Rusmir Halilović (born 5 January 1948) is a

Yugoslavia , common_name = Yugoslavia , life_span = 1918–19921941–1945: World War II in Yugoslavia#Axis invasion and dismemberment of Yugoslavia, Axis occupation , p1 = Kingdom of SerbiaSerbia , flag_p ...

n basketball coach.

Coaching career

Taking over Yugoslavian NT selections 1981–1985

In 1981, Halilovic lead Budućnost Podgorica from the lower rank to Yugoslavian A1 league. He then began his professional career as coach for Yugoslavian Basketball Federation (KSJ – " Kosarkaski Savez Jugoslavije") in charge of NT cadet and junior selections programs. Halilovic was also the assistant coach of

Mirko Novosel Mirko Novosel (30 June 1938 – 20 July 2023) was a Croatian professional basketball coach and player. Playing career Novosel played club basketball, from 1952 to 1966, with Lokomotiva Zagreb (later changed to KK Cibona Zagreb). Coaching caree ...

, who was later made a member of Naismith and the

FIBA The International Basketball Federation (FIBA ; French language, French: ) is an association of national organizations which governs the sport of basketball worldwide. FIBA defines the rules of basketball, specifies the Basketball equipment ...

Hall of Fame. Halilovic also took on head coaching duties at three games of Yugoslavian senior NT during its American NCAA tour in 1982. In the initial game, Yugoslavian NT led by Dražen Petrović won the game vs. one of the top ranked

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...

teams of that time. During 1981, 1982, and 1983 regular American tours Halilovic, along with coaches Tanjevic and Novosel, often met and communicated with the top

coaches such as

Dean Smith Dean Edwards Smith (February 28, 1931 – February 7, 2015) was an American men's college basketball Coach (basketball), head coach. Called a "coaching legend" by the Basketball Hall of Fame, he coached for 36 years at the University of North C ...

(North Carolina), Joe B. Hall (Kentucky) and

Digger Phelps Richard Frederick "Digger" Phelps (born July 4, 1941) is an American former college basketball coach, most notably of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish from 1971 to 1991. For 20 years, from 1993 to 2014, he served as an analyst on ESPN. He got the n ...

(Notre Dame).

Work with Dražen Petrović and future NBA players

Halilovic is known for his role in developing

Dražen Petrović Dražen Petrović (; 22 October 1964 – 7 June 1993) was a Yugoslav and Croatian professional basketball player. A shooting guard, he initially achieved success playing professional basketball in Europe in the 1980s with Cibona and Real Madri ...

(coaching him each summer from his 15th to 19th year of life) as well as future

NBA The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...

players from ex-Yugoslavia and future Euroleague stars. Players Halilovic coached in Yugoslavian cadet and junior selections include

Vlade Divac Vlade Divac ( sr-Cyrl, Владе Дивац, ; born February 3, 1968) is a Serbian professional basketball executive and former player who was most recently the vice president of basketball operations and general manager of the Sacramento King ...

Toni Kukoč Toni Kukoč (; born September 18, 1968) is a Croatian former professional basketball player who serves as Special Advisor to Jerry Reinsdorf, the owner of the Chicago Bulls. After a highly successful period in European basketball, he was one of ...

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Jure Zdovc Jurij "Jure" Zdovc (born 13 December 1966) is a Slovenian former professional basketball player and coach. He was most recently the head coach of Bursaspor of the Turkish Basketbol Süper Ligi (BSL). As a player, he was a tall point guard, who ...

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, Miroslav Pecarski,

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, Dalibor Bagarić,

Bruno Šundov Bruno Šundov (born February 10, 1980) is a Croatian former professional basketball player. Standing at 2.18 m (7 ft 2 in), he played the center position. He played for five NBA teams and over 20 clubs around the world. Professional caree ...

as well as other international players.

Role in the formation of European Dream Teams (Yugoslavian, later Croatian and Serbian)

Halilovic played a role in identifying and developing players who later formed the Yugoslavian senior NT which won back-to-back European Championships in 1989. and 1991. and World Championship in 1990. under the leadership of the coach Dušan Ivković. From 1994. until 1996. Halilovic worked for

Croatian Basketball Federation The Croatian Basketball Federation () is a non-profit organization and the national sports governing body of basketball in Croatia. It was founded on 19 December 1948 as a member of the larger Basketball Federation of Yugoslavia. On 19 January 1 ...

(HKS – "Hrvatski Košarkaški Savez") as a junior NT coach. During that time he coached future NBA and Euroleague players Bagaric, Sundov, Skelin, Grgat, Prkacin, Rimac, and Mulaomerovic.

Recent activity

After closing up his basketball academy for young players RIN Sarajevo which launched future international stars and Bosnia and Herzegovina NT members such as Goran Suton and Nihad Dedovic, along with Turkey NT member and 2014 FIBA EC MVP Cedi Osman. He resides in the capitol of Croatia,

Zagreb Zagreb ( ) is the capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Croatia#List of cities and towns, largest city of Croatia. It is in the Northern Croatia, north of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the ...

. He is still an active consultant for Croatian basketball teams (KK Cedevita Zagreb, KK Cibona Zagreb, KK Zadar, KK Zagreb), particularly involved in the area of developing basketball prospects and searching for players who have the potential to become future leaders. Recently he has also been active in scouting prospects who compete in the local development CroHoops league (Zagreb, Croatia).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Halilovic, Rusmir 1948 births Living people Anadolu Efes S.K. coaches Basketbol Süper Ligi head coaches KK Budućnost coaches Yugoslav basketball coaches