale as well. Announcing the sale, the club had a short, clear message for the fans.

“Zvezda fans, we’ve only just begun, our players need your support and a full Arena!” the club said in its statement.

Judging by that tone, the club is banking on fans turning out in even greater numbers after the loss to Zalgiris, not fewer. It makes sense. Double rounds don’t come around often, and both Hapoel and Efes are teams with high ambitions of their own this Euroleague season.

For Red Star, the uncertainty around Moneke is sensitive for exactly the reason Navarro laid out: the team won’t risk its entire rotation over one player who, in the coach’s own words, is only half ready. The same logic applies to Baldwin, whose fitness is being monitored right up to the last moment, with the final call on both players coming only on matchday.

As a reminder, we already covered Navarro’s coaching debut, the 77-83 loss to Zalgiris, and that result is exactly why every game since has been under the microscope. The team isn’t short on motivation. It’s short on a win, and this double round is the chance to get one.

So Tuesday evening carries two open questions at once: who actually takes the floor for Red Star, and can the red and whites finally land their first win of the season. Thursday, and a visit from Anadolu Efes, is already waiting just around the corner.