Basketball in mourning: farewell to great Oscar Schmidt, former Caserta and Pavia

World basketball mourns the legendary Oscar Schmidt, nicknamed the ‘Holy Hand,’ who died at the age of 68 in a São Paulo, Brazil, hospital after a long battle with a brain tumor that lasted more than 15 years.

The passing of Oscar Schmidt, one of the greatest scorers in basketball history, was announced by his family, who explained how the former champion faced the disease “with courage, dignity and resilience, remaining until the end an example of determination, generosity and love of life. Oscar Schmidt leaves a legacy that goes far beyond sports and will continue to inspire generations of athletes and fans in Brazil and around the world.”

Schmidt became a planetary icon despite never having played in the NBA: the only player in the basketball Hall of Fame, he participated in five consecutive Olympics with the Brazilian national team, setting numerous scoring records (including as the all-time top Olympic scorer with over 1.000 points).

In Italy he left his mark mainly at Juvecaserta, where he played for eight seasons from 1982 to 1990, and at Pallacanestro Pavia (1990-1993). With the Casertana jersey he was an absolute star, winning the league’s top scorer several times and setting memorable performances. He scored 13,957 points in Serie A, a record for a foreign player, averaging 34.6 points per game and peaks over 60. He is the player (with at least 100 appearances) who has scored 50 or more points in a single game the most times: as many as 28 times in 403 games.

Caserta retired his number 18 jersey and awarded him honorary citizenship in 2016. In 2013 he was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame (Naismith Memorial), becoming the first Brazilian to receive this honor.

Here is the message from his son Felipe: “As a son, I only have to say: dad, I will miss you. I will honor everything you taught me about how to be a man and try to be at least 10 percent of the human being you were. You were an example of life for me and I will never forget you.”