Budućnost–Crvena Zvezda basketball rivalry
The Budućnost–Crvena Zvezda basketball rivalry is an Adriatic League (ABA League) rivalry between Budućnost and Crvena zvezda. While the two teams have played each other since Budućnost joined the Yugoslav League in 1980, their rivalry began to develop in the 1990s through the Serbian-Montenegrin League and reached its peak in the Adriatic League during the late 2010s and early 2020s with 3-in-a-row League Finals (2018, 2019, and 2021). History. 1980s: Yugoslavia. The first time these two teams actually met was in 1980 when Budućnost qualified for the Yugoslav League for  the first time in history. The first derby finished 105–91 in Zvezda's favour. Generally, the rivalry wasn’t prominent in the Yugoslav era since both teams had fluctuations in their results in the 80’s, thus they didn’t have the status as constant contenders for the title. Finals summaries. 2018 ABA League Finals. This was the first ABA League Finals series between Budućnost and Crvena Zvezda, and the first Finals of any competition to occur between Budućnost and Crvena Zvezda since their first meeting in 1980. Budućnost hadn't made an appearance in the ABA Finals prior to  2018. Budućnost won the championship, 3–1. Nemanja Gordić of Budućnost was named the Finals MVP. 2018 ABA SuperCup Final. The Budućnost and Crvena Zvezda would meet the six months after the 2018 ABA League Finals in Laktaši, Bosnia and Herzegovina. Crvena Zvezda would defeat Budućnost and win their first ABA SuperCup title. The Zvezda had an 89–75 victory, while Budućnost lost its second Supercup Final. The Zvezda led 48–23 in the middle of the second quarter and sustained to 57–32 to lead by 25 at halftime. As the first half ended, so did the second half. Buducnost took advantage of  the relaxation of the Belgraders in the last quarter and mitigated the defeat to a more acceptable 14 points difference. The Zvezda's Mouhammad Faye had 14 points and four rebounds, and Maik Zirbes added 13 points and five rebounds. Joe Ragland recorded 10 points and the game-high 7 assists, while Stratos Perperoglou and Ognjen Dobrić both had 12 points off the bench. Budućnost was led by Filip Barović with 19 points and five rebounds of the bench, and Earl Clark added 11 points. Faye was named the MVP Award. 2019 ABA League Finals. The 2019 ABA League Finals  saw Budućnost and Crvena Zvezda meet for the second straight season. Crvena Zvezda won Games 1 and 2 in Belgrade before the series moved to Podgorica. While Budućnost won Game 3 and 4 at home, the Zvezda took Game 5 at home, earning their fourth championship and their fourth in five seasons. Game 2 was a more one-sided affair, with the Zvezda winning 107–69. Game 5 was a blowout victory for the Zvezda, 97–54, led by K. C. Rivers with the game-high 21 points. The Zvezda's Billy Baron was named the Finals MVP. 2021 ABA League Finals . The 2019 ABA League Finals saw Budućnost and Crvena Zvezda meet for the third straight season. Crvena Zvezda won Games 1 and 2 in Belgrade before the series moved to Podgorica. While Budućnost won Game 3 and 4 at home, the Zvezda took Game 5 at home, earning their fifth championship and their fifth in seven seasons. Head-to-head. Matches. The following are the matches between Budućnost and Crvena Zvezda in the Adriatic League: Matches in defunct competitions. 1980–1992: Yugoslavia. The following were the matches between Budućnost and Crvena Zvezda in the Yugoslav competitions: 1992–2006: Serbia and Montenegro. The  following were the matches between Budućnost and Crvena Zvezda in Yugoslav/Serb–Montenegrin competitions: Statistics. "Note: Last updated on " Common individuals. Players. The following players have played for both Budućnost and Crvena zvezda in their careers: The following players have played for one club in youth career and for rival club in senior career: Coaches. The following head coaches have coached both Budućnost and Crvena zvezda in their careers: Others. The following individuals have also played and/or coached both Budućnost and Crvena zvezda in their careers: Honours. The rivalry reflected in derby matches comes about as Budućnost is the most  successful basketball club in Montenegro, while Crvena zvezda is the second most successful basketball club in Serbia.