KK Olimpija

Košarkarski klub Olimpija (English: Olimpija Basketball Club) was a men's professional basketball club based in Ljubljana, Slovenia.

KK Olimpija
KK Olimpija logo
NicknameZmaji (The Dragons)
Zeleno-beli (The Green and Whites)
Founded1946 (1946)
Folded2019 (2019)
HistoryKK Svoboda
(1946)
KK Enotnost
(1947–1954)
AŠK Olimpija
(1955–1976)
KK Olimpija
(1976–2019)
KK Cedevita Olimpija
(2019–present)
LocationLjubljana, Slovenia
Team colorsGreen, white, black
     
Championships17 Slovenian Leagues
20 Slovenian Cups
8 Slovenian Supercups
6 Yugoslav Leagues
1 Saporta Cup
1 Adriatic League
2 Central European Leagues

Olimpija has won 23 National League championships, including eight consecutive titles between 1992 and 1999. They have played in two different National Leagues since 1946, the Yugoslav Federal League (1946–1991) and the Slovenian League (1991–2019). Olimpija has won three regional league championships, one in the Adriatic League and two championships in the Central European League. They have also won 20 National Cup tournaments, 8 National Supercup titles, and one FIBA Saporta Cup. In July 2019, the team merged with Cedevita, forming a new club Cedevita Olimpija.

History

Olimpija basketball club was founded in 1946 as a section of the Svoboda Physical Culture Society. The first basketball game was played the same year against Udarnik and Olimpija came out on top with the score of 37–14. Late in 1946, the club was renamed Enotnost and was known by that name until 1954 when it assumed the name AŠK Olimpia.

Olimpija won its first Yugoslav League title in the 1957 season under the direction of the coach/player Boris Kristančić. In the following years, Olimpija won five more Yugoslav titles, in 1959, 1961, 1962, 1966, and 1970. A new era for the club began with Slovenia's independence when Olimpija won eight consecutive league titles between 1992 and 1999.

On the international stage, the 1993–94 season was the club's best season as they won the European Cup against the Spanish ACB League club Taugrés under the direction of coach Zmago Sagadin. In the 2001–02 season, Olimpija won the "Small Triple Crown", taking the Slovenian League championship, Slovenian Cup, and the Adriatic League.

On 8 July 2019, Olimpija merged with Croatian team Cedevita, forming Cedevita Olimpija.[1][2]

The club was a founding member of the Adriatic Basketball Association in 2015.[3] In November 2020, the club's shares were transferred to Mornar Bar.[4]

Names through history

The club was established in 1946 as the basketball department of the larger sports club Svoboda. Later, the name of the club was changed several times. Since 1976 and until its dissolution in 2019, the name of the club included the sponsorship name.

Names

Arenas

The team's first venue was Tabor Gymnasium, before they moved to the 4,500 capacity[5] Tivoli Hall in 1965. In 2010, the club moved into their new arena, Arena Stožice, with a capacity of 12,480.

Notable players

Ivo Daneu (left) in 1962

The following players are regarded as the most important for Olimpija by the club's official website.

A total of 16 former Olimpija players have played in the NBA:

Retired numbers

Olimpija retired numbers
No Nat. Player Position Tenure Date retired Ref
12SloveniaMarko MiličPF1994–1997, 1999–2000, 2006–20092015[12]
13SloveniaIvo DaneuPG1956–19702007[13][14]

Players in the NBA draft

* Denotes player who has been selected for at least one All-Star Game and All-NBA Team
# Denotes player who has never appeared in an NBA regular season or playoff game
Position Player Year Round Pick Drafted by
PF Slovenia Marko Milič 1997 2nd round 33rd Philadelphia 76ers
C Georgia (country) Vladimir Stepania 1998 1st round 27th Seattle SuperSonics
C Slovenia Primož Brezec 2000 1st round 27th Indiana Pacers
SG/SF Czech Republic Jiří Welsch 2002 1st round 16th Philadelphia 76ers
SG/PG Israel Yotam Halperin# 2006 2nd round 53rd Seattle SuperSonics
PG Slovenia Goran Dragić* 2008 2nd round 45th San Antonio Spurs
PF Latvia Dāvis Bertāns 2011 2nd round 42nd Indiana Pacers
PG Ukraine Issuf Sanon# 2018 2nd round 44th Washington Wizards
PF Croatia Luka Šamanić 2019 1st round 19th San Antonio Spurs

Honours

Domestic competitions

Winners (17): 1991–92, 1992–93, 1993–94, 1994–95, 1995–96, 1996–97, 1997–98, 1998–99, 2000–01, 2001–02, 2003–04, 2004–05, 2005–06, 2007–08, 2008–09, 2016–17, 2017–18
Runners-up (8): 2002–03, 2006–07, 2009–10, 2010–11, 2011–12, 2012–13, 2013–14, 2018–19
Winners (20): 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2017
Runners-up (3): 2004, 2007, 2014
Winners (8): 2003, 2004, 2005, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2013, 2017
Runners-up (5): 2010, 2011, 2012, 2014, 2018
Winners (6): 1957, 1959, 1961, 1962, 1966, 1969–70
Runners-up (8): 1953, 1956, 1958, 1960, 1965, 1967, 1967–68, 1968–69
Runners-up (5): 1960, 1968–69, 1970–71, 1981–82, 1986–87
Winners: 1984–85, 1986–87
  • Slovenian Republic League (defunct)
Winners: 1946, 1947

European competitions

Semifinalists: 1961–62
Third place: 1966–67, 1996–97
Final Four: 1967, 1997
Winners: 1993–94
Semifinalists: 1968–69, 1982–83, 1991–92

Regional competitions

Winners: 2001–02
Runners-up: 2010–11
  • Central European League (defunct)
Winners: 1993, 1994

Other competitions

Fourth place: 1998

Notable performances in European and worldwide competitions

Season Achievement Notes
EuroLeague
1959–60 Quarter-finals eliminated by Rīgas ASK, 79–95 (L) in Ljubljana and 63–79 (L) in Riga
1961–62 Semi-finals eliminated by Real Madrid, 105–91 (W) in Ljubljana and 53–69 (L) in Madrid
1962–63 Quarter-finals eliminated by Spartak ZJŠ Brno, 86–83 (W) in Ljubljana and 72–79 (L) in Brno
1966–67 Final Four third place in Madrid, lost to Real Madrid 86–88 in the semi-final, defeated Slavia VŠ Praha 88–83 in the third place game
1970–71 Quarter-finals third place in a group with Ignis Varese, Slavia VŠ Praha and Olympique Antibes
1996–97 Final Four third place in Rome, lost to Olympiacos 65–74 in the semi-final, defeated ASVEL 86–79 in the third place game
1999–00 Quarter-finals eliminated 2–1 by FC Barcelona, 67–70 (L) in Barcelona, 71–64 (W) in Ljubljana & 66–71 (L) in Barcelona
2000–01 Quarter-finals eliminated 2–0 by Kinder Bologna, 79–80 (L) in Bologna and 79–81 (L) in Ljubljana
FIBA Saporta Cup
1967–68 Quarter-finals eliminated by Slavia VŠ Praha, 64–95 (L) in Prague and 82–70 (W) in Ljubljana
1968–69 Semi-finals eliminated by Slavia VŠ Praha, 76–83 (L) in Ljubljana and 61–82 (L) in Prague
1982–83 Semi-finals eliminated by Scavolini Pesaro, 78–97 (L) in Pesaro and 92–107 (L) in Ljubljana
1991–92 Semi-finals eliminated 2–1 by PAOK, 81–68 (W) in Ljubljana, 61–79 (L) & 86–104 (L) in Thessaloniki
1992–93 Quarter-finals third place in a group with Efes Pilsen, NatWest Zaragoza, CSKA Moscow, Hapoel Tel Aviv and ASK Brocēni
1993–94 Champions defeated Taugrés 91–81 in the final of the FIBA European Cup in Lausanne
1995–96 Quarter-finals 6th place in a group with PAOK, Dynamo Moscow, Zrinjevac, Kalev and Nobiles Włocławek

The road to the FIBA European Cup victory

1993–94 FIBA European Cup

Round Team Home   Away  
Third Bye
Top 12 North Macedonia Rabotnički 89–77 80–66
Turkey Tofaş 87–78 103–90
Spain Taugrés 86–73 63–67
Switzerland Fidefinanz Bellinzona 77–62 53–50
Croatia Croatia Osiguranje 68–76 84–79
Semi-final Greece Sato Aris 84–78 79–83
74–61
Final Spain Taugrés 91–81

Season-by-season records

Key

Season Tier Domestic league Pos Domestic cup Supercup Adriatic League European competitions
1991–92 1 1. A SKL 1st Winners
1992–93 1 1. A SKL 1st Winners 1 European League2R
2 European CupQF
1993–94 1 1. A SKL 1st Winners 1 European League2R
2 European CupW
1994–95 1 1. A SKL 1st Winners 1 European League GS
1995–96 1 1. A SKL 1st Round of 16 1 European League R32
1996–97 1 1. A SKL 1st Winners 1 Euroleague 3rd
1997–98 1 1. A SKL 1st Winners 1 Euroleague R16
1998–99 1 Liga Kolinska 1st Winners 1 Euroleague R16
1999–00 1 Liga Kolinska 3rd Winners 1 Euroleague QF
2000–01 1 Liga Kolinska 1st Winners 1 Euroleague QF
2001–02 1 HYPO Liga 1st Winners Winners 1 Euroleague T16
2002–03 1 1. A SKL 2nd Winners Semifinals 1 Euroleague T16
2003–04 1 1. A SKL 1st Runners-up Winners Semifinals 1 Euroleague T16
2004–05 1 1. A SKL 1st Winners Winners Quarterfinals 1 Euroleague RS
2005–06 1 1. A SKL 1st Winners Winners 10th place 1 Euroleague RS
2006–07 1 Liga UPC Telemach 2nd Runners-up 9th place 1 Euroleague RS
2007–08 1 Liga UPC Telemach 1st Winners Winners Semifinals 1 Euroleague RS
2008–09 1 Liga UPC Telemach 1st Winners Winners 9th place 1 Euroleague RS
2009–10 1 Telemach League 2nd Winners Winners Semifinals 1 Euroleague RS
2010–11 1 Telemach League 2nd Winners Runners-up Runners-up 1 Euroleague T16
2011–12 1 Telemach League 2nd Winners Runners-up 6th place 1 Euroleague RS
2012–13 1 Telemach League 2nd Winners Runners-up 8th place 1 Euroleague RS
2013–14 1 Telemach League 2nd Runners-up Winners 10th place 2 Eurocup L32
2014–15 1 Telemach League 5th Semifinals Runners-up 5th place 2 Eurocup L32
2015–16 1 Liga Nova KBM 4th Quarterfinals 7th place 2 Eurocup L32
2016–17 1 Liga Nova KBM 1st Winners 11th place 2 EuroCup RS
2017–18 1 Liga Nova KBM 1st Semifinals Winners First Division7th 3 Champions League RS
2018–19 1 Liga Nova KBM 2nd Semifinals Runners-up First Division12th 3 Champions League RS

Head coaches

References

  1. R. K. (8 July 2019). "Rimac trener Cedevite Olimpije, prva okrepitev Edo Murić" (in Slovenian). Ljubljana: RTV Slovenija. Retrieved 8 July 2019.
  2. "Assemblies confirmed new club BC Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana". kkcedevita.hr. Retrieved 8 July 2019.
  3. "REGIONALNA KOŠARKA PREŽIVJELA Klubovi postaju vlasnici nove ABA lige". sportske.jutarnji.hr (in Croatian). 16 June 2015. Retrieved 16 December 2020.
  4. "FMP i dalje sporan". Dnevni list Danas (in Serbian). 12 November 2020. Retrieved 21 December 2020.
  5. "Hala Tivoli (dvorana in drsališče Tivoli) – Šport Ljubljana". sport-ljubljana.si (in Slovenian). Retrieved 23 June 2020.
  6. "Ivo Daneu" (in Slovenian). KK Olimpija. Archived from the original on 10 May 2019. Retrieved 8 March 2018.
  7. "Borut Bassin Taubi" (in Slovenian). KK Olimpija. Archived from the original on 12 July 2019. Retrieved 8 March 2018.
  8. "Marko Milić" (in Slovenian). KK Olimpija. Archived from the original on 15 July 2019. Retrieved 8 March 2018.
  9. "Vinko Jelovac" (in Slovenian). KK Olimpija. Archived from the original on 15 July 2019. Retrieved 8 March 2018.
  10. "Peter Vilfan" (in Slovenian). KK Olimpija. Archived from the original on 20 July 2019. Retrieved 8 March 2018.
  11. "Jure Zdovc" (in Slovenian). KK Olimpija. Archived from the original on 8 March 2018. Retrieved 8 March 2018.
  12. Union Olimpija Ljubljana retires Marko Milic's jersey.
  13. Olympic Legends – Ivo Daneu.
  14. SLO – Daneu reflects on amazing Hall of Fame career [part I].
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