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DOMINIQUE WILKINS - 101 Greats of European Basketball

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On January 13, 2001, Wilkins saw his jersey No. 21<br />

(in Europe he played with that number reversed, 12)<br />

was retired in Atlanta. Only Bob Petit and Lou Hudson<br />

before Wilkins had received that honor at the Georgia<br />

Dome. He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial<br />

<strong>Basketball</strong> Hall <strong>of</strong> Fame in Springfield, Massachusetts,<br />

in 2006.<br />

Dominique Wilkins wasn’t even the winningest<br />

American player in <strong>European</strong> basketball, not the best<br />

American player to ever play in Europe, but I would say<br />

that, together with Bob McAdoo, he was the biggest<br />

NBA star to ever play here.<br />

Dominique Wilkins, an American from Paris.<br />

In the Italian League, he averaged 17.8 points and 7.3<br />

rebounds while in the Euroleague he averaged 17.9<br />

points and 7.0 rebounds, but his club’s archrival, Kinder<br />

Bologna, put an end to the team’s <strong>European</strong> dream this<br />

time.<br />

In the EuroLeague quarterfinals, Kinder eliminated<br />

TeamSystem 2-0 and then in the Italian League final<br />

series, Kinder succeeded 3-2 after an unbelievable fifth<br />

game. If April 11 <strong>of</strong> 1996 was the happiest day Wilkins<br />

experienced in Europe, May 31, 1998, was one to stick<br />

in his memory forever for the opposite reasons. With<br />

13 seconds to go, his team was 4 points ahead, 72-68,<br />

and the title was almost secure. But then one <strong>of</strong> the<br />

most famous plays in <strong>European</strong> basketball took place:<br />

Predrag Danilovic hit a three with an additional free<br />

throw from a foul committed by... Dominique Wilkins.<br />

Danilovic scored the free throw, David Rivers turned<br />

the ball over on the last <strong>of</strong>fensive play for TeamSystem,<br />

and Kinder won it all in overtime. It wasn’t the happiest<br />

<strong>of</strong> endings to a brilliant career.<br />

Dominique Wilkins<br />

<strong>101</strong> greats <strong>of</strong> european basketball<br />

W

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