Crvena Zvezda have paid their former point guard Gal Mekel and asking FIBA to lift their ongoing transfer ban.
Israeli guard Mekel, who now plays for Gran Canaria, played for the Serbian powerhouse in August, 2015 but left in January to sign for Maccabi Tel Aviv.
The amount owed has reportedly been paid by the club. It is unclear how much Mekel was owed.
Red Star also mentioned that they had previously notified basketball authorities on certain “irregularities” and “illogical aspects” behind the case of the guard and they add that FIBA ignored their appeals when they decided in favor of the player.
After a season where they narrowly missed out on the final spot in the EuroLeague Playoffs but won the domestic titles including the Adriatic crown, Crvena Zvezda has not been able to sign any new players so far during offseason and is looking for ways to cover the huge gaps left in its roster.
The club have parted ways with no less than eight members of last season’s outfit. Including, Charles Jenkins (to Khimki Moscow), Marko Simonovic (to Zenit St. Petersburg), Marko Guduric (to Fenerbahce), Luka Mitrovic (to Brose Bamberg), Stefan Jovic (to Bayern Munich), Nate Wolters and Deon Thompson.
Ognjen Kuzmic is also rumoured to be joining Real Madrid.