Luigi "Gigi" Datome (born 27 November 1987) is an Italian 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 for

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 ...

of the

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 le ...

(LBA) and the EuroLeague. Standing at , he plays at the

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 ...

and

power forward The power forward (PF), also known as the four, is one of the five traditional Basketball positions, positions in a regulation basketball game. Traditionally, power forwards have played a role similar to center (basketball), centers. When on Of ...

positions. Datome was an

All-EuroLeague Second Team The All-EuroLeague Team is an award for Europe's premier level league, the EuroLeague, that is given to the league's top ten basketball players for each season, since the 2000–01 season. During the FIBA era of the EuroLeague, players were honor ...

selection in

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...

Professional career

Early years

Born in

Montebelluna Montebelluna is a city and ''comune'' in Veneto, Italy, approximately northwest of Venice. It has an estimated population of 32,000. Montebelluna borders the following municipalities: Altivole, Caerano di San Marco, Cornuda, Crocetta del Montello ...

to Sardinian parents from

Olbia Olbia (, ; sc, Terranoa; sdn, Tarranoa) is a city and commune of 60,346 inhabitants (May 2018) in the Italian insular province of Sassari in northeastern Sardinia, Italy, in the historical region of Gallura. Called ''Olbia'' in the Roman age, ...

, Datome moved to

Sardinia Sardinia ( ; it, Sardegna, label=Italian, Corsican and Tabarchino ; sc, Sardigna , sdc, Sardhigna; french: Sardaigne; sdn, Saldigna; ca, Sardenya, label=Algherese and Catalan) is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after ...

, where he started playing junior basketball. He joined

Montepaschi Siena Mens Sana 1871 Basket is an Italian professional basketball club based in Siena. It is a section of the sports club Polisportiva Mens Sana, founded in 1871. Under the name Montepaschi Siena, derived from sponsor Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena, ...

of the first division

Serie A The Serie A (), also called Serie A TIM for national sponsorship with TIM, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and the winner is awarded the Scudetto and the Coppa ...

in 2003. He played three and a half seasons for Montepaschi before joining

Scafati Basket Scafati Basket, known for sponsorship reasons as Givova Scafati, is an Italian professional basketball club based in Scafati, Campania. The club competes in the top level Italian professional basketball league, the Lega Basket Serie A (LBA). His ...

in February 2007.

Virtus Roma (2008–2013)

In 2008, Datome signed with

Virtus Roma Pallacanestro Virtus Roma, commonly known as Virtus Roma, was an Italian professional basketball club based in Rome, Lazio. It competed in the first division of Italian basketball, the LBA, for the last time in the 2020–21 season. It was form ...

where he went on to earn the league's Best Under 22 player award for the 2008–09 season. In 2012–13, he was named the

Lega Basket Serie A MVP The Lega Basket Serie A (LBA) Most Valuable Player (MVP) is an annual award of the 1st-tier professional basketball league in Italy, the Lega Basket Serie A (LBA), given since the 1993–94 season, to the league's most valuable player in a given r ...

, after averaging 16.4 points and 5.6 rebounds per game.

Detroit Pistons (2013–2015)

On 16 July 2013, Datome signed a two-year, $3.5 million contract with the

Detroit Pistons The Detroit Pistons are an American professional basketball team based in Detroit. The Pistons compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division and play their home games at Li ...

. On 23 December 2013, he scored a season-high 13 points in a 115–92 win over the

Cleveland Cavaliers The Cleveland Cavaliers (often referred to as the Cavs) are an American professional basketball team based in Cleveland. The Cavaliers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference (NBA), Ea ...

. On 14 January 2015, Datome was assigned by the Pistons to the

Grand Rapids Drive The Grand Rapids Gold are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and are affiliated with the Denver Nuggets. The Gold play their home games at Van Andel Arena. They began play as the Anaheim ...

of the

NBA Development League The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is the National Basketball Association's (NBA) official List of developmental and minor sports leagues, minor league basketball organization. The league was known as the National Basketball Development ...

. On 20 January, he was recalled by the Pistons.

Boston Celtics (2015)

On 19 February 2015, Datome was traded, along with

Jonas Jerebko Jonas Jerebko (; born March 2, 1987) is a Swedish professional basketball player. He was selected as the 39th overall pick in the second round of the 2009 NBA draft by the Detroit Pistons, becoming the second Swedish-born basketball player (after ...

, to the

Boston Celtics The Boston Celtics ( ) are an American professional basketball team based in Boston. The Celtics compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Atlantic Division. Founded in 1946 as one of t ...

, in exchange for

Tayshaun Prince Tayshaun Durell Prince (born February 28, 1980) is an American professional basketball executive and former player. The small forward graduated from Dominguez High School before playing college basketball for the University of Kentucky. He was ...

. On 15 April, in the Celtics' final regular season game, he earned his first career NBA start; Datome responded with a career- and game-high 22 points, leading Boston to a narrow victory over the

Milwaukee Bucks The Milwaukee Bucks are an American professional basketball team based in Milwaukee. The Bucks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division. The team was founded in 1968 ...

Fenerbahçe (2015–2020)

On 14 July 2015, Datome signed a two-year contract with the Turkish club Fenerbahçe. In his first season with the team, Datome won the

Turkish Cup The Turkish Cup ( Turkish: ''Türkiye Kupası'') is a football cup competition in Turkish football, run by the Turkish Football Federation since 1962. During a brief sponsorship period with Fortis, its sponsored name was ''Fortis Türkiye Kupası ...

with a 67–65 win over Darüşşafaka. Fenerbahçe also reached the final game of the 2016 Euroleague Final Four, but fell short of winning the EuroLeague championship, after an

overtime Overtime is the amount of time someone works beyond normal working hours. The term is also used for the pay received for this time. Normal hours may be determined in several ways: *by custom (what is considered healthy or reasonable by society), ...

96–101 loss to

CSKA Moscow CSKA Moscow (russian: ЦСКА Москва) is a Russian sports club based in Moscow. It was created in 1911 in the Russian Empire on base of OLLS (Skiing Society, founded 1901). Later, during the Soviet Union, Soviet era, it was a central piece ...

. Over 29 EuroLeague games, he averaged 12.4 points and 4.4 rebounds per game. At the end of the season, Fenerbahçe also won the

Turkish League Turkish may refer to: *a Turkic language spoken by the Turks * of or about Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities and mi ...

championship. On 5 July 2017, Datome signed a three-year contract extension with Fenerbahçe. In 2017–18 EuroLeague, Fenerbahçe made it to the 2018 EuroLeague Final Four, its fourth consecutive Final Four appearance. Eventually, they lost to

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 ...

with 80–85 in the final game. Over 35 EuroLeague games, he averaged 9.6 points, 3.4 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game. On 2 July 2019, Datome signed another contract extension with the Turkish club through the 2021-22 season. On 30 June 2020, Datome and the Turkish club parted ways after five quite successful seasons.

Olimpia Milano (2020–present)

On 30 June 2020, Datome signed with

of the

(LBA).

Career statistics

NBA

Regular season

, - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at th ...

, 34 , , 0 , , 7.0 , , .351 , , .179 , , .800 , , 1.4 , , .3 , , .2 , , .0 , , 2.4 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

, 3 , , 0 , , 5.7 , , .417 , , .250 , , .000 , , 1.3 , , .7 , , .3 , , .0 , , 3.7 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

, 18 , , 1 , , 10.7 , , .494 , , .472 , , 1.000 , , 1.4 , , .4 , , .1 , , .4 , , 5.2 , - class="sortbottom" , align="center" colspan="2", Career , 55 , , 1 , , 8.1 , , .414 , , .361 , , .818 , , 1.4 , , .4 , , .1 , , .1 , , 3.4

Playoffs

, - , align="left" ,

2015 File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the Apri ...

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, 3 , , 0 , , 4.7 , , .333 , , .000 , , .000 , , .3 , , .3 , , .0 , , .0 , , 1.3 , - , align="center" colspan="2", Career , 3 , , 0 , , 4.7 , , .333 , , .000 , , .000 , , .3 , , .3 , , .0 , , .0 , , 1.3

EuroLeague

, - , align="left" , 2004–05 , align="left" rowspan=2, Montepaschi , 6 , , 0 , , 5.5 , , .583 , , .000 , , .000 , , 1.3 , , .2 , , .3 , , .0 , , 2.3 , , 2.5 , - , align="left" , 2005–06 , 11 , , 2 , , 11.2 , , .538 , , .579 , , 1.000 , , 2.3 , , .4 , , .7 , , .2 , , 5.2 , , 5.1 , - , align="left" , 2008–09 , align="left" rowspan=3,

, 13 , , 2 , , 16.9 , , .417 , , .348 , , .895 , , 3.7 , , .6 , , .4 , , .3 , , 5.8 , , 5.8 , - , align="left" , 2009–10 , 2 , , 0 , , 10.9 , , .400 , , .400 , , 1.000 , , 2.0 , , .5 , , .0 , , .0 , , 6.0 , , 4.5 , - , align="left" ,

2010–11 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. I ...

, 13 , , 12 , , 24.5 , , .438 , , .367 , , 1.000 , , 4.3 , , .7 , , 1.1 , , .4 , , 9.1 , , 7.5 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2015–16 , style="text-align:left;" rowspan=5, Fenerbahçe , 29 , , 23 , , 27.0 , , .516 , , .462 , , .867 , , 4.4 , , 1.9 , , .4 , , .3 , , 12.4 , , 13.3 , - , style="text-align:left;background:#AFE6BA;", 2016–17† , 33 , , 21 , , 23.6 , , .442 , , .466 , , .944 , , 3.7 , , 1.1 , , .5 , , .1 , , 9.2 , , 8.8 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2017–18 , 35 , , 15 , , 23.9 , , .486 , , .444 , , .917 , , 3.4 , , 1.1 , , .4 , , .6 , , 9.6 , , 9.7 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2018–19 , 34 , , 15 , , 21.0 , , .477 , , .415 , , .917 , , 3.6 , , .8 , , .5 , , .2 , , 9.0 , , 8.4 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2019–20 , 28 , , 15 , , 22.4 , , .478 , , .431 , , .929 , , 3.4 , , 1.3 , , .8 , , .3 , , 8.3 , , 7.4 , - class="sortbottom" , align="center" colspan="2", Career , 204 , , 105 , , 21.9 , , .476 , , .435 , , .912 , , 3.6 , , 1.0 , , .5 , , .3 , , 8.9 , , 8.6

National team

National team career

Datome played with the senior men's

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 ...

at the

2007 EuroBasket The 2007 FIBA European Championship, commonly called FIBA EuroBasket 2007, was the 35th FIBA EuroBasket regional basketball championship held by FIBA Europe, which also served as Europe qualifier for the 2008 Summer Olympics, giving a berth to th ...

, the

EuroBasket 2011 EuroBasket 2011 was the 37th men's EuroBasket, European Basketball Championship, held by FIBA Europe. The competition was hosted by Lithuania. This was the second time EuroBasket had been held in Lithuania, the country having also hosted t ...

, and the 2013 EuroBasket. He was also a part of the Italian squad that would take part in the

2015 EuroBasket EuroBasket 2015 was the 39th edition of the EuroBasket championship that was organized by FIBA Europe. It was co-hosted by Croatia, France, Germany, and Latvia, making it the first EuroBasket held in more than one country. It started on 5 S ...

. However, after injuring a muscle during Italy's second game of the tournament, against

Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...

, Datome had to pull out of the rest of the tournament. Datome also represented Italy at the 2016 Turin FIBA World Olympic Qualifying Tournament, and at the

2017 EuroBasket EuroBasket 2017 was the 40th edition of the EuroBasket championship that was organized by FIBA Europe and held between 31 August and 17 September 2017. Beginning from 2017, the continental championships take place every four years with a similar ...

Professional career

Early years

Virtus Roma (2008–2013)

Detroit Pistons (2013–2015)

Boston Celtics (2015)

Fenerbahçe (2015–2020)

Olimpia Milano (2020–present)

Career statistics

NBA

Regular season

Playoffs

EuroLeague

National team

National team career

See also

References

External links