Stojko Vranković
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Stojan "Stojko" Vranković (born 22 January 1964) is a Croatian 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 (appro ...
executive and former player. He served as the president of the Croatian Basketball Federation from 2016 to 2022. A 7 ft 2 in (2.18 m)
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, he played five seasons (1990–1992; 1996–1999) in the
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(NBA), as a member of the
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,
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, and
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. He was popular in Europe while playing for the
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-based club Panathinaikos, with whom he won the club's first
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championship.


Club career

A renowned shot blocker, Vranković made little impact in the
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, managing small minutes and a low scoring average even though he started 73 out of 170 games played. He did however have a major impact in Europe playing for the Greek League team Panathinaikos. For a short spell in the winter of 1994–95, Vrankovic thrilled fans of the Greek team by adding 3-point shots to his usual repertoire of slam dunks, hook shots, and blocked shots. One game, against Benfica in the EuroLeague in February 1995, exemplified this, as Vrankovic top-scored with 23 points and finished the game with a 3-point shot followed by a coast-to-coast dunk. Vrankovic had first taken a 3-point shot in the Greek League All-Star Game held at the Peace and Friendship Stadium in Piraeus in December 1994, and seemed as surprised as everyone in the stadium when it went in. In 1996, he combined with
Dominique Wilkins Jacques Dominique Wilkins (born January 12, 1960) is a French-born American former professional basketball player who primarily played for the Atlanta Hawks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Wilkins is a nine-time NBA All-Star, a seve ...
to lead Panathinaikos to a
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championship - a first for the club. Vranković's defensive contribution was vital, namely his block of
Željko Rebrača Željko Rebrača ( sr-Cyrl, Жељко Ребрача; born 9 April 1972) is a Serbian former professional basketball player and currently the president of KK Vojvodina, Vojvodina basketball club. After playing in Europe and the National Basketba ...
at the buzzer, in the third game of the quarter-finals against Benetton Treviso, sending Panathinaikos through. In the
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, his block to deny
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the lead in the last second gave the game a dramatic end, but he fell to the ground in the ensuing commotion and clutched his knee in pain at the buzzer. In an interview at the official
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website, Panathinaikos
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Panagiotis Giannakis Panagiotis "Notis" Giannakis (, ; born January 1, 1959), alternatively spelled Panayiotis Yiannakis or Yannakis, is a former Greek professional basketball player and coach. He is considered to be one of the greatest sportspeople of Greece. He st ...
described the incident as follows: :''"All that happened at the end of the game is unbelievable, a few seconds that lasted one century! I remember Stojko rankovićrunning like...
Carl Lewis Frederick Carlton Lewis (born July 1, 1961) is an American former track and field athlete who won nine Olympic gold medals, one Olympic silver medal, and 10 World Championships medals, including eight gold. Lewis was a dominant sprinter and lo ...
from one side to the other, to stop ( José Antonio) Montero. He blocked the layup, almost at the buzzer, and he sealed the victory."''


National team career


Yugoslavia

Vranković earned a silver medal at the 1988 Seoul Summer Olympic Games with the senior Yugoslav national team.


Croatia

At the following 1992 Barcelona Summer Olympic Games, he got the silver medal after Croatia lost to the
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in the men's final against " The Dream Team", while playing for the senior Croatian national team.


Administrative career


Croatian Basketball Federation president (2016–2022)

On November 19, 2016, Vranković became the president of the Croatian Basketball Federation (HKS). On June 15, 2019, he was re-elected as the HKS president until 2023. On September 12, 2022, after a poor performance of the
Croatia men's national basketball team The Croatia men's national basketball team () represents Croatia in international basketball matches. The team is controlled by the Croatian Basketball Federation (HKS). The biggest success Croatia has achieved was at the 1992 Barcelona Olymp ...
at the
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, Vranković resigned form his position.


Personal life

Vranković was a close friend of the fellow Croatian basketball player
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 ...
. He was a coffin bearer at Petrović's funeral in 1993, and has been active in commemorating his memory. In an article at the
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website concerning the opening of a museum in Dražen's honour, Vranković was quoted as saying: "I would like to thank all those involved in creating this place, so children would be able to learn more about ''basketball's Amadeus''". Vranković and his wife Lovorka have two daughters, Andrea and Matea, and one son, Antonio, who plays for Croatian club
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.


References


External links


Euroleague.net Profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vrankovic, Stojko 1964 births Living people 1986 FIBA World Championship players Aris B.C. players Basketball executives Basketball players at the 1988 Summer Olympics Basketball players at the 1992 Summer Olympics Basketball players at the 1996 Summer Olympics Boston Celtics players Centers (basketball) Croatian expatriate basketball people in Greece Croatian expatriate basketball people in Italy Croatian expatriate basketball people in the United States Croatian sports executives and administrators Croatian men's basketball players FIBA EuroBasket–winning players Fortitudo Pallacanestro Bologna players KK Zadar players Lega Basket Serie A players Los Angeles Clippers players Medalists at the 1987 Summer Universiade Medalists at the 1988 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 1992 Summer Olympics Minnesota Timberwolves players NBA players from Croatia Olympic basketball players for Yugoslavia Olympic silver medalists for Croatia in basketball Olympic silver medalists for Yugoslavia Panathinaikos B.C. players Sportspeople from Drniš Undrafted NBA players FISU World University Games gold medalists for Yugoslavia Summer World University Games medalists in basketball Yugoslav men's basketball players Yugoslav expatriate basketball people Yugoslav expatriate sportspeople in Greece Goodwill Games medalists in basketball