Nationality Serbian 1948–1950 Zeleznicar Belgrade Education Great School 1946–1948 Crvena Zvezda Role Basketball Player | Coaching career 1950–1969 Name Borislav Stankovic Pro career 1946–1953 1950–1953 Partizan | |
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Born July 9, 1925 (age 98)
Bosnia and Herzegovina ( 1925-07-09 ) Awards Naismith Outstanding Contributor to Men\'s Basketball | ||
Borislav "Bora" Stanković (Serbian: Борислав Станковић; born 9 July 1925) is a Serbian former basketball player and coach, as well as a longtime administrator in the sport's various governing bodies, including FIBA and International Olympic Committee. For his contributions to the game of basketball he was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1991. He is most known for allowing players from the NBA to compete at the Summer Olympics, after he changed FIBA's rules to allow players from the NBA to compete, while he was FIBA's Secretary General in 1989.
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Borislav stankovi fiba hall of famer 2007 class
Biography
Simultaneous to his studies Stanković played professionally for Crvena zvezda (1946–1948), Železničar Beograd (1948–1950) and Partizan (1950–1953) and was on the Yugoslav national team for five years in early 1950s. After he retired from the game, he coached OKK Beograd for ten consecutive seasons (1953–1963) and for a season in 1965. He then moved on to Italian club Pallacanestro Cantù, spending three seasons as its head coach (1966–1969).
Throughout his lengthy involvement with basketball, Stanković has served or been a part of the following organizations: Yugoslav Olympic Committee, International Olympic Committee, Board of Trustees at the Basketball Hall of Fame and he's best remembered for his tenure as FIBA's Secretary General from 1976 to 2002.
Stanković was inducted into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in 2000.
Many observers feel it was Borislav Stanković who most encouraged foreign basketball players to apply their trade in the NBA. Other than Serbian, he fluently speaks six other languages and was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1991 as a contributor. In 2007, he was enshrined as a contributor in the FIBA Hall of Fame.
FIBA has named the annual international basketball cup after him, "Stanković Cup".
In his book "Dream Team – How Michael, Magic, Larry, Charles, and the Greatest Team of All Time Conquered the World and Changed the Game of Basketball Forever" (2012), American novelist and sportswriter Jack McCallum praises Stanković (incorrectly referred to him as Boris) for his role in allowing NBA pros to compete for their national teams in the Olympics, and later in the Basketball World Cups organized by FIBA.
Personal life
Stanković was born in Bihać, Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes. Early in his life he moved to Novi Sad and then to Syrmian town of Ledinci during World War II. After the war, Stanković went to Belgrade where he graduated from the University of Belgrade with a degree in veterinary medicine.