Sergio Scariolo (born 1 April 1961) 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 ...

coach who is head coach of

Virtus Bologna Virtus Pallacanestro Bologna, known for sponsorship reasons as Virtus Segafredo Bologna, is an Italian professional basketball club based in Bologna, Emilia-Romagna. The club was founded in 1929, which makes it the oldest club in Italy and one ...

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 le ...

(LBA) and the head coach of the senior Spain national team. Having won four

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 E ...

championships and a

World Cup A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the concept i ...

at the head of Spain, Scariolo is one of the most successful coaches in the history of international competitions, and according to many players, journalists and commentators, he is regarded as the greatest national team coach of all time.

Coaching career

Early years

Sergio Scariolo started his

coaching Coaching is a form of development in which an experienced person, called a ''coach'', supports a learner or client in achieving a specific personal or professional goal by providing training and guidance. The learner is sometimes called a ''coa ...

career in the early 1980s, as the assistant coach of Basket Brescia, the team of his hometown, and

Scavolini 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 ...

. In 1985, he became the coach of Italy's military national team, with whom he won the world championship. As assistant coach of

Valerio Bianchini Valerio Bianchini (born July 22, 1943) is an Italian professional basketball coach. He was the first coach in the history of Italian basketball who won three championship titles with three clubs (Cantù, Virtus Roma and Victoria Libertas Pesaro). ...

in Pesaro, Scariolo won its first

Italian 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 ...

championship in 1988.

First successes in Italy (1989–1997)

In 1989, Bianchini became the new coach of

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 ...

and Scariolo was hired as new head coach of

Pesaro Pesaro () is a city and ''comune'' in the Italian region of Marche, capital of the Province of Pesaro e Urbino, on the Adriatic Sea. According to the 2011 census, its population was 95,011, making it the second most populous city in the Marche, ...

. In the 1989–90 season, Scariolo's Scavolini was able of winning another Italian league title, defeating

Pallacanestro Varese Pallacanestro Varese, also called by its current sponsor's name, the Openjobmetis Varese, is an Italian professional basketball club based in Varese, Lombardy. Founded in 1945, the team plays in the Italian basketball league system, Italian first ...

3–1 in the national finals. At age of 29, Scariolo became the youngest coach ever to win the trophy. In the same season, the team also reached 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 ...

Final, which lost against

Joventut Badalona Club Joventut Badalona, S.A.D. () is a Spanish professional basketball club based in Badalona, Catalonia, Spain, playing in the Liga ACB and the EuroCup. Known to their fans as ''La Penya'' (in English, ''The Club''), it is one of only two teams ...

. In 1990–91 season, the club arrived 7th in the regular season and was ousted in the national quarterfinals by Phonola Caserta. However, Pesaro succeeded in reaching the European Champions Cup Final Four, but it was defeated 93–84 in the semi-finals by

KK Split Košarkaški klub Split ( en, Split Basketball Club), commonly referred to as KK Split or simply Split, is a men's professional basketball club based in Split, Croatia. The club competes in the ABA League and the Croatian League. History The c ...

, which then won the trophy. In the following year, he unexpectedly moved to Aurora Desio, of the Italian 2nd Division. After two seasons in which he failed to reach the promotion, he left the club. In 1993, Scariolo was hired by

Fortitudo Bologna Fortitudo Pallacanestro Bologna 103, commonly known as Fortitudo Bologna and currently known as Fortitudo Kiğılı Bologna for sponsorship reasons, is a basketball club based in Bologna, Italy and currently plays in the second division. Histor ...

, a team which was becoming more and more ambitious under the new ownership of the entrepreneur Giorgio Seragnoli. In 1994, he was awarded as Coach of the Year of the Italian Serie A. In 1994–95 season, Fortitudo arrived second in the regular season but it was defeated in the national semi-finals by Benetton Treviso, while in 1995–96, Scariolo's team succeeded in reaching the national finals, the first ones in the history of the club, but Fortitudo was defeated 3–1 by

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 ...

Triumphs in Spain (1997–2008)

In 1997, he moved to Spain, a nation which deeply marked his entire career. With Scariolo as head coach, TAU Vitoria reached its first Spanish Championship final in 1998 and won a Spanish King's Cup title in 1999. In 1999, Scariolo was hired by

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 ...

, one of the most important clubs of the

Liga ACB The Liga ACB, known as Liga Endesa for sponsorship reasons, is the top professional basketball division of the Spanish basketball league system. Administrated by the Asociación de Clubs de Baloncesto (ACB), Liga ACB is contested by 18 teams, wi ...

. In the first season, he immediately led Real to win the Spanish national league title, defeating 3–2, Real's historic rival

FC Barcelona Futbol Club Barcelona (), commonly referred to as Barcelona and colloquially known as Barça (), is a professional football club based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top flight of Spanish football. Founded ...

; the team also reached the EuroLeague's quarterfinals, which lost against Fortitudo Bologna. However, in the following season, Real was defeated 3–0 by Barcelona in the national finals, while in 2001–02, it was ousted in the quarterfinals by

CB Estudiantes Club Baloncesto Estudiantes, S.A.D., known simply as Estu and as Movistar Estudiantes for sponsorship reasons, is a basketball team based in the city of Madrid, Spain. It is a member of the Asociación de Clubes de Baloncesto (ACB). Founded in 19 ...

and Scariolo was sacked. From 2003 to 2008, Sergio Scariolo was the head coach of the Spanish club

Unicaja Málaga Unicaja is a Spanish savings bank based in Málaga and chartered as a caja de ahorros providing retail banking services. The banks full name is ''Monte de Piedad y Caja de Ahorros de Ronda, Cádiz, Almería, Málaga y Antequera'' after th ...

, which, under his tenure and thanks to the leadership of

Jorge Garbajosa Jorge Garbajosa Chaparro (born December 19, 1977), also known as The Pornoplayer, is a Spanish former professional basketball player and the current president of the Spanish Basketball Federation. Standing at 2.07 m (6 ft 9 in), he p ...

, lived its so-called "golden age". In 2005, Málaga won the Spanish King's Cup title against Real Madrid and in the next year, during the 2005–06 season, it won its first-ever Spanish League championship, defeating TAU Vitoria 3–0 in the national finals. The club finished its best years to date, by qualifying for the 2007 Euroleague Final Four, where it was defeated in the semi-finals by

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 ...

, and thus finished in third place in the EuroLeague. In October 2007, Unicaja faced the NBA's

Memphis Grizzlies The Memphis Grizzlies (referred to locally as the Grizz) are an American professional basketball team based in Memphis, Tennessee. The Grizzlies compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference ...

in a

friendly match An exhibition game (also known as a friendly, a scrimmage, a demonstration, a preseason game, a warmup match, or a preparation match, depending at least in part on the sport) is a sporting event whose prize money and impact on the player's or ...

, and they defeated the Grizzlies, by a score of 102–99. That was one of the few times that an NBA team has lost to a foreign club.

Difficult years in Moscow, Milan and Vitoria (2008–2014)

From 2008 to 2010, Scariolo served as the head coach of the Russian club

BC Khimki BC Khimki (russian: БК Химки) is a Russian professional basketball team that is based in Khimki, Moscow Oblast. The club's senior men's first team participates in the Russian Basketball Super League 1. The club's full official name is BC Kh ...

Moscow. In both seasons he arrived second, losing the national finals against

. In 2009, Scariolo's Khimki was also defeated 80–74 in the EuroCup Final against

Lietuvos Rytas ''Lietuvos rytas'' (lit. 'Morning of Lithuania') is a Lithuanian daily newspaper. History and profile "Lietuvos rytas" was established in 1990 on a basis of newspaper "Komjaunimo tiesa". The paper is printed in Vilnius Vilnius ( , ; see also ...

. On 20 December 2010, Scariolo and the club mutually agreed to rescind the contract. In 2011, Scariolo returned to Italy, becoming the new head coach of

. In 2011–12 EuroLeague, Milan reached the Top16, but did not pass the round. Scariolo's team reached the national finals, but it was defeated 4–1 by Monte Paschi Siena. In the following season, Olimpia failed in reaching EuroLeague's Top16 and was once again defeated 4–3 by Siena in the playoffs' quarterfinals and Scariolo resigned from his post. In June 2013, Scariolo became the head coach of Laboral Kutxa, a club which he had already coached during the late 1990s. However, after poor results both in national and European competitions, he was fired at the end of the 2013–14 season.

NBA champion with the Toronto Raptors (2018–2021)

In July 2018, he was hired by the

Toronto Raptors The Toronto Raptors are a Canadian professional basketball team based in Toronto. The Raptors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Atlantic Division. They play their home games a ...

as an assistant coach, aiding them to win their first NBA championship. Scariolo became the first Italian coach and the second Italian ever, after the shooting guard

Marco Belinelli Marco Stefano Belinelli (; born 25 March 1986) is an Italian professional basketball player and the team captain for Virtus Bologna of the Lega Basket Serie A (LBA) and the EuroLeague. He was selected 18th overall in the 2007 NBA draft by the G ...

, to become an NBA champion. On 26 February 2021, Scariolo served as interim head coach of the Raptors for a game against the

Houston Rockets The Houston Rockets are an American professional basketball team based in Houston. The Rockets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member team of the league's Western Conference Southwest Division. The team plays its ho ...

after head coach

Nick Nurse Nicholas David Nurse (born July 24, 1967) is an American professional basketball coach, author and former college basketball player. He is the head coach of the Toronto Raptors of the National Basketball Association (NBA) and the Canadian men's ...

and five assistants missed the game due to the NBA's health and safety protocols; Toronto won the game 122–111. Raptors point guard

Kyle Lowry Kyle Terrell Lowry (born March 25, 1986) is an American professional basketball player for the Miami Heat of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He has been a six-time NBA All-Star and was named to the All-NBA Third Team in 2016. Lowry ...

collected the game ball after the game and presented it to Scariolo as a memento.

At the head of Virtus Bologna (2021–present)

On 18 June 2021, Scariolo signed a three-year deal with

, of the Italian

(LBA). On 21 September, the team won the second Supercup in its history, defeating

90–84. Moreover, after having ousted Lietkabelis,

Ulm Ulm () is a city in the German state of Baden-Württemberg, situated on the river Danube on the border with Bavaria. The city, which has an estimated population of more than 126,000 (2018), forms an urban district of its own (german: link=no, ...

and

Valencia Valencia ( va, València) is the capital of the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Valencian Community, Valencia and the Municipalities of Spain, third-most populated municipality in Spain, with 791,413 inhabitants. It is ...

in the first three rounds of the

playoffs The playoffs, play-offs, postseason or finals of a sports league are a competition played after the regular season by the top competitors to determine the league champion or a similar accolade. Depending on the league, the playoffs may be eithe ...

, on 11 May 2022, Virtus defeated Frutti Extra Bursaspor by 80–67 at the Segafredo Arena, winning its first EuroCup and qualifying for the EuroLeague after 14 years. However, despite having ended the regular season at the first place and having ousted 3–0 both

and

Tortona Tortona (; pms, Torton-a , ; lat, Dhertona) is a ''comune'' of Piemonte, in the Province of Alessandria, Italy. Tortona is sited on the right bank of the Scrivia between the plain of Marengo and the foothills of the Ligurian Apennines. History ...

in the first two rounds of playoffs, Virtus was defeated 4–2 in the national finals by Olimpia Milan. On 29 September 2022, after having ousted Olimpia Milano in the semifinals, Virtus won its third Supercup, defeating 72–69 Banco di Sardegna Sassari and achieving a back-to-back, following the 2021 trophy.

National team career

(Sergio Scariolo) La selección española de baloncesto prepara en Madrid el mundial de China 06

Scariolo served two times as head coach of the Spanish national team: from 2009 to 2012 and from 2015 to present. Under Scariolo, Spain won the gold medal at the

EuroBasket 2009 The 2009 FIBA European Championship, commonly called FIBA EuroBasket 2009, was the 36th FIBA EuroBasket regional basketball championship held by FIBA Europe. The tournament, which was hosted by Poland, began on 7 September and concluded with 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 ...

, the

EuroBasket 2015 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 Sept ...

and the

EuroBasket 2022 The EuroBasket 2022 was the 41st edition of the EuroBasket championship organized by FIBA Europe. It was the first since it was agreed it would take place every four years, with a similar system of qualification as for the FIBA Basketball World C ...

, and the bronze medal at

EuroBasket 2017 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 ...

. He also won the silver medal at the

2012 Summer Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

and the bronze medal at the

2016 Summer Olympics The 2016 Summer Olympics ( pt, Jogos Olímpicos de Verão de 2016), officially the Games of the XXXI Olympiad ( pt, Jogos da XXXI Olimpíada) and also known as Rio 2016, was an international multi-sport event held from 5 to 21 August 20 ...

. He also coached Spain at the

2010 FIBA World Championship The 2010 FIBA World Championship was the 16th FIBA World Championship, the international basketball world championship contested by the men's national teams. The tournament ran from 28 August to 12 September 2010. It was co-organised by the Inte ...

. In 2019, Scariolo led Spain to victory in the

FIBA Basketball 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 ...

. In October 2020, Scariolo announced that he will remain as head coach of the team through the

2024 Summer Olympics The 2024 Summer Olympics (french: Jeux olympiques d'été de 2024), officially the Games of the XXXIII Olympiad (french: Jeux de la XXXIIIe Olympiade, links=no) and also known as Paris 2024, is an upcoming international multi-sport event that is s ...

Personal life

Scariolo is married to Blanca Ares, a former Spanish basketball player. The couple has two children: Alessandro, who also plays basketball, and Carlota. Sergio Scariolo appeared in the Netflix film '' Hustle'', produced by

LeBron James LeBron Raymone James Sr. (; born December 30, 1984) is an American professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed "King James", he is widely considered one of the greatest pl ...

and

Adam Sandler Adam Richard Sandler (born September 9, 1966) is an American comedian, actor, screenwriter, producer and singer. He was a cast member on ''Saturday Night Live'' from 1990 to 1995, before going on to star in numerous Hollywood films, those of wh ...

, who was the co-star along with Juancho Hernangómez, which was released on 8 June 2022. In the movie, Scariolo portrayed himself as the head coach of Spanish national team.The complete list of the 64 NBA stars, legends, coaches and more in Adam Sandler's Hustle
''FTW''

Coaching record

, - , align="left" ,

, align="left" , 1990–91 , 18, , 10, , 8, , , , align="center" , Lost in

Semi-finals A single-elimination, knockout, or sudden death tournament is a type of elimination tournament where the loser of each match-up is immediately eliminated from the tournament. Each winner will play another in the next round, until the final matc ...

, - , align="left" , Teamsystem Bologna , align="left" , 1996–97 , 31, , 22, , 9, , , , align="center" , Lost in

Quarter-finals A single-elimination, knockout, or sudden death tournament is a type of elimination tournament where the loser of each match-up is immediately eliminated from the tournament. Each winner will play another in the next round, until the final matc ...

, - , align="left" ,

Tau Cerámica Club Deportivo Saski-Baskonia, S.A.D., commonly known as Saski Baskonia (), also known as Cazoo Baskonia for sponsorship reasons, is a professional basketball team that is based in Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain. The team plays in the Liga ACB and the ...

, align="left" , 1996–97 , 10, , 5, , 5, , , , align="center" , Eliminated at

Group stage A tournament is a competition involving at least three competitors, all participating in a sport or game. More specifically, the term may be used in either of two overlapping senses: # One or more competitions held at a single venue and concent ...

, - , align="left" rowspan=3,

, align="left" , 1999–00 , 28, , 15, , 13, , , , align="center" , Eliminated at Top 16 Stage , - , align="left" , 2000–01 , 15, , 10, , 5, , , , align="center" , Lost in

, - , align="left" , 2001–02 , 20, , 12, , 8, , , , align="center" , Eliminated at Top 16 Stage , - , align="left" rowspan=5,

, align="left" , 2003–04 , 14, , 4, , 10, , , , align="center" , Eliminated at

, - , align="left" , 2004–05 , 14, , 6, , 8, , , , align="center" , Eliminated at

, - , align="left" , 2005–06 , 20, , 15, , 5, , , , align="center" , Eliminated at Top 16 Stage , - , align="left" , 2006–07 , 25, , 14, , 11, , , , align="center" , Lost in

, - , align="left" , 2007–08 , 20, , 13, , 7, , , , align="center" , Eliminated at Top 16 Stage , - , align="left" ,

, align="left" , 2009–10 , 16, , 10, , 6, , , , align="center" , Eliminated at Top 16 Stage , - , align="left" rowspan=2, EA7 Milano , align="left" , 2011–12 , 16, , 7, , 9, , , , align="center" , Eliminated at Top 16 Stage , - , align="left" , 2012–13 , 10, , 3, , 7, , , , align="center" , Eliminated at

, - , align="left" , Laboral Kutxa , align="left" , 2013–14 , 24, , 11, , 13, , , , align="center" , Eliminated at Top 16 Stage , - , -class="sortbottom" , align="center" colspan=2, Career, , 281, , 157, , 124, , , ,

References

External links

Sergio Scariolo
at acb.com
Sergio Scariolo
at euroleague.net
Sergio Scariolo
at legabasket.it {{DEFAULTSORT:Scariolo, Sergio 1961 births Living people Baloncesto Málaga coaches BC Khimki coaches Fortitudo Pallacanestro Bologna coaches Italian basketball coaches Italian expatriate basketball people in Canada Italian expatriate basketball people in Russia Italian expatriate basketball people in Spain Liga ACB head coaches Olimpia Milano coaches Olympic coaches Real Madrid basketball coaches Saski Baskonia coaches Sportspeople from Brescia Toronto Raptors assistant coaches Victoria Libertas Pesaro coaches Spanish Olympic coaches