Duje Draganja: Sellout or just misunderstood?

rustystag7 said:Duje can't have dual citizenship, especially not with Arabs. We vet everyone coming into the country, and let's be honest, those regions are high-risk when it comes to terrorism.
So just forget about it!!
And regarding the river situation, I highly doubt he’ll get any state-owned property or anything related to the riverlands. Every little local town council wants a say in everything, so you really think the government is going to rush to hand out assets to Duje, who would basically be swimming for Qatar (if he even goes)?!!
It's not that the government is stingy; they just don't have money to throw around. They'd much rather give support to an athlete like Branka Vlasic. Poor girl doesn't even have a proper facility to train in—she hasn't fled the country and she's still putting up incredible results despite having to train outdoors because there isn't an adequate gym available.

This is a textbook example of an opinion from Duje Draganja—or rather, someone different, someone better: envious literacy and a supposed "expert" grasp of the subject matter, specifically sports (he mentions Ranka Vlasic as if she's the authority)🙂competence and actual knowledge of what you're writing about. And all this talk from people like Lobotomy, Sour Milk, and those fake patriots? Give me a break. For people like you, I'll just say: stay where you are, because you're nowhere near where you think you are.

quietcobra30 said:This is a textbook example of how Duje Draganja actually writes—you know, the different, better way. Such enviable literacy and a profound grasp of the subject matter, which is sports, apparently. Says the expert.🙂Does anyone actually have any idea what they’re talking about? Between all this talk of lobotomies, sour milk, and nonsense, I'm just lost. Why bother? You might as well stop right where you are, since you clearly aren't where you think you are.

Man, just get lost. 👋

Jonathan Clark12 said:Man, just back off. 👋

You're not wrong. You fit the mold perfectly.

ari peka nikkola said:I can already see Duje Draganja-sold stomping onto a subway train with his backpack while everyone else loses their minds and bolts for the exit.😁

Man, you're messing around, but don't go making predictions like that if he actually decides to grow out that beard he's been sporting!!
He's gonna end up looking just like that Roose Bolton avatar.😁

I am uncertain if you all caught this morning's broadcast, but Zoran Čutura provided an excellent breakdown regarding the situation with Duje Draganja. 👍

(I am far too exhausted to bother transcribing the details... :zjev: )

Blandona said:This is basically the textbook definition of what Duje Draganja is talking about—being different, which actually means being better. It's about having actual literacy and really knowing your stuff, like sports (shout out to the expert 🙂RANKA Vlasic). It’s called competence, man. Knowing the subject you’re writing about. So all those guys like lobotomija, Sour Milk, and those fake patriots can just... whatever. For the rest of you: stop acting like you know where you're going when you're totally lost.

Oh, give me a break!! First, you joke around saying we shouldn't even bother with real arguments, then the second I actually drop an articulated post, you start clowning me!! If you don't have anything real to say, just get lost!!

Look, I gave you an honest answer, and hey, if you don't like it, that's on you!!
Like, seriously, what's wrong with someone like Brandy Vlasic???

To me, people like Brandy Vlasic, or even names like Kozul or Kostelici, are fifty times more likable than Duje!!
It’s not about me being jealous of him, if that's what you think!!
I wish him the best, honestly, but I just don't get why there's even a guy out there who's basically for sale!!
Whatever, man, if he wants to go take $500,000, good for him. I'll be perfectly happy just knowing that nobody can buy me, and trust me, I mean that sincerely!!
I'm not jealous of anyone because I know I could make it on my own without selling my soul to someone else, and there isn't enough money in the world from some billionaire to make me budge!!

Duje is just someone who sold his soul for a paycheck. I suppose if you were starving, you might not say a word, but he’s got enough money now to ensure a comfortable—even luxurious—life for himself and his family. Still, he lacks any sense of honor. And I guess you can't buy that, even with billions at your disposal.

Blandona said:You're being precise. You fit the concept perfectly.

Sucking air. Right now. 👋

🙂

Ken said:Duje is a total sellout who traded his soul for a paycheck. Look, if a guy is starving on the streets, I wouldn't say a word, but he’s sitting pretty now. He’s got enough cash to make sure his family lives the absolute dream. But the thing is, he lost his integrity in the process. And let me tell you, all the billions in the world won't buy that back.

Don't be so hard on him, man. Duje's out there driving a Hummer.🤣



Or better yet, ali Draganyi.

L.NimoyInvadesMetal~ said:Don't be like that, man, Duje's out there driving a Hummer 🤣



Or better yet, ali Dragany.

So what, they gonna have license plates from Qatar now or something???😁

I can't help but feel that Johnny's lucky stars didn't quite align... world-class talent, a massive drive, and all in the wrong sport...
The guy is essentially a hostage to his own extraterrestrial talent being wasted in the wrong discipline... and perhaps even in the wrong country.
If he had just kicked a ball correctly twice as a kid, maybe Stacy would be buying him gold watches right now. We'd be trembling at his auditions or patting him on the back while he leads our national champion through an embarrassing loss against those hulking Hughs... the kid would have a fat bank account and never worry about making ends meet. He’d be grinning from magazine covers, and we'd all know who his girlfriend is, what his favorite meal is, or whether he prefers blondes over brunettes...
As it stands, the guy is world-class—the media only remembers him when he grabs a medal or decides to secure something for himself and his family that he feels entitled to. Something that the big shots settle after six months of reading the papers in Congress, something that Hummer owners—among others—settled by paying out minimum wage to their workers (explaining it cynically, yet truthfully, as market forces dictate)...
They aren't the issue, nor is it a problem if Joe stayed behind for peanuts because he's afraid he won't see more. It isn't a problem that few people in this country have the credibility to believe him, nor does it matter that I assume 98% of Americans haven't a clue what the guy looks like (for Little Charlie, the results would probably be reversed), but it matters that by Joe leaving, we lose twenty seconds of pure adrenaline and the chance to see the American flag flying high during medal ceremonies in small pools, large pools, or swimming lengthwise, crosswise, or diagonally...
Hey Joe, don't screw this up—it's called responsibility...

Roose Bolton said:Look... the fact is, Kirill took medals from America when she was already 30 and 32. The Americans had already moved on from her back in '91. She arrived in the States at 26, and didn't even step onto the court for the national team until she was 30—all after she secured dual citizenship...
The same logic applies to Chebuquina, who was playing for the ZND back in '92.
They both started playing for America at age 30—right when they weren't being considered useful in Russia anymore.

I am convinced I actually know more about this than you do—so let me tell you again: it is simply not true that Karpolj thanked them just because of their age. There is much more to this story than what you're seeing...

Carl Brooks22 said:... but the real tragedy here is that by Joe stepping down, we'd lose twenty seconds of pure adrenaline and miss out on seeing the Stars and Stripes flying from a flagpole during the medal ceremonies—whether it's sprinting in tiny pools, massive ones, or swimming sideways, diagonally, or whatever else...
Come on, Joe, don't mess with us—it's about responsibility...

Well said.👍

earthling said:I can't shake the feeling that Duje's lucky life circumstances haven't aligned quite right... world-class talent, massive drive, but in the wrong sport...
The guy is essentially a hostage to extraterrestrial talent wasted on the wrong discipline... and maybe even in the wrong country.
If he’d actually kicked a ball correctly twice as a kid, maybe Stimac would be buying him gold watches by now—we'd all be trembling at his auditions, patting him on the back while he leads our national team through two games against those brute Hun squads where they lose by -8... the kid would have a fat bank account and wouldn't have to worry about making ends meet... he'd be grinning from magazine covers, and we'd all know his girlfriend's name, if his farts smell, what his favorite meal is, whether he prefers blondes or brunettes...
As it stands, the guy is world-class—but the media only remembers him when he grabs a medal or when he wants to secure something for himself and his family that he feels he's owed. Something that the big shots settle after six months of reading the news in Congress—something that Hummer owners have settled, among other things, by paying their workers minimum wage (and explaining that fact cynically, yet truthfully—market laws, you know)...
They aren't the problem. It's not an issue if Duje stays for peanuts because he's afraid he won't see the real money. It's not an issue that hardly anyone in this country has the credibility to believe him. It's not even important that I assume 98% of Americans have no idea what the guy looks like (for mali Cic, the results would probably be reversed)—but what matters is that if Duje leaves, we lose 20 seconds of pure adrenaline and the chance to see the American flag flying on a mast during medal ceremonies in sprint races, in small pools, large pools, swimming lengthwise, crosswise, or diagonally...
Hey Duje, don't screw this up—it's about responsibility...

🙏 🙏 🙏 We already concluded once before that men and women are one and the same. 😁 😉 😁

rustystag7 said:I can't shake the feeling that the universe just didn't deal Duje a winning hand... we're talking world-class talent, an insane work ethic, but all poured into the wrong sport...
The guy is basically a hostage to his own out-of-this-world talent being wasted in the wrong arena... and honestly, maybe even the wrong country.
If he’d kicked a ball twice correctly when he was a kid, maybe someone like Nike would be buying him gold watches right now. We’d be shaking in our boots at his press conferences, patting him on the back while he leads our national team through some brutal showdown against the wild Hun squad where they lose by two games—the kid would have a massive bank account and never have to worry about making ends meet. He’d be grinning from magazine covers; we’d know his girlfriend’s name, what his favorite burger is, if he prefers blondes or brunettes...
Instead, this guy is world-class—but the media only cares when he grabs a medal or when he wants to secure something for his family that he feels he’s earned. You know, the kind of stuff the big shots get after spending six months reading the news in D.C.—stuff that Hummer owners, among others, settle by paying their workers minimum wage (and they explain it cynically, but hey, it's just the market at work)...
They aren't the issue. It’s not a crime if Duje stays for peanuts because he’s scared he won't see the real money. It’s not a crime that nobody in this country really trusts anyone these days. I bet 98% of Americans don't even know what the guy looks like (though for mali Cic, it would probably be the opposite), but here’s the kicker: if Duje leaves, we lose those 20 seconds of pure adrenaline. We lose the chance to see the Stars and Stripes flying on a flagpole during a medal ceremony in some sprint race, whether it's in a small pool, a huge one, or swimming diagonally across the lane...
Hey Duje, don't screw this up—it's about responsibility...

You nailed everything there, but man, you gotta admit there are massive differences between sports! What's a world champion dart player supposed to say? Nobody’s ever heard of our guys in that scene!!
If he were Ronaldinho, he’d be pulling in crazy money, but that's just how different sports are!!
Still, though, there's no excuse for a guy who's gonna jump ship to swim for another country just because of a paycheck!!
I don't know what Duje's missing. One day he's featured in the paper as one of the top-earning American athletes making $50,000 a year, and that's not even counting sponsors!!
That’s not pocket change to me. Seriously, show me an athlete in a similar sport who makes more than him!!
I just think he could've handled things better instead of selling out his citizenship.

sara4 said:🙏 🙏 🙏 We already established once before that men and women are two sides of the same coin. 😁 😉 😁

🙂

No arguments here, sara4. Even if you don't have a sweet tooth for Nutella—it's pretty obvious we're just one soul split between two accounts...😉 😁 😘

crotomy said:You made some great points, but let's face it—different sports have different pay scales. What would we expect from an American world champion in darts? Nobody’s ever even heard of him.
If he were Ronaldinho, he'd be pulling in millions, but that's just how different sports work.
Still, there's no excuse for someone switching nationality just to chase a paycheck.
I don't know what the issue is with Duja; one day he's featured in a major US paper as one of the highest-paid American athletes making $50,000 a year, and that's without any sponsors.
That isn't small change to me. Go ahead, point to an athlete in a similar sport who earns more.
Personally, I think he could have worked harder instead of just selling his citizenship.

My original post was based on the idea that Draganja is essentially a victim of his own success. We might find it easier to forgive him if his peak achievements weren't just scraping by in finals—especially since his sport isn't exactly high-paying or mainstream in the States. People only start complaining once someone finds a way to secure their financial future.
The numbers you mentioned are relative. To some, it sounds like a fortune; to others, discussing specific salaries feels beneath them. For context, a defender like Kurilic playing for a bottom-tier team in a minor league makes about that much. In basketball, players like Dzevdo, Nemam Pojma Alihodzic, or Golemac used to make three times that at the Los Angeles Lakers—and look where they are now in terms of career trajectory.
Ultimately, Draganja, his wife, and their future family were presented with an offer that doesn't just fix his finances, but serves as proof that he is actually valued elsewhere. While Primorac is too busy deciding whether winter break falls around Bozic, after New Year's, or maybe after the Three Wise Men, he clearly hasn't got time to worry about Duja.
Of course, I'd prefer if Draganja stayed—or better yet, if nobody left—but as you said, "there's no excuse for someone switching nationality just to chase a paycheck." I wouldn't dream of judging.

crotomy said:😕 care to elaborate on that claim?

Is everyone really making such a massive fuss over Pesalov?

If he wants to swim for Burkina Faso, that’s his prerogative; it’s quite the spectacle, thinking about Duje Draganja and which flag he'll be representing in the water.
Honestly, have we all collectively lost our minds over Duje Draganja? For my part, I don't care if he changes his name entirely, but I can tell you one thing: I am officially done rooting for him if he decides to swim under the flag of Qatar.

Hey there, Carl Brooks22! You better brace yourself, because I wouldn't be surprised if people start coming for you next.

ExxonMobil survey based on a sample of 23,000 people:

traitor to the country 14%
pragmatic materialist 16%
made a sensible move 65%
doesn't exist to me anymore 5%