Gianluca Basile (born 24 January 1975) is an Italian former professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

player. At a height of 1.92 m (6'3 ") tall and a weight of 95 kg (210 lbs.), he mainly played at the

shooting guard The shooting guard (SG), also known as the two, two guard or off guard,Shooting guards are 6'3"–6'7"BBC Sports academy URL last accessed 2006-09-09. is one of the five traditional basketball positions, positions in a regulation basketball game ...

position. He is considered one of the best 1990s and 2000s era Italian basketball players. He won the

silver medal A silver medal, in sports and other similar areas involving competition, is a medal made of, or plated with, silver awarded to the second-place finisher, or runner-up, of contests or competitions such as the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, ...

at the

2004 Summer Olympic Games The 2004 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad (), and officially branded as Athens 2004 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 13 to 29 August 2004 in Athens, Greece. The Games saw 10,625 athletes ...

, and the gold medal at the 1999 EuroBasket. He was also the

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

of the men's Italy national team.

Professional career

Basile played four years with Italian club

Pallacanestro Reggiana Pallacanestro Reggiana, also simply known as Reggiana or Reggio Emilia, currently known for sponsorship reasons as Unahotels Reggio Emilia, is an Italian professional basketball team based in Reggio Emilia, Emilia-Romagna. It plays in the LBA as ...

, and seven years with

Fortitudo Bologna Fortitudo Pallacanestro Bologna 103, commonly known as Fortitudo Bologna and currently known as Fortitudo Flats Service Bologna for sponsorship reasons, is a basketball club based in Bologna, Italy and currently plays in the second division. H ...

, with whom he won two LBA championships, as the team's

. In 2005, he moved to Spanish club

FC Barcelona Futbol Club Barcelona (), commonly known as FC Barcelona and colloquially as Barça (), is a professional Football club (association football), football club based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top flight of ...

. In July 2011, he signed a two-year deal with Italian club

Pallacanestro Cantù Pallacanestro Cantù, known for sponsorship reasons as Acqua S.Bernardo Cantù, is an Italian professional basketball club that is based in Cantù, Lombardy. On the European-wide club competition scene, Cantù is second to Real Madrid – agai ...

. On 6 July 2012 Italian club Emporio Armani Milano, officially announced the signing of Basile, to a one-year contract. His contract with the team expired on 30 June 2013 and he became a

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

. He finished his career with Italian club

Orlandina Basket Orlandina Basket, known as Infodrive Capo d'Orlando for sponsorship reasons, is an Italian professional basketball club that is based in Capo d'Orlando, Sicily. It plays in the second tier Serie A2 Basket. Founded in 1978, it was one of the you ...

, and last played in the 2015–16 season.

National team career

Basile was the leader of the men's

Italy national basketball team The Italy men's national basketball team () represents Italy in international basketball tournaments. They are administered by the Italian Basketball Federation (FIP). Italy has qualified for 38 EuroBasket tournaments, winning two gold medals ...

that won the silver medal at the

2004 Summer Olympics The 2004 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad (), and officially branded as Athens 2004 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 13 to 29 August 2004 in Athens, Greece. The Games saw 10,625 athletes ...

Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...

, which was the best result for Italy since they took the silver medal at the

1980 Summer Olympics The 1980 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XXII Olympiad () and officially branded as Moscow 1980 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 19 July to 3 August 1980 in Moscow, Soviet Union, in present-day Russ ...

. He also helped Italy beat

Team USA The United States national team or Team USA may refer to any of a number of sports team representing the United States in international competitions. Olympic teams Additionally, these teams may compete in other international competitions such as ...

, by a score of 95-78, by scoring 25 points in a pre-Olympic friendly game against the US in 2004. His medals with the Italy national team also include a gold medal at the

EuroBasket 1999 The 1999 FIBA European Championship, commonly called FIBA EuroBasket 1999, was the 31st FIBA EuroBasket regional basketball championship held by FIBA Europe, which also served as Europe qualifier for the 2000 Olympic Tournament, giving a berth ...

, a bronze medal at the

EuroBasket 2003 The 2003 FIBA European Championship, commonly called FIBA EuroBasket 2003, was the 33rd FIBA EuroBasket regional basketball championship held by FIBA Europe, which also served as the Europe qualifier for the 2004 Summer Olympics, giving a berth ...

, and a silver medal at the

1997 Mediterranean Games The XIII Mediterranean Games, commonly known as the 1997 Mediterranean Games, were the 13th Mediterranean Games. The Games were held in Bari, Italy, from 13 to 25 June 1997, where 2,956 athletes (2,166 men and 790 women) from 21 countries partici ...

Player profile

Basile excelled in the role of

, or

point forward Point forward is an unorthodox offensive position in basketball in which a forward, usually a small forward, adds the responsibilities of a point guard to their play. More rarely, a power forward can also assume the position. The purpose of the po ...

, and was a very effective three-point shooter. He invented and named the ''"tiro ignorante"'' ("ignorant shot"), a three-point shot taken under difficult conditions, and which would surprise his opponents.

Career statistics

EuroLeague

, - , style="text-align:left;", 2000–01 , style="text-align:left;" rowspan="5",

, 18 , , 14 , , 27.3 , , .417 , , .311 , , .729 , , 3.1 , , 2.2 , , 1.5 , , .2 , , 9.9 , , 9.5 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2001–02 , 17 , , 14 , , 32.3 , , .442 , , .430 , , .732 , , 2.2 , , 3.2 , , 1.6 , , .4 , , 11.8 , , 12.4 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2002–03 , 19 , , 17 , , 33.6 , , .404 , , .359 , , .860 , , 3.1 , , 3.4 , , 1.7 , , .2 , , 13.8 , , 11.7 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2003–04 , 17 , , 12 , , 29.3 , , .396 , , .387 , , .833 , , 2.6 , , 2.9 , , 1.3 , , , , 12.1 , , 11.5 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2004–05 , 20 , , 18 , , 30.4 , , .401 , , .358 , , .902 , , 3.8 , , 2.9 , , 2.0 , , .1 , , 12.6 , , 12.6 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2005–06 , style="text-align:left;" rowspan="5",

Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...

, 23 , , 6 , , 23.5 , , .364 , , .294 , , .814 , , 2.2 , , 1.6 , , 1.0 , , .2 , , 8.7 , , 7.9 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2006–07 , 22 , , 12 , , 26.6 , , .465 , , .440 , , .741 , , 2.5 , , 1.6 , , 1.1 , , .1 , , 9.6 , , 8.5 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2007–08 , 22 , , 18 , , 26.1 , , .379 , , .283 , , .771 , , 2.9 , , 1.5 , , 1.3 , , .0 , , 9.9 , , 8.3 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2008–09 , style="background:#CFECEC;", 23* , , 13 , , 23.3 , , .500 , , .506 , , .889 , , 2.1 , , 1.7 , , 1.2 , , , , 7.8 , , 8.6 , - , style="text-align:left;background:#AFE6BA;", 2009–10† , 18 , , 0 , , 17.3 , , .289 , , .294 , , .750 , , 1.9 , , .8 , , .4 , , , , 4.1 , , 2.1 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2011–12 , style="text-align:left;",

Cantù Cantù (; Brianzöö: ) is a city and ''comune'' in the Province of Como, located at the center of the Brianza zone in Lombardy. It is the second largest city in Brianza. History The name could stem from that of the Canturigi, a population of I ...

, 15 , , 5 , , 21.9 , , .422 , , .430 , , .833 , , 1.9 , , 3.1 , , .1 , , , , 10.0 , , 9.5 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2012–13 , style="text-align:left;",

Milano Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nearly 1.4 million, while i ...

, 9 , , 0 , , 11.7 , , .409 , , .316 , , 1.000 , , .6 , , .7 , , .2 , , , , 3.3 , , 1.6 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan=2, Career , 223 , , 129 , , 25.9 , , .408 , , .366 , , .811 , , 2.5 , , 2.1 , , 1.2 , , .1 , , 9.7 , , 8.9

Honors and awards

Fortitudo Bologna

*2× Italian League Champion: (2000,

2005 2005 was designated as the International Year for Sport and Physical Education and the International Year of Microcredit. The beginning of 2005 also marked the end of the International Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples, Internationa ...

)

FC Barcelona

*2× Spanish League Champion: ( 2008–09,

2010–11 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number, numeral, and glyph. It is the first and smallest positive integer of the infinite sequence of natural numbers. This fundamental property has led to its unique uses in other fields, ranging from science to sp ...

) *3×

Spanish Cup The , commonly known as , or (in English) the Spanish Cup or King's Cup, and formerly known as Copa del Presidente de la República (1932–1936) and Copa del Generalísimo (1939–1976), is an annual knockout football competition in Spanish f ...

Winner: (

2007 2007 was designated as the International Heliophysical Year and the International Polar Year. Events January * January 1 **Bulgaria and Romania 2007 enlargement of the European Union, join the European Union, while Slovenia joins the Eur ...

2010 The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...

2011 The year marked the start of a Arab Spring, series of protests and revolutions throughout the Arab world advocating for democracy, reform, and economic recovery, later leading to the depositions of world leaders in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen ...

) *2× Spanish Super Cup Winner: (

2009 2009 was designated as the International Year of Astronomy by the United Nations to coincide with the 400th anniversary of Galileo Galilei's first known astronomical studies with a telescope and the publication of Astronomia Nova by Joha ...

) *

EuroLeague The EuroLeague is a European men's professional basketball club competition. The league is widely recognised as the top-tier and the most prestigious men's basketball league in Europe. The league consists of 20 teams, of which 16 are given lon ...

Champion: ( 2009–10)

Italy national team

: * 1999 EuroBasket: *

2003 EuroBasket The 2003 FIBA European Championship, commonly called FIBA EuroBasket 2003, was the 33rd FIBA EuroBasket regional basketball championship held by FIBA Europe, which also served as the Europe qualifier for the 2004 Summer Olympics, giving a berth ...

: *

Individual

* Italian League MVP: (2004) * Italian League Finals MVP: (2005) *Officer of the

Order of Merit of the Italian Republic The Order of Merit of the Italian Republic () is the most senior Italian order of merit. It was established in 1951 by the second President of Italy, President of the Italian Republic, Luigi Einaudi. The highest-ranking honour of the Republi ...

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

, 27 September 2004. The initiative of the

President of the Republic The President of the Republic is a title used for heads of state and/or heads of government in countries having republican form of government. Designation In most cases the president of a republic is elected, either: * by direct universal s ...

.Ufficiale Ordine al merito della Repubblica Italiana Sig. Gianluca Basile .
/ref>

References

External links

Euroleague.net Profile

Eurobasket.com Profile

Italian League Profile

Spanish League Profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Basile, Gianluca 1975 births Living people 1998 FIBA World Championship players 2006 FIBA World Championship players Basketball players at the 2000 Summer Olympics Basketball players at the 2004 Summer Olympics Competitors at the 1997 Mediterranean Games FC Barcelona Bàsquet players FIBA EuroBasket–winning players Fortitudo Pallacanestro Bologna players Italian expatriate basketball people in Spain Italian men's basketball players Lega Basket Serie A players Liga ACB players Medalists at the 2004 Summer Olympics Mediterranean Games medalists in basketball Mediterranean Games silver medalists for Italy Olympic basketball players for Italy Olympic medalists in basketball Olympic silver medalists for Italy Orlandina Basket players Pallacanestro Cantù players Olimpia Milano players Pallacanestro Reggiana players People from Ruvo di Puglia Point guards Shooting guards Small forwards Sportspeople from the Metropolitan City of Bari 20th-century Italian sportsmen