Olimpia Milano
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| EA7 Emporio Armani Milano | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Nickname | Scarpette Rosse Little Red Shoes | |||
| Leagues | Serie A Eurocup | |||
| Founded | 1936 | |||
| History | Pallacanestro Olimpia Milano 1936–present | |||
| Arena | Mediolanum Forum | |||
| Capacity | 12,500[1] | |||
| Location | Milan, Italy | |||
| Team colors | White and Red | |||
| President | Flavio Portaluppi | |||
| Head coach | Jasmin Repeša | |||
| Ownership | Giorgio Armani | |||
| Championships | 26 Italian Championships 4 Italian Cups 3 Euroleagues 1 Intercontinental Cup 3 Saporta Cups 2 Korać Cup 1 Triple Crowns | |||
| Website | olimpiamilano.com | |||
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Pallacanestro Olimpia Milano, also known as EA7 Emporio Armani Milano after its title sponsor (alternative names: Pallacanestro Olimpia Milan, EA7 Emporio Armani Milan), is a Lega Basket Italian professional basketball team, based in Milan, Italy. Its colors are red and white, and the team is sometimes referred as "Scarpette Rosse" (Little Red Shoes) because team officials imported red Converse All-Star shoes for players from the United States. The tag line stuck, and the nickname is still used by many fans today.
As per custom in the Italian league, sponsorship has kept the team name changing frequently. From 1936 until 1955 it was called Borletti Milano. From 1956 to 1973 it was renamed Simmenthal. Other famous sponsorships were Billy, Simac, Tracer and Philips in the 1980s. For past club sponsorship names, see the list below.
Olimpia is the most titled basketball club in Italy, having won 26 Italian League championships, 4 Italian National Cups, 3 FIBA European Champions Cups, 1 FIBA Intercontinental Cup, 3 FIBA Saporta Cups, 2 FIBA Korać Cups and many junior titles.
History
Olimpia was founded in 1936 by Milan businessman Adolfo Bogoncelli. The team regularly won the LEGA Basket Serie A championship of Italian basketball in the 1950s and the 1960s with players including Nane Vianello, Sandro Riminucci, Gianfranco Pieri, and Bill Bradley. In the 1970s three teams were fighting across Europe for supremacy: Olimpia Milano, Ignis Varese, and Real Madrid. Pallacanestro Varese and Olimpia Milano were arch-rivals, as the two cities are 25 miles (40 km) apart. While Milano was a frequent Italian League champion, they were unable to win the prestigious European Champions Cup.
Late in the 1970s, the quality of the game declined, but Olimpia Milano still managed to win a Cup Winner's Cup. In the second half of the 1970s the team signed several good players, including the Boselli twins (Franco and Dino), Mike Silvester, Dino Meneghin, Mike D'Antoni, John Gianelli, Roberto Premier. Bob McAdoo, Joe Barry Carroll, Russ Schoene, Antoine Carr, and Mike Brown. American head coach Dan Peterson led the team back to prominence.
In the 1980s the team was sold to the Gabetti family. During this time, they qualified for nine Serie A championships finals, winning five, with the 1987 team winning the Serie A title, the European Championship (won also in 1988: both finals were won against Maccabi Elite), the Italian Cup and the 1987 Intercontinental Cup. This gave the club the coveted "Triple Crown" and the even rarer "Quadruple Crown".
Led by point guard Sasha Djordjevic, the team won another Korać Cup in 1993. Bepi Stefanel purchased the team in 1994, and the team signed notable European players like Dejan Bodiroga, Gregor Fučka, Sandro De Pol, and Nando Gentile. In 1996, the team won the Italian Cup and its 25th Italian National Championship, celebrating the 60th anniversary of the club.
Team management has been inconsistent as ownership groups from 1998 to 2004; team have included Warren Kidd, Hugo Sconochini, Claudio Coldebella and Petar Naumoski. In 2005 owner Corbelli, which bought the club in 2002 from Sergio Tacchini, is flanked by Adriano Galliani (Managing Director of Italian Football club A.C. Milan), Massimo Moratti (President of rival club Internazionale), NBA star Kobe Bryant, and stylist Giorgio Armani as sponsor with Armani Jeans brand. After difficult years, led by coach Lino Lardo, Olimpia reached the national championship Finals, finally being beaten by Fortitudo Bologna.
On January 25, 2006, in the midst of a disappointing season in the Euroleague and domestically, Djordjevic was named as the team's new coach. He left as coach after the 2006–07 season, but not before securing Olimpia a berth in the 2007–08 Euroleague. In 2008 Giorgio Armani bought the team from Giorgio Corbelli, standing as the only owner, entirely changing the management structure, naming Livio Proli as President and Lucio Zanca as general manager. Piero Bucchi was chosen to coach the new team, leading Olimpia twice to second place in LEGA Basket, being defeated by Montepaschi Siena in both case.
On January 2011, after 23 years, glorious coach Dan Peterson came back from retirement to replace Piero Bucchi as head coach. However, his stint at Olimpia Milano this time was quite short: after failing to reach the championship Finals, on June 9, Olimpia Milano announced Sergio Scariolo as new head coach for the 2011–12 season. The first player signed for the 2011–12 season was Omar Cook, an American-born play maker, who had played the previous season with Power Electronics Valencia. Due to the NBA lockout, Danilo Gallinari went back to his Alma Mater, playing 15 games (8 in the Italian League, 7 in Euroleague): he left the team in December. Sergio Scariolo was replaced by Luca Banchi at the beginning of the 2013–14 season, and the team bought from Montepaschi Siena: David Moss, Kristjan Kangur, and Daniel Hackett.
The team reached the quarterfinals of Euroleague 16 years after its last appearance, but the team lost against the eventual league champions, Maccabi Electra. The team finished in the 1st position the LEGA Basket regular season, and in the 7th game of the playoff's finals, Olimpia won its 26th Italian League championship title, its first after 18 years. Alessandro Gentile, the captain of Olimpia, was named MVP of the finals.
Honours
Domestic competitions
- Winners (26): 1935-36, 1936-37, 1937-38, 1938-39, 1949-50, 1950-51, 1951-52, 1952-53, 1953-54, 1954-57, 1957-58, 1958-59, 1959-60, 1961-62, 1962-63, 1964-65, 1965-66, 1966-67, 1971-72, 1981-82, 1984-85, 1985-86, 1986-87, 1988-89, 1995-96, 2013-14
- Winners (4): 1971-72, 1985-86, 1986-87, 1995-96
European competitions
FIBA European Champions Cup / Euroleague
- Winners (3): 1965–66, 1986–87, 1987–88
- Runners-up (2): 1966–67, 1982–83
- Final Four (4): 1966, 1967, 1988, 1992
FIBA European Cup Winner's Cup / FIBA Saporta Cup
International competitions
- Winners (1): 1987
Unofficial
- Winners (1): 1971-72 small, 1986-87
Players
Current roster
Depth chart
Season by season
| Season | Domestic competitions | Cup | European competitions | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tier | League | Pos. | Postseason | Tier | League | Result | ||
| 2006–07 | 1 | Serie A | 2 | Semifinalist | Semifinalist | — | ||
| 2007–08 | 1 | Serie A | 7 | Quarterfinalist | – | Euroleague | ||
| 2008–09 | 1 | Serie A | 6 | Runner-up | – | Euroleague | ||
| 2009–10 | 1 | Serie A | 3 | Runner-up | Quarterfinalist | Euroleague | ||
| 2010–11 | 1 | Serie A | 3 | Semifinalist | Quarterfinalist | Euroleague | ||
| 2011–12 | 1 | Serie A | 2 | Runner-up | Semifinalist | Euroleague | ||
| 2012–13 | 1 | Serie A | 4 | Quarterfinalist | Quarterfinalist | Euroleague | ||
| 2013–14 | 1 | Serie A | 1 | Champion | Quarterfinalist | Euroleague | ||
| 2014–15 | 1 | Serie A | 1 | Semifinalist | Runner-up | Euroleague | ||
Top performances in European & Worldwide competitions
| Season | Achievement | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Euroleague | |||
| 1957–58 | Quarter-finals | eliminated by Honvéd, 80-72 (W) in Milan and 85-95 (L) in Budapest | |
| 1962–63 | Quarter-finals | eliminated by Dinamo Tbilisi, 70-65 (W) in Tbilisi and 68-74 (L) in Milan | |
| 1963–64 | Semi-finals | eliminated by Real Madrid, 82-77 (W) in Milan and 78-101 (L) in Madrid | |
| 1965–66 | Champions | defeated CSKA Moscow 68–57 in the semi-final, defeated Slavia Prague 77–72 in the final of the Final Four in Bologna / Milan | |
| 1966–67 | Final | defeated Slavia Prague 103-97 in the semi-final, lost to Real Madrid 83-91 in the final (Madrid) | |
| 1967–68 | Semi-finals | eliminated by Spartak ZJŠ Brno, 64-63 (W) in Milan, 86-103 (L) in Brno | |
| 1972–73 | Semi-finals | eliminated by Ignis Varèse, 72-97 (L) in Milan, 100-115 (L) in Varese | |
| 1982–83 | Final | lost to Ford Cantù, 68-69 in the final (Grenoble) | |
| 1985–86 | Semi-final group stage | 3rd place in a group with Cibona, Žalgiris, Real Madrid, Maccabi Elite and Limoges | |
| 1986–87 | Champions | defeated Maccabi Elite, 71-69 in the final of European Champions Cup in Lausanne | |
| 1987–88 | Champions | defeated Aris 87-82 in the semi-final, defeated Maccabi Elite 90-84 in the final of the Final Four in Ghent | |
| 1989–90 | Quarter-finals | 5th place in a group with FC Barcelona, Jugoplastika Split, Limoges, Aris, Maccabi Elite, Commodore Den Helder and Lech Poznań | |
| 1991–92 | Final Four | 3rd place in Istanbul, lost to Partizan 75–82 in the semi-final, defeated Estudiantes Caja Postal 99-81 in the 3rd place game | |
| 1996–97 | Quarter-finals | eliminated 2–1 by Smelt Olimpija, 94–90 (W) in Milan, 69–73 (L) in Ljubljana, 61-77 (L) in Milan | |
| 2013–14 | Quarter-finals | eliminated 3-1 by Maccabi Electra, 99-101 (L) and 91-77 (W) in Milan, 63-75 (L) and 66-86 (L) in Tel Aviv | |
| Saporta Cup | |||
| 1970–71 | Champions | defeated Spartak Leningrad 56–66 (L) in Leningrad and 71-52 (W) in Milan in the double final of European Cup Winner's Cup | |
| 1971–72 | Champions | defeated Crvena Zvezda 74-70 in the final of European Cup Winner's Cup in Thessaloniki | |
| 1975–76 | Champions | defeated Tours 88-83 in the final of European Cup Winner's Cup in Turin | |
| 1976–77 | Semi-finals | eliminated by Forst Cantù, 78-101 (L) in Cantù and 98-95 (W) in Milan | |
| 1983–84 | Final | lost to Real Madrid 81–82 in the final (Ostend) | |
| 1997–98 | Final | lost to Žalgiris 67–82 in the final (Belgrade) | |
| Korać Cup | |||
| 1977–78 | Semi-finals | eliminated by Bosna, 79-76 (W) in Milan and 81-101 (L) in Sarajevo | |
| 1984–85 | Champions | defeated Ciao Crem Varèse, 91–78 in the final of Korać Cup in Brussels | |
| 1988–89 | Semi-finals | eliminated by Wiwa Vismara Cantù, 81-95 (L) in Cantù and 70-65 (W) in Milan | |
| 1992–93 | Champions | defeated Virtus Roma, 95-90 (W) in Rome and 106-91 (W) in Milan in the double finals of Korać Cup | |
| 1993–94 | Semi-finals | eliminated by Stefanel Trieste, 79-96 (L) in Trieste and 103-96 (W) in Milan | |
| 1994–95 | Final | lost to Alba Berlin, 87-87 (D) in Milan and 79-85 (L) in Berlin | |
| 1995–96 | Final | lost to Efes Pilsen, 68-76 (L) in Istanbul and 77-70 (W) in Milan | |
| Intercontinental Cup | |||
| 1967 | 3rd place | 3rd place in Rome, lost to Ignis Varèse 70–79 in the semi-final, defeated Corinthians 90-89 in the 3rd place game | |
| 1968 | 3rd place | 3rd place in Philadelphia, lost to Real Madrid 84–93 in the semi-final, defeated Botafogo 82-54 in the 3rd place game | |
| 1983 | 5th place | 5th place with a 2-3 record in a league tournament in Buenos Aires | |
| 1987 | Champions | defeated FC Barcelona 100-84 in the final of Intercontinental Cup in Milan | |
| McDonald's Championship | |||
| 1987 | 3rd place | 3rd place in a three teams Tournament in Milwaukee with Milwaukee Bucks and Soviet Union | |
| 1989 | 3rd place | 3rd place in Rome, lost to Jugoplastika Split 97-102 in the semi-final, defeated FC Barcelona 136-104 in the 3rd place game | |
Matches against NBA teams
Sponsorship names
Through the years, due to sponsorship deals, it has been also known as:[2]
- Borletti (1936–55)
- Simmenthal (1955–73)
- Innocenti (1973–75)
- Cinzano (1975–78)
- Billy (1978–83)
- Simac (1983–86)
- Tracer (1986–88)
- Philips (1988–93)
- Recoaro (1993–94)
- Stefanel (1994–98)
- Sony (1998–99)
- Adecco (1999–02)
- Pippo (2002–03)
- Breil (2003–04)
- Armani Jeans (2004–2011)
- EA7-Emporio Armani (2011–present)
Notable players
Joe Barry Carroll (1984–1985)- Ken Barlow (1986–1987)
Dejan Bodiroga (1994–1996)- Melvin Booker (1998–1999, 2007–2008)
- Rolando Blackman (1995–1996)
- Bill Bradley (1965–1966)
- Rickey Brown (1987–1988)
Giuseppe Brumatti (1967–1977)- Antonio Davis (1992–1993)
- Mike D'Antoni (1977–1990)
- Aleksandar Đorđević (1992–1994; 2005)
- Vittorio Ferracini (1967–1969, 1973–1983)
Gregor Fučka (1994–1997)- Danilo Gallinari (2006–2008; 2011)
Jonas Mačiulis (2009–2011)- Linas Kleiza (2014–2015)
- Mantas Kalnietis (2016–present)
- Keith Langford (2012–2014)
- Massimo Masini (1963–1974)
- Bob McAdoo (1986–1990)
- Dino Meneghin (1980–1990 & 1993-1994)
- Alessandro Gentile (2011–present)
- Ferdinando Gentile (1994–1998)
- Daniel Hackett (2013–2015)
- Riccardo Pittis (1984–1993)
- Roberto Premier (1981–1989)
- Antonello Riva (1989–1994)
Giorgos Sigalas (1997–1998)- Skip Thoren (1965–1966)
