For Slovenia the World Championship ended in the quarter finals, after the defeat by the USA. The Slovenian basketball players played very well in the preliminaries, but the calculations by the Australian national team placed them in a difficult position: they had to win the last match against Lithuania in order to avoid the confrontation with the Americans – yet unfortunately they were defeated. The fourth quarter in which they scored only two points was fatal.

It was the first large competition with Zdovc leading the Slovenian national team after 2009, when he won the fourth place. After last year's EuroBasket he returned as a selector, and he remains the only Slovenian selector with a medal from a larger competition.
During the preparations the players were listless
Zdovc told us that he had relied on Domen Lorbek for help in transferring his mentality to the court, but he admitted that the Dragić brothers acted as playmakers as well. "I had great problems with Zoran during the preparation period. He was very impatient after his injury, very ambitious, and so he kept destroying the system. He couldn't catch his form, he tried to force everything, and the normal consequence was that we were both dissatisfied. When Goran joined the team everything became easier. Zoran caught his form, points scored gave him confidence, and he improved his defence game. In the end his performance was at the top level," Zdovc said, and added that the pressure of a match is always directed towards him, and towards the main player, Goran Dragić: "The player who carries the game has a difficult job, I have experienced it myself. In case of defeat the trainer gets the blame, and perhaps the main player as well. Goran felt he had not prepared adequately, due to his agreement with Phoenix." The selector admitted that a difference could be felt during preparations: "Normally you have to hold players back, as they all wish to start as soon as possible. In our case it was just the opposite: the mood was listless. But the talks we had with the players helped us to prepare them well, and already in the first match their performance was topmost."
The match against the USA was the most disappointing
The Slovenian selector said that he will need quite some time to evaluate the Slovenian adventure at the World Championship in Spain as a whole. He said however that the match against the USA was the most disappointing for him. His wards lost by 43 points (119:76)."My character simply can't take such matches. I failed in provoking the players to start believing that they could compete with the Americans. During the break minute I saw on their faces that they stopped believing in a miracle. I had expected a little bit more from the matc against the USA," said Zdovc, and continued that the defeat against Lithuania destroyed the Slovenian dreams of a medal, as the second place in their group had placed them into that part of the table which potentially led towards a confrontation with the Americans.
The leaders of the Slovenian Basketball Association wanted victory
"This year's Fiba system punished the team which was too good. With three victories we placed ourselves into a very difficult position. Had we lost the next match, we would have been in a better position. It was very frustrating. You win and play well, and in the end you realize that it might have been better if you had lost. We were punished for playing well. The Lithuanians had lost against Australia, and found themselves in a much better position compared to us who had won. Two options were available: by losing we would open our path towards a medal, by winning we would have to play against Lithuania, an excellent team which would do everything in their power to beat us," Zdovc said and explained that the leaders of the Slovenian Basketball Association refused any calculations, and insisted on winning all matches. "A number of questions was asked, but the decision was not made by the trainer. It was made from the top, by the secretary and the president of the Association. We were given the answer that we had to win, and so we did. We did allow some rest to some of our players, but we definitely didn't tell anyone to play to lose. I did whatever was necessary to win the match; we did everything we could in order to win, but I am still not certain whether it was the right thing to do. I keep listening that it was the right decision, but my dreams of a medal ended in Las Palmas. And that was the most painful thing... After losing against Lithuania we started believing that the competition was over for us. We boarded the plane in extremely low spirits. But, you cannot play against the rules, or against the draw. That's the way it ended, and it can't be changed."
Generally speaking, Zdovc was satisfied with the championship, but he emphasized: "I am one of those coaches who are never very satisfied. I always demand more. I request a lot from players. The last defeat was very painful for me, and it left a bitter aftertaste. I had hoped for a better play against the Americans. We had intended to actually breath down their necks, and not to allow the match to turn into an »all star show«, as one of the newspapers named the match."