Antonello Riva (born 28 February 1962) is an Italian former professional
basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...
player. At 1.96 m (6'5"), he played at the
shooting guard
The shooting guard (SG), also known as the two, two guard or off guard,Shooting guards are 6'3"–6'7"BBC Sports academy URL last accessed 2006-09-09. is one of the five traditional positions in a regulation basketball game. A shooting guard's m ...
and
small forward
The small forward (SF), also known as the three or swingman, is one of the five positions in a regulation basketball game. Small forwards are typically shorter, quicker, and leaner than power forwards and centers but taller, larger, and stronger t ...
positions. During his playing career, he was nicknamed "Nembo Kid" (Italian version of
Superman
Superman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, and debuted in the comic book ''Action Comics'' #1 (cover-dated June 1938 and publi ...
). Riva was named one of
FIBA's 50 Greatest Players
FIBA's 50 Greatest Players (1991) is the list of the 50 greatest players in the history of FIBA international basketball, as selected in the year 1991, by FIBA Magazine. The list was created in honor of the 100th anniversary of the creation of the ...
in 1991. In 2004, he was given an award to mark his being
the top scorer of all-time in the top two Italian club league competitions, with a total of 14,397 points scored. In 2008, he was named one of the
50 Greatest EuroLeague Contributors.
Professional career
Riva started playing pro
club
Club may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
* ''Club'' (magazine)
* Club, a ''Yie Ar Kung-Fu'' character
* Clubs (suit), a suit of playing cards
* Club music
* "Club", by Kelsea Ballerini from the album ''kelsea''
Brands and enterprises
...
basketball in the 1977–78 season. He played most of his career with
Cantù
Cantù (; Brianzöö: ) is a city and ''comune'' in the Province of Como, located at the center of the Brianza zone in Lombardy. It is the second largest city in Brianza.
History
The name could stem from that of the Canturigi, a population of I ...
(1977–1989, 1998–2002), with whom he won the
FIBA European Champions Cup (now called
EuroLeague) twice, in the seasons
1981–82 and
1982–83. He also won an
Italian League
The Italic League or Most Holy League was an international agreement concluded in Venice on 30 August 1454, between the Papal States, the Republic of Venice, the Duchy of Milan, the Republic of Florence, and the Kingdom of Naples, following the Tr ...
championship in 1981.
He also played with
Olimpia Milano
Pallacanestro Olimpia Milano, commonly known as Olimpia Milano or as EA7 Emporio Armani Milan after its title sponsor, is an LBA Italian professional basketball team, based in Milan, Italy. Its colors are white and red, and the team is sometimes ...
(1989–1994, with whom he won the
FIBA Korać Cup
The FIBA Korać Cup was an annual basketball club competition held by FIBA between the 1971–72 and 2001–02 seasons. It was the third-tier level club competition in European basketball, after the FIBA European Champions' Cup (later renamed th ...
in the
1992–93 season),
Victoria Libertas Pesaro
Victoria Libertas (also known as "VL" or in Italian ''Vuelle''), full name Unione Sportiva Victoria Libertas Pallacanestro, is a professional basketball team that is based in Pesaro, Italy. The club competes in the top level Italian professiona ...
(1994–1996),
Dinamica Gorizia (
Italian 2nd Division, 1996–1998), and
Sebastiani Rieti (Italian 2nd Division, 2004).
Riva finished his club playing career with a total of 14,397 points scored in 797 games played in Italian league competitions, for a career scoring average of 18.1 points per game. He also scored a total of 2,066 points in 97 EuroLeague games, for a career scoring average of 21.3 points per game.
National team career
Riva was a member of the senior
Italian national team
The Italy national football team ( it, Nazionale di calcio dell'Italia) has represented Italy in international football since its first match in 1910. The national team is controlled by the Italian Football Federation (FIGC), the governing bo ...
. He is the all-time leading scorer in the history of the senior men's Italian national team, with 3,785 points scored, in 213 games played, for a career scoring average of 17.8 points per game. With Italy, he played at the following major FIBA tournaments: the
1983 EuroBasket
The 1983 FIBA European Championship, commonly called FIBA EuroBasket 1983, was the 23rd FIBA EuroBasket regional basketball championship, held by FIBA Europe. It took place from 26 May to 4 June 1983 in France. Italy defeated Spain in the final ...
, the
1984 Summer Olympics
The 1984 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXIII Olympiad and also known as Los Angeles 1984) were an international multi-sport event held from July 28 to August 12, 1984, in Los Angeles, California, United States. It marked the secon ...
, the
1986 FIBA World Championship
The 1986 FIBA World Championship was the 10th FIBA World Championship, the international basketball world championship for men's teams. It was hosted by Spain and was held from 5 to 20 July 1986. The final phase of the tournament was held at the ...
, the
1987 EuroBasket
The 1987 FIBA European Championship, commonly called FIBA EuroBasket 1987, was the 25th FIBA EuroBasket regional basketball championship, held by FIBA Europe. It was held in Greece between 3 and 14 June 1987. Twelve national teams entered the ev ...
, the
1989 EuroBasket, the
1990 FIBA World Championship
The 1990 FIBA World Championship was the 11th FIBA World Championship, the international basketball world championship for men's teams. It was hosted by Argentina from 8 to 19 August 1990. The final phase of the competition was held at the Luna Pa ...
, and the
1991 EuroBasket
The 1991 FIBA European Championship, commonly called FIBA EuroBasket 1991, was the 27th FIBA EuroBasket regional basketball championship, held by FIBA Europe. It was held in Italy between 24 and 29 June 1991. Eight national teams entered the eve ...
.
He won a gold medal at
EuroBasket 1983
The 1983 FIBA European Championship, commonly called FIBA EuroBasket 1983, was the 23rd FIBA EuroBasket regional basketball championship, held by FIBA Europe. It took place from 26 May to 4 June 1983 in France. Italy defeated Spain in the final ...
, and a silver medal at
EuroBasket 1991
The 1991 FIBA European Championship, commonly called FIBA EuroBasket 1991, was the 27th FIBA EuroBasket regional basketball championship, held by FIBA Europe. It was held in Italy between 24 and 29 June 1991. Eight national teams entered the even ...
.
Antonello RIVA (ITA).
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Post-playing career
Riva founded a new basketball team in 2002. He won a career trophy for being the best scorer of all-time, of the top two level Italian leagues, with 14,397 total points scored, in 2004.
References
External links
FIBA Profile
Italian League Profile
Italian League Stats
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Riva, Antonello
1962 births
Living people
Basketball players at the 1984 Summer Olympics
FIBA EuroBasket-winning players
Italian men's basketball players
Nuova AMG Sebastiani Basket Rieti players
Nuova Pallacanestro Gorizia players
Olimpia Milano players
Olympic basketball players of Italy
Pallacanestro Cantù players
Sportspeople from the Province of Lecco
Shooting guards
Small forwards
Victoria Libertas Pesaro players
1986 FIBA World Championship players
1990 FIBA World Championship players