Farewell to the legendary Drazen Dalipagic, commotion in Reyer’s house: ‘Hello Praja’
Drazen Dalipagic, a legendary basketball figure, è passed away in Belgrade at age 73. In Italy he made history with the teams of Verona, Venice and Udine.
In the '70s and '80s, Dalipagic è was the ruler of European basketball, winning the Mister Europe title as the continent’s best player. He spent seven seasons in Italy, four with Venezia, two in Udine and one in Verona.
With Reyer he set the record of 70 points in a game, on January 25, 1987 against Virtus Bologna, a historic game. It was not the result of chance: Dalipagic trained relentlessly, perfecting his shot from every corner of the court. To this day, è one of the best scorers in Italian basketball history with 7,993 points. Later, he pursued a coaching career, but without too much success.
"Umana Reyer remembers with emotion and affection Drazen Dalipagic, a Reyer legend and World Basketball legend, who passed away this morning after battling for a long time with a bad illness – the orogranata club’s remembrance -. The mustache from Mostar, his hometown, was one of the World’s strongest players: Olympic, World and European Champion. È was listed among the 50 personalities who contributed most to the Euroleague and among FIBA’s 50 best players. A member of the World Hall of Fame, Drazen has won the biggest tournaments at both club and national level. Praja wore the Reyer jersey for the first time in the 1980-1981 season, averaging more than 30 points per game and making a major contribution to winning the Korac Cup final. Drazen Dalipagic è then returned to Reyer in 1985 and played there until 1988 giving epic performances, as an absolute star. In the 1986-87 season he scored 36.5 points per contest, registering fifty and just on January 25, 1987 he entered even more history with a 70-point performance against Virtus Bologna. The feat was so great that Reyer fans a few days later put up a marble plaque at the entrance to the Palasport to hand down the incredible feat to future generations: 4/4 from the floor, 14/19 from outside, 5/9 3-pointers, 19/19 at the free. Drazen Dalipagic è was recently included among the Legends of the Italian Legabasket, in 2012 è he was also a consultant for Umana Reyer Venezia, viewing youngsters from Eastern Europe. A great person, a legend of Venetian sports and basketball, but above all a great Friend. The whole Society participates in the grief of family and friends. Venice and Reyer will remember you forever. Hello Praja".
