It’s over between Paolo Galbiati and Baskonia; a replacement has already been named: he’ll make his debut with Virtus

Paolo Galbiati’s tenure as head coach of Baskonia Vitoria has officially come to an end, after just over one season at the helm of the Basque team. The club has decided to part ways with the Brianza-born coach despite winning the 2025–26 Copa del Rey—a trophy they hadn’t won in nine years—and a perfect start to the Liga ACB season, with three wins in their first three games. The decision was primarily influenced by the team’s disappointing performance in the EuroLeague, where Baskonia recorded just one victory—a home win against Olimpia Milano—against four losses. The latest setback came Wednesday night in front of their home crowd against Dubai.

This poor performance was also influenced by the limitations of a shallow roster made up of several players who still lack significant experience at the European level. These circumstances, however, were not enough to save the job of the former Trento coach. After all, relations between Galbiati and the club had never been particularly smooth. Already last summer, the coach had been close to a move to Barcelona, but the high financial demand made by Baskonia to release him had prevented the transfer.

The Basque club has chosen Velimir Perasovic as its new head coach, officially announcing his return with a two-year contract. For the Croatian coach, this marks yet another chapter in his long history with Baskonia: after playing for the team from 1993 to 1997, he coached the squad on three separate occasions: from 2005 to 2007, during the 2015–16 season, and in 2018–19.

Perasovic is set to make his debut as early as Friday evening at the PalaDozza, where Baskonia will face Virtus Bologna in the sixth round of the EuroLeague, with the game broadcast live on Sky Sport.