Dragan Kićanović

Dragan Kićanović
Personal information
Born (1953-08-17) August 17, 1953
Čačak, PR Serbia, FPR Yugoslavia
Nationality Serbian
Listed height 6 ft 3.75 in (1.92 m)
Listed weight 192 lb (87 kg)
Career information
NBA draft 1975 / Undrafted
Playing career 1971–1984
Position Shooting guard
Career history
1971–1972 Borac Čačak
1972–1981 Partizan
1981–1983 Scavolini Pesaro
1983–1984 Paris Basket Racing
Career highlights and awards
FIBA Hall of Fame as player

Dragan Kićanović (Serbian: Драган Кићановић; born August 17, 1953) is a Serbian retired professional basketball player.

A 1.92m (6 ft 3¾ in) tall shooting guard, Kićanović played in the 1970s and 1980s, and is considered to be one of the best European players and scorers of all time, having won both the Mr. Europa and the Euroscar European Player of the Year awards in 1981 and 1982. He was named one of FIBA's 50 Greatest Players in 1991. On August 20, 2010, Kićanović was inducted into the FIBA Hall of Fame in recognition of his play in international competition.[1] He was named as the best athlete of Yugoslavia in 1982 and as the best athlete of Yugoslavia in the 20th century.

Since September 2013, he's been performing the role of consul general at the Serbian consulate in Trieste.[2]

Club career

During the 1970s, Kićanović played alongside Dražen Dalipagić, thus creating an accomplished duo as members of Partizan Belgrade. In international club competition, Kićanović won two consecutive Korać Cup championships with Partizan in 1978 and 1979, scoring 33 (behind Dalipagić's 50) and 41 points respectively in the finals. Furthermore, he won a Cup Winner's Cup with Scavolini Pesaro in 1983, in which he again dominated the final with 31 points and eight assists.[3] With Partizan Belgrade Kićanović also won three Yugoslavian League championships (1976, 1979, and 1981) and a Yugoslavian Cup (1979).

National team

Kićanović played with the Yugoslavian national basketball team from 1973 to 1983, and he competed at all the major international competitions with them: the FIBA EuroBasket, the FIBA World Cup and the Summer Olympic Games. He won the FIBA EuroBasket three times, winning the FIBA EuroBasket 1973, FIBA EuroBasket 1975, and FIBA EuroBasket 1977.

At the Olympic Games, Kićanović won the silver medal at the 1976 Summer Olympic Games and the gold medal at the 1980 Olympic Summer Olympic Games.[4] At the FIBA World Cup, he won the silver medal at the 1974 FIBA World Championship, being selected as the Most Valuable Player of the tournament, the gold medal at the 1978 FIBA World Championship, and the bronze at the 1982 FIBA World Championship. He was the top scorer in total points scored of the 1982 World Championship, scoring 190 points. He is one of the leading scorers of all-time in the history of the FIBA World Cup, having scored a total of 491 points.

Administrative career

KK Partizan

Shortly after retiring from playing basketball, Kićanović was named vice-president at Partizan Belgrade, under the club presidency of Tomislav Jeremić. With the division of tasks, Jeremić was mostly involved on the business end while Kićanović ran the squad, making decisions on everything from player personnel to coaching acquisitions. He immediately brought in Zoran Slavnić, former teammate from the Yugoslav national team where the two were part of the famous one-two backcourt guard duo, as the new head coach.

References

  1. "FIBA announces 2010 Hall of Fame Class". FIBA. 2010-08-20.
  2. Kića novi konzul;Vecernje novosti, 19 September 2013
  3. "Player Nominees". Euroleague Basketball. Retrieved 2011-09-10.
  4. "Dragan Kićanović". Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved 2010-09-18.
Government offices
Preceded by
Goran Trivan
Minister of Youth and Sports of Serbia
1991 – 1992
Succeeded by
Vladimir Cvetković
Civic offices
Preceded by
Aleksandar Bakočević
President of the
Olympic Committee of Yugoslavia

1996 2005
Succeeded by
Philip Zepter
Awards
Preceded by
Borut Petrić
Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia The Best Athlete of Yugoslavia
1982
Succeeded by
Dragutin Šurbek
Preceded by
Italy Dino Meneghin
Mr. Europa
1981, 1982
Succeeded by
Italy Dino Meneghin
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