Šibenik pays tribute to the late Dražen Petrović on his birthday
- by croatiaweek
- in Sport
ŠIBENIK, 22 October 2019 – Croatian basketball great Dražen Petrović, who was widely recognised as the greatest player to ever come out of Europe, would have turned 55 today.
Born in the Dalmatian town of Šibenik on 22 October 1964, Petrović was just 28 years of age when he was killed in a car accident in Germany after returning from playing for Croatia in Poland on 7 June 1993.
His hometown of Šibenik has once again paid tribute to the late great on his birthday today. A huge 5 x 7 metre replica of Dražen’s No.4 singlet from his former club KK Šibenika was put up in the centre of Šibenik, to mark his birthday.
The 5×7 metre singlet hangs in Šibenik (Photo: Dusko Jaramaz/PIXSELL)
The singlet was sown by Karmen Herceg. Players of the club will also lay wreaths in his honour and 55 ballons will be let off into the air.
Voted the Best European Basketballer in History, Petrović enjoyed an illustrious career with the New Jersey Nets, averaging 20.6 points in 36.9 minutes on the floor, and nearly leading all NBA guards in field goal percentage (51%). He did not miss a single game.
Dražen also won Olympic basketball medals, as well as a gold and a bronze at the FIBA World and European Championships.
