Aleksandar Nikolic
Inducted:
1998
Stats
5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)
Born
28 October 1924
Sarajevo, Kingdom of Serbs,
Croats and Slovenes
Died
12 March 2000
Belgrade, FR Yugoslavia
Position
Coach
College
University of Belgrade
Aleksandar Nikolic is widely regarded as one of the founding fathers of modern European basketball and one of the most influential coaches the game has ever known. Nicknamed the “Professor,” Nikolić shaped basketball through teaching, innovation, and leadership rather than personal fame. He coached top clubs across Europe and led the Yugoslav national team to historic success, helping establish Yugoslavia as a global basketball power.
His career reached its zenith in the late 1970s when he led the Yugoslavian National Team to gold at both the 1977 European Championship and the 1978 World Championship, famously defeating the powerhouse Soviet Union. A mentor to coaching legends like Željko Obradović and Božidar Maljković, Nikolić was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1998 as only the fourth coach from outside the United States to receive the honor.
Nikolic's Awards and Records
- FIBA Hall of Fame (Charter Member, 2007)
- 2x European Coach of the Year (1966, 1976)
- FIBA Order of Merit (1995)
- 50 Greatest EuroLeague Contributors (2008)
- Namesake of the Aleksandar Nikolić Hall (Belgrade, Serbia)
NBA Teams
OKK Beograd (1961–1963)
Virtus Bologna (1981–1982)
National Team
Yugoslavia
NBA Stats
Coaching career:
1950s–1980s
EuroLeague Championships:
3 (1970, 1972, 1973)
World Championship Gold:
1 (1978)
European Championship Gold:
1 (1977)
FIBA Intercontinental Cups:
2 (1970, 1973)
Italian League Titles:
3 (1970, 1972, 1973)
Yugoslav League Titles:
1 (1963)