Dražen "Praja" Dalipagić (; born 27 November 1951) is a Serbian 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 and
head
A head is the part of an organism which usually includes the ears, brain, forehead, cheeks, chin, eyes, nose, and mouth, each of which aid in various sensory functions such as sight, hearing, smell, and taste. Some very simple animals ...
coach
Coach may refer to:
Guidance/instruction
* Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities
* Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process
** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers
Transportation
* Coac ...
. He was selected
the best athlete of Yugoslavia in the year 1978, and is one of the most decorated athletes in Yugoslavian history. He was named one of
FIBA's 50 Greatest Players in 1991. Dalipagić was enshrined into the
Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame
The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame is an American history museum and hall of fame, located at 1000 Hall of Fame Avenue in Springfield, Massachusetts. It serves as basketball's most complete library, in addition to promoting and pres ...
as a player in 2004, and into the
FIBA Hall of Fame, also as a player, in 2007. In 2008, he was named one of the
50 Greatest EuroLeague Contributors
The 50 Greatest EuroLeague Contributors (2008) of FIBA European Champions Cup and EuroLeague history were awarded and chosen on February 3, 2008, in Madrid, Spain. The occasion was the fiftieth anniversary since the founding of the inaugural sea ...
.
During his professional playing career, he scored at least 50 points in a game 15 times. His single-game career scoring high was 70 points scored, achieved during 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 T ...
game, between
Venezia and
Virtus Bologna, on 25 January 1987. He was nicknamed "The Sky Jumper".
Professional career
Dalipagić started playing basketball at the age of 19, and one year later he signed his first professional contract with
Partizan, in 1971. He stayed in Partizan for eight seasons, until 1980. Over that time, he won the
Mr. Europa European Player of the Year award twice, in 1977 and 1978, and the European Player of the Year
Euroscar award in 1980. He was declared
the best athlete of Yugoslavia in 1978. In the
1975–76 season, he led Partizan to the
Yugoslav League
The Yugoslav First Federal Football League (Serbian: Прва савезна лига у фудбалу / ''Prva savezna liga u fudbalu'', hr, Prva savezna liga u nogometu, sl, Prva zvezna nogometna liga, mk, Прва сојузна лига, ...
title, and also to the
European-wide 3rd-tier level 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 ...
title, in the
1977–78 season. He was also a member of Partizan, at the time when they won the
1978–79 season Korać Cup title, but he was serving in the
Yugoslav army
The Yugoslav People's Army (abbreviated as JNA/; Macedonian and sr-Cyrl-Latn, Југословенска народна армија, Jugoslovenska narodna armija; Croatian and bs, Jugoslavenska narodna armija; sl, Jugoslovanska ljudska ar ...
at the time.
In the 1980–81 season, he went abroad for the first time in his career. During that season, he played with
Reyer Venezia, of the Italian
Lega Basket Serie A
The Lega Basket Serie A (LBA) is a professional men's club basketball league that has been organised in Italy since 1920. Serie A is organised by Lega Basket, which is regulated by the Italian Basketball Federation (FIP). It is the highest-tier ...
league. After just one season with Venezia, he returned to his former club, Partizan, for one season. In the following seasons, he played for numerous European teams, including
Real Madrid
Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (, meaning ''Royal Madrid Football Club''), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid.
Founded in 1902 as Madrid Football Club, the club has traditionally wor ...
, of the Spanish
Primera División, during the
1982–83 season, in which he only played with the club in
FIBA European Champions Cup (now called
EuroLeague) games. He also played with Reyer Venezia, and
Glaxo Verona of the Italian League. He finished his professional career after the 1990–91 season, in which he played with Partizan's arch-rivals,
Crvena zvezda.
As a Partizan Belgrade player, he scored 8,278 points, in 305 games played, for a scoring average of 27.1 points per game. While playing in Italy, he scored 7,993 points in 241 games played, for a scoring average of 33.2 points per game. He led the
Italian League in scoring average, in the 1987–88 season, with an average of 37.7 points per game.
National team career
Dalipagić debuted for senior the
Yugoslavian national basketball team
The Yugoslavia men's national basketball team ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Košarkaška reprezentacija Jugoslavije, Кошаркашка репрезентација Југославије; sl, Jugoslovanska košarkarska reprezentanca; mk, ...
, in 1973. In total, he played in 243
games
A game is a structured form of play, usually undertaken for entertainment or fun, and sometimes used as an educational tool. Many games are also considered to be work (such as professional players of spectator sports or games) or art (suc ...
with Yugoslavia's senior national team, between 1973 and 1986, scoring a total of 3,700 points,
which was the most points scored by any player in the history of the Yugoslav national team.
He won the gold medal at the
1978 FIBA World Championship
The 1978 FIBA World Championship was the 8th FIBA World Championship, the international basketball world championship for men's teams. The tournament was hosted by the Philippines from October 1 to 14, 1978 in Rizal Memorial Coliseum in Manila ...
, and the gold medal at the
1980 Summer Olympics
The 1980 Summer Olympics (russian: Летние Олимпийские игры 1980, Letniye Olimpiyskiye igry 1980), officially known as the Games of the XXII Olympiad (russian: Игры XXII Олимпиады, Igry XXII Olimpiady) and commo ...
.
As a member of the Yugoslavian national team, he also won three gold medals at the
EuroBasket
EuroBasket, also commonly referred to as the European Basketball Championship, is the main international basketball competition that is contested quadrennially, by the senior men's national teams that are governed by FIBA Europe, which is the ...
. His four medals won at the
FIBA World Cup
The FIBA Basketball World Cup, also known as the FIBA World Cup of Basketball or simply the FIBA World Cup, between 1950 and 2010 known as the FIBA World Championship, is an international basketball competition contested by the senior men's nat ...
(Silver,
1974 FIBA World Championship
The 1974 FIBA World Championship was the 7th FIBA World Championship, the international basketball world championship for men's teams. It was hosted by Puerto Rico from July 3 to 14, 1974. The tournament was won by the Soviet Union.
Venues
Comp ...
; Gold,
1978 FIBA World Championship
The 1978 FIBA World Championship was the 8th FIBA World Championship, the international basketball world championship for men's teams. The tournament was hosted by the Philippines from October 1 to 14, 1978 in Rizal Memorial Coliseum in Manila ...
; Bronze,
1982 FIBA World Championship
The 1982 FIBA World Championship was the 9th FIBA World Championship, the international basketball world championship for men's teams. The tournament was hosted by Colombia from 15 to 28 August 1982.
Qualification
Venues
Competing nation ...
, and
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 ...
) is tied for the all-time international basketball record. A three-time
Olympian, Dalipagić was instrumental in the Yugoslavian team's capturing of the gold, at the 1980 Summer Olympics.
Personal life
Dalipagić finished high school at the Technical School in
Mostar
, settlement_type = City
, image_skyline = Mostar (collage image).jpg
, image_caption = From top, left to right: A panoramic view of the heritage town site and the Neretva river from Lučki Bridge, Koski Mehmed Pasha ...
, and graduated from the Teachers College in
Belgrade
Belgrade ( , ;, ; names in other languages) is the capital and largest city in Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers and the crossroads of the Pannonian Plain and the Balkan Peninsula. Nearly 1,166,763 mi ...
. He is married to Sonja Požeg, former Yugoslav tennis player. They have two children, Sanja and Davorin.
See also
*
Yugoslav First Federal Basketball League career stats leaders
*
List of flag bearers for Yugoslavia at the Olympics
References
External links
*
Dražen Dalipagić at
Basketball-Reference.com
*
*
Dražen Dalipagić at the Basketball Hall of FameDražen Dalipagić at the FIBA Hall of FameDražen Dalipagić Italian League Profile
Euroleague.net 50 Greatest EuroLeague Contributors
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dalipagic, Drazen
1951 births
Living people
Basketball players at the 1976 Summer Olympics
Basketball players at the 1980 Summer Olympics
Basketball players at the 1984 Summer Olympics
Bosnia and Herzegovina expatriate basketball people in Serbia
Competitors at the 1975 Mediterranean Games
European champions for Yugoslavia
Euroscar award winners
FIBA EuroBasket-winning players
FIBA Hall of Fame inductees
FIBA World Championship-winning players
KK Crvena zvezda players
KK Partizan players
KK Lavovi 063 coaches
Lega Basket Serie A players
Medalists at the 1976 Summer Olympics
Medalists at the 1980 Summer Olympics
Medalists at the 1984 Summer Olympics
Mediterranean Games gold medalists for Yugoslavia
Mediterranean Games medalists in basketball
Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame inductees
Olympic basketball players of Yugoslavia
Olympic bronze medalists for Yugoslavia
Olympic gold medalists for Yugoslavia
Olympic medalists in basketball
Olympic silver medalists for Yugoslavia
Pallalcesto Amatori Udine players
Real Madrid Baloncesto players
Reyer Venezia players
Scaligera Basket Verona players
Serbs of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Small forwards
Basketball players from Mostar
Yugoslav men's basketball players
1974 FIBA World Championship players
1978 FIBA World Championship players
1982 FIBA World Championship players
Yugoslav expatriates in Spain
1986 FIBA World Championship players