Toni Kukoč
Toni Kukoč
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 Kukoč with the Milwaukee Bucks in 2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Chicago Bulls | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Position | Special Advisor | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| League | NBA | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | (1968-09-18) September 18, 1968 Split, SR Croatia, SFR Yugoslavia | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Nationality | Croatian / American | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Listed height | 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Listed weight | 235 lb (107 kg) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| NBA draft | 1990 / Round: 2 / Pick: 29th overall | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Selected by the Chicago Bulls | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Playing career | 1985–2006 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Position | Small forward / Power forward | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Number | 7 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1985–1991 | Jugoplastika | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1991–1993 | Benetton Treviso | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
1993–2000 | Chicago Bulls | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
2000–2001 | Philadelphia 76ers | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
2001–2002 | Atlanta Hawks | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
2002–2006 | Milwaukee Bucks | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Career NBA statistics | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Points | 9,810 (11.6 ppg) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rebounds | 3,555 (4.2 rpg) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Assists | 3,119 (3.7 apg) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
FIBA Hall of Fame as player | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medals
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Toni Kukoč (pronounced [kukotʃ]; born September 18, 1968) is a Croatian retired professional basketball player who is currently Special Advisor to Jerry Reinsdorf, the owner of the Chicago Bulls. After a highly successful period in European basketball, he was one of the first established European stars to play in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He won the NBA Sixth Man of the Year Award in 1996.
Kukoč was renowned for his versatility and passing ability; although his natural position was small forward, he played all five positions on the court with prowess and demonstrated court vision and an outside shooting touch that were found seldom in players of his height. Together with Vassilis Spanoulis, they are the only players in history to achieve the EuroLeague Final Four MVP honor on three occasions.[1] He was elected to the FIBA Hall of Fame in 2017.[2]
Contents
1 Early life
2 Professional career
2.1 Europe
3 NBA
3.1 Chicago Bulls
3.2 Career ending and retirement
4 National team career
4.1 Yugoslavia
4.2 Croatia (after independence)
5 NBA career statistics
5.1 Regular season
5.2 Playoffs
6 Personal life
7 Awards and accomplishments
7.1 KK Split
7.2 Benetton Treviso
7.3 Chicago Bulls
7.4 Philadelphia 76ers
7.5 National team
7.5.1 Yugoslavia
7.5.2 Croatia
7.6 Individual
8 References
9 External links
Early life[edit]
Kukoč grew up as a youth in Split, Croatia. His father was devoted to athletics, having played football as a goalkeeper in a lower ranked local club. Possessing excellent motor skills, young Toni grew up participating in different sports, including table tennis and football. He especially excelled in table tennis as an adolescent, winning different youth category titles.[3] He soon switched to basketball as his sport of choice.
Professional career[edit]
Europe[edit]
Kukoč began playing for his home town club, Jugoplastika, at the age of 17. He achieved significant success during his time with the club, winning the prestigious EuroLeague as the team recorded three winning year seasons consecutively (1989–1991). His team won the Triple Crown in 1990 and 1991.[4] Kukoč was awarded as the EuroLeague Final Four MVP both times.
Afterwards, he played for Benetton Treviso and won the Italian League championship in 1992 and the Italian Cup in 1993. He also played in the EuroLeague final in 1993, winning the EuroLeague Final Four MVP once again. He was nicknamed "the White Magic", "the Spider from Split", "the Pink Panther", "the Waiter", and "the Croatian Sensation".[5] Throughout the 1990s, he won several European Basketball Player of the Year Awards.
NBA[edit]
Chicago Bulls[edit]
After being drafted by the NBA's Chicago Bulls in 1990, Kukoč continued to play in Europe, until finally reporting to the Bulls in 1993, when the team had just finished its first three-peat and had lost Michael Jordan to retirement. While disappointed at the time that he could not play with Jordan, Kukoč made his NBA debut on November 5, 1993.[6]
The 6'11" (2.11 m) Kukoč came off the bench in 1993–94 behind small forward Scottie Pippen and power forward Horace Grant, though Kukoč could play shooting guard and center as well. On January 21, 1994, in a game against the Indiana Pacers, Reggie Miller shot a mid-range jumper with 0.8 seconds remaining to give the Pacers the lead 95-93. Scottie Pippen inbounded the ball to Kukoc, who shot a 3-point jumper at the buzzer to give the Bulls the 1-point win, 96-95. Kukoč put up a solid rookie season, averaging double-digit scoring and earning a berth on the NBA All-Rookie Second Team.
On May 13, 1994, at the end of Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals, the Bulls and the New York Knicks were tied at 102 with 1.8 seconds left. Bulls coach Phil Jackson designed the last play for Kukoč, with Scottie Pippen charged with inbounding the basketball. Pippen was so angered by Jackson's decision to not let him take the potential game-winner that he refused to leave the bench and re-enter the game when the timeout was over. Kukoč did hit the game-winner, a 23-foot fadeaway jumper at the buzzer, though the Bulls eventually lost the series in seven games.
After Grant left in the offseason, Kukoč moved into the starting lineup and finished the 1994–95 season second on the Bulls in scoring, rebounds and assists, behind Pippen. Furthermore, Michael Jordan would return to the Bulls in March, fulfilling Kukoč's wish to play alongside him.
For the 1995–96 season, the Bulls were bolstered by both Jordan's return to full form and the offseason acquisition of exceptional rebounder Dennis Rodman. With Pippen still at small forward, coach Phil Jackson saw it best to have Kukoč continue to be a bench player. Kukoč was third on the team in scoring (behind Jordan and Pippen) and was rewarded for his efforts with the NBA Sixth Man of the Year Award. He also assisted the Bulls to a 25-game turnaround and the best record in league history at the time at 72–10 (later surpassed by the 2015–16 Golden State Warriors), as well as the fourth championship in team history. Kukoč was the 4th and is currently the last player to win the NBA Sixth Man of the Year Award and the NBA title in the same year having joined Kevin McHale, Bill Walton, and Bobby Jones in accomplishing that feat.
In 1997 and 1998, Kukoč again came off the bench as sixth man as the Bulls won their fifth and sixth NBA titles. Once again, he was the team's third-leading scorer.
Career ending and retirement[edit]
In early 1999, the team was broken up, and Kukoč was one of the only players from their championship years that the Bulls retained. In the lockout-shortened 1998–99 season, he led the team in scoring, rebounding, and assists. During the 1999–2000 season as Chicago continued their rebuilding scheme, Kukoč was traded to the Philadelphia 76ers for whom he played briefly before he was soon traded again to the Atlanta Hawks. After a short stint with the Hawks, he finally found himself in a more suitable fit with the Milwaukee Bucks via a third trade. On September 12, 2006, Kukoč announced that he would retire from professional basketball if he could not be signed by either the Milwaukee Bucks or the Chicago Bulls for the 2006–07 NBA season. Although various NBA teams had shown interest in his services, Kukoč expressed a desire to be close to his residence in the city of Highland Park, Illinois.[7]
National team career[edit]
Yugoslavia[edit]
Kukoč was on the junior Yugoslavian Under-19 national team that won the 1987 FIBA Under-19 World Cup, where he was named the tournament MVP. He was also on the senior men's Yugoslavian national team that got the silver medal at the 1988 Summer Olympic Games. He was named the MVP of the 1990 FIBA World Championship, where he also won a gold medal.[8] With Yugoslavia, he also won the gold medal at the EuroBasket 1989 and the EuroBasket 1991. He was also named the MVP of the 1991 EuroBasket tournament.
Croatia (after independence)[edit]
Kukoč went on to win a silver medal with Croatia, at the 1992 Summer Olympic Games, in Barcelona. He also won bronze medals at both the 1994 FIBA World Championship, in Canada, and at the 1995 EuroBasket, in Greece.
NBA career statistics[edit]
| Legend | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game |
| FG% | Field goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field goal percentage | FT% | Free throw percentage |
| RPG | Rebounds per game | APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game |
| BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game | Bold | Career high |
| † | Denotes seasons in which Kukoč won an NBA championship |
Regular season[edit]
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1993–94 | Chicago | 75 | 8 | 24.1 | .431 | .271 | .743 | 4.0 | 3.4 | 1.1 | 0.4 | 10.9 |
1994–95 | Chicago | 81 | 55 | 31.9 | .504 | .313 | .748 | 5.4 | 4.6 | 1.3 | 0.2 | 15.7 |
1995–96† | Chicago | 81 | 20 | 26.0 | .490 | .403 | .772 | 4.0 | 3.5 | 0.8 | 0.3 | 13.1 |
1996–97† | Chicago | 57 | 15 | 28.2 | .471 | .331 | .770 | 4.6 | 4.5 | 1.1 | 0.5 | 13.2 |
1997–98† | Chicago | 74 | 52 | 30.2 | .455 | .362 | .708 | 4.4 | 4.2 | 1.0 | 0.5 | 13.3 |
1998–99 | Chicago | 44 | 44 | 37.6 | .420 | .285 | .740 | 7.0 | 5.3 | 1.1 | 0.3 | 18.8 |
1999–2000 | Chicago | 24 | 23 | 36.2 | .381 | .231 | .761 | 5.4 | 5.2 | 1.8 | 0.8 | 18.0 |
1999–2000 | Philadelphia | 32 | 8 | 28.6 | .438 | .289 | .673 | 4.5 | 4.4 | 1.0 | 0.3 | 12.4 |
2000–01 | Philadelphia | 48 | 5 | 20.4 | .458 | .410 | .591 | 3.4 | 1.9 | 0.7 | 0.1 | 8.0 |
2000–01 | Atlanta | 17 | 14 | 36.4 | .492 | .481 | .681 | 5.7 | 6.2 | 0.8 | 0.3 | 19.7 |
2001–02 | Atlanta | 59 | 9 | 25.3 | .419 | .310 | .712 | 3.7 | 3.6 | 0.8 | 0.3 | 9.9 |
2002–03 | Milwaukee | 63 | 0 | 27.0 | .432 | .361 | .706 | 4.2 | 3.7 | 1.3 | 0.5 | 11.6 |
2003–04 | Milwaukee | 73 | 0 | 20.8 | .417 | .292 | .729 | 3.7 | 2.7 | 0.8 | 0.3 | 8.4 |
2004–05 | Milwaukee | 53 | 6 | 20.7 | .410 | .362 | .721 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 0.7 | 0.2 | 5.6 |
2005–06 | Milwaukee | 65 | 0 | 15.7 | .389 | .306 | .714 | 2.3 | 2.1 | 0.5 | 0.3 | 4.9 |
Career | 846 | 259 | 26.3 | .447 | .335 | .729 | 4.2 | 3.7 | 1.0 | 0.3 | 11.6 | |
Playoffs[edit]
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1994 | Chicago | 10 | 0 | 19.4 | .448 | .421 | .735 | 4.0 | 3.6 | 0.5 | 0.3 | 9.3 |
1995 | Chicago | 10 | 10 | 37.2 | .477 | .438 | .692 | 6.8 | 5.7 | 1.0 | 0.2 | 13.8 |
1996† | Chicago | 15 | 5 | 29.3 | .391 | .191 | .838 | 4.2 | 3.9 | 0.9 | 0.3 | 10.8 |
1997† | Chicago | 19 | 0 | 22.3 | .360 | .358 | .707 | 2.8 | 2.8 | 0.7 | 0.2 | 7.9 |
1998† | Chicago | 21 | 17 | 30.3 | .486 | .377 | .645 | 3.9 | 2.9 | 1.2 | 0.5 | 13.1 |
2000 | Philadelphia | 10 | 0 | 25.7 | .419 | .324 | .588 | 3.1 | 1.7 | 1.0 | 0.3 | 9.3 |
2003 | Milwaukee | 6 | 0 | 30.7 | .492 | .379 | .700 | 4.2 | 3.7 | 2.2 | 0.2 | 14.8 |
2004 | Milwaukee | 5 | 0 | 21.0 | .500 | .333 | .500 | 2.8 | 0.8 | 0.6 | 0.4 | 8.4 |
2006 | Milwaukee | 3 | 0 | 17.7 | .571 | .625 | .500 | 1.7 | 3.0 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 7.3 |
| Career | 99 | 32 | 26.9 | .440 | .342 | .697 | 3.9 | 3.2 | 1.0 | 0.3 | 10.7 | |
Personal life[edit]
Kukoč and his wife, Renata, purchased their Highland Park home, just after arriving in Chicago, in 1993. After undergoing hip replacement surgery in 2009, he now plays at least one round of golf daily, and won Croatia's national amateur golf championship in 2011.[9] His son, Marin, played for Highland Park High School's varsity basketball team, and then enrolled at the University of Pennsylvania.[10][11] His daughter, Stela, plays volleyball.[12]
Awards and accomplishments[edit]
KK Split[edit]
- 3× EuroLeague champion: (1989–1991)
- 4× National Championship of Yugoslavia champion: (1988–1991)
- 2× Yugoslav Cup winner: (1990–1991)
- 2× Triple Crown winner: (1990–1991)
Benetton Treviso[edit]
Italian League champion: (1992)
Italian Cup winner: (1993)
Chicago Bulls[edit]
- 3× NBA champion: (1996–1998)
- 3× Eastern Conference champion: (1996–1998)
- 3× Central Division champion: (1996–1998)
Philadelphia 76ers[edit]
Atlantic Division champion: (2001)
National team[edit]
Yugoslavia[edit]
1985 FIBA Europe Under-16 Championship:
Gold
1986 FIBA Europe Under-18 Championship: Gold
1987 FIBA Under-19 World Cup: Gold
EuroBasket 1987:
Bronze
1988 Summer Olympics:
Silver
EuroBasket 1989: Gold
1990 FIBA World Championship: Gold
EuroBasket 1991: Gold
Gold
Bronze
Silver
Croatia[edit]
1992 Summer Olympics: Silver
1994 FIBA World Championship: Bronze
EuroBasket 1995: Bronze
Individual[edit]
1986 FIBA Europe Under-18 Championship: MVP
1987 FIBA Under-19 World Cup: MVP- 3× Croatian Sportsman of the Year: (1989–1991)
FIBA World Cup All-Tournament Team: (1990)
FIBA World Cup MVP: (1990)- 5× Euroscar European Player of the Year: (1990–1991, 1994, 1996, 1998)
- 4× Mister Europa European Player of the Year: (1990–1992, 1996)
- 3× EuroLeague Final Four MVP: (1990, 1991, 1993)
EuroLeague Finals Top Scorer: (1990)- 2× EuroLeague All-Final Four Team: (1991, 1993)
- 2× FIBA EuroBasket All-Tournament Team: (1991, 1995)
FIBA EuroBasket MVP: (1991)
FIBA's 50 Greatest Players: (1991)
Franjo Bučar State Award for Sport: (1992)
NBA All-Rookie Second Team: (1994)
NBA Sixth Man of the Year: (1996)
50 Greatest EuroLeague Contributors: (2008)
FIBA Hall of Fame: (2017)
References[edit]
^ "Spanoulis named bwin MVP of 2013 Final Four".
^ Dream Team, Shaq and Kukoc headline 2017 Class of FIBA Hall of Fame Inductees.
^ "Toni Kukoč, the Pink Panther of basketball". Euroleague. March 4, 2013. Archived from the original on June 28, 2013. Retrieved 2013-08-17.
^ "All The Final Fours 1988-2011". Euroleague. March 1, 2002. Retrieved 2015-08-19.
^ "The Bulletin - Google News Archive Search". news.google.com.
^ "Toni Kukoc Stats - Basketball-Reference.com". Basketball-Reference.com.
^ "All she wrote? Kukoc says 'it looks like I'm done'". ESPN.com. September 12, 2006. Retrieved 2007-07-11.
^ 24cec.net Hall of fame - Toni Kukoč.
^ Taylor, Jeff (2011-07-19). "Vrankovic Calls on Toni Kukoc Again". EuroBasket2011.com. FIBA Europe. Retrieved 2011-07-20.
^ "Ivy League".
^ "Marin Kukoc". ESPN.com.
^ "Kukoc's stories have familiar rings". ESPN. Retrieved 13 March 2013.
External links[edit]
 | Wikimedia Commons has media related to Toni Kukoč. |
Toni Kukoč at Basketball-Reference.com
Toni Kukoč at FIBA.com (archive)
Toni Kukoč at FIBAEurope.com
Toni Kukoč at LegaBasket.it (in Italian)
Toni Kukoč at NBA.com
Awards and honors | |||||||||||||||
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Categories:
- 1968 births
- Living people
- Atlanta Hawks players
- Basketball players at the 1988 Summer Olympics
- Basketball players at the 1992 Summer Olympics
- Basketball players at the 1996 Summer Olympics
- Chicago Bulls draft picks
- Chicago Bulls players
- Croatian expatriate basketball people in the United States
- Croatian men's basketball players
- Euroscar award winners
- Expatriate basketball people in Italy
- FIBA EuroBasket-winning players
- FIBA Hall of Fame inductees
- KK Split players
- Lega Basket Serie A players
- Medalists at the 1988 Summer Olympics
- Medalists at the 1992 Summer Olympics
- Milwaukee Bucks players
- National Basketball Association players from Croatia
- Olympic basketball players of Croatia
- Olympic basketball players of Yugoslavia
- Olympic medalists in basketball
- Olympic silver medalists for Croatia
- Olympic silver medalists for Yugoslavia
- Pallacanestro Treviso players
- People from Highland Park, Illinois
- Philadelphia 76ers players
- Small forwards
- Sportspeople from Split, Croatia
- Yugoslav men's basketball players
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