Croatia men's national basketball team


The Croatia national basketball team represents Croatia in men's international basketball matches. The team is controlled by the Croatian Basketball Federation.
The biggest success Croatia has achieved was at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics when the team reached the finals against the United States and won the silver medal. Croatia has also won one bronze medal at the FIBA World Cup and two bronze medals at EuroBasket.
Croatia's Krešimir Ćosić, Dražen Petrović, Dino Rađa and Mirko Novosel are members of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, Ćosić being inducted in 1996 as a player, Petrović in 2002 and Rađa in 2018 also as players, and Novosel in 2007 as a coach. Petrović, Ćosić, Kukoč and Novosel are members of the FIBA Hall of Fame. Ćosić, however, never played for the Croatian national team, he was a member of the Yugoslavia national basketball team.

History

Prior to Croatian independence

played its first unofficial friendly game on 2 June 1964 in Karlovac. Croatian team played against US All Star Team and lost 65–110. USA players coached by Red Auerbach were Bob Cousy, Tom Heinsohn, K. C. Jones, Jerry Lucas, Bob Pettit, Oscar Robertson and Bill Russell and Croatian team was Giuseppe Gjergja, Nemanja Đurić, Živko Kasun, Zlatko Kiseljak, Slobodan Kolaković, Dragan Kovačić, Boris Križan, Stjepan Ledić, Mirko Novosel, Marko Ostarčević, Petar Skansi and Željko Troskot.

Independent Croatia

After independence of Croatia in 1991, the first official tournament played by Croatians were 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona. Croatia defeated CIS team 75:74 and reached the finals against USA Dream Team led by Michael Jordan. USA won 85–117 but Croatia won its first medal at major tournaments in history.
Next tournament was 1993 EuroBasket in Germany. Tragically, before the championship Dražen Petrović died in a car accident on 7 June 1993 at the age of 28. Croatia still managed to reach bronze medal beating Greece 99–59.
Croatia earned its third medal at the 1994 FIBA World Cup in Canada. Croatia lost the semifinals match against Russia 64–66, but beat Greece once again 78–60 for the bronze medal. A similar occurrence happened at EuroBasket 1995 in Greece. Croatia lost in the semifinals, 80–90 against Lithuania but beat Greece 73–68 for the third time in a row in a bronze medal match. That medal to date was the last Croatian medal from any major tournament. At the 1996 Summer Olympics Croatia finished in a subpar 7th place.

Decline

At the EuroBasket 1997 in Spain, the new Croatian generation emerged, but ended in 11th place. Croatia failed to qualify for the 2000, 2004 and 2012 Summer Olympics, but finished 6th in 2008. Croatia also failed to qualify for the 1998, 2002 and 2006 World Cups, with their best result being 14th place in 2010. However, at the EuroBasket 2013, Croatia had its best tournament appearance since 1995, where the team finished in 4th place.

Competitive record

Medals table

FIBA World Cup

Olympic Games

EuroBasket

Team

Current roster

Roster for the EuroBasket 2021 Qualifiers matches played on 21 and 24 February 2020 against Sweden and Netherlands.

Depth chart

Head coaches

;1990s and 2000s
YearsNameCompetition
1992Petar Skansi 1992 Summer Olympics
1993Mirko Novosel 1993 EuroBasket
1994Josip Gjergja 1994 World Cup
1995Aleksandar Petrović 1995 EuroBasket
1996–1998Petar Skansi 7th 1996 Summer Olympics
11th 1997 EuroBasket
1999Boško Božić9th 1999 EuroBasket
1999–2001Aleksandar Petrović 7th 2001 EuroBasket
2001–2005Neven Spahija11th 2003 EuroBasket
7th 2005 EuroBasket
2005–2009Jasmin Repeša6th 2007 EuroBasket
6th 2008 Summer Olympics
6th 2009 EuroBasket

;2010s and 2020s
YearsNameCompetition
2010–2011Josip Vranković14th 2010 World Cup
13th 2011 EuroBasket
2012–2014Jasmin Repeša 4th 2013 EuroBasket
10th 2014 World Cup
2015Velimir Perasović9th 2015 EuroBasket
2016–2017Aleksandar Petrović 5th 2016 Summer Olympics
10th 2017 EuroBasket
2017–2018Ivica Skelin—
2018–2019Dražen Anzulović—
2019–presentVeljko Mršić

Past rosters

1992 Olympic Games: finished 2nd among 12 teams
4 Dražen Petrović, 5 Velimir Perasović, 6 Danko Cvjetićanin, 7 Toni Kukoč, 8 Vladan Alanović, 9 Franjo Arapović, 10 Žan Tabak, 11 Stojko Vranković, 12 Alan Gregov, 13 Arijan Komazec, 14 Dino Rađa, 15 Aramis Naglić
----
1993 EuroBasket: finished 3rd among 16 teams
4 Velimir Perasović, 5 Alan Gregov, 6 Ivica Žurić, 7 Vladan Alanović, 8 Franjo Arapović, 9 Žan Tabak, 10 Stojko Vranković, 11 Danko Cvjetićanin, 12 Arijan Komazec, 13 Dino Rađa, 14 Emilio Kovačić 15 Veljko Mršić
----
1994 FIBA World Cup: finished 3rd among 16 teams
4 Josip Vranković, 5 Alan Gregov, 6 Arijan Komazec, 7 Toni Kukoč, 8 Vladan Alanović, 9 Ivica Žurić, 10 Davor Pejčinović, 11 Stojko Vranković, 12 Danko Cvjetićanin, 13 Miro Jurić, 14 Dino Rađa, 15 Veljko Mršić
----
1995 EuroBasket: finished 3rd among 14 teams
4 Josip Vranković, 5 Velimir Perasović, 6 Arijan Komazec, 7 Toni Kukoč, 8 Vladan Alanović, 9 Ivica Marić, 10 Ivica Žurić, 11 Stojko Vranković, 12 Alan Gregov, 13 Veljko Mršić, 14 Dino Rađa, 15 Davor Pejčinović
----
1996 Olympic Games: finished 7th among 12 teams
4 Josip Vranković, 5 Velimir Perasović, 6 Arijan Komazec, 7 Toni Kukoč, 8 Vladan Alanović, 9 Slaven Rimac, 10 Žan Tabak, 11 Stojko Vranković, 12 Damir Mulaomerović, 13 Veljko Mršić, 14 Dino Rađa, 15 Davor Marcelić
----
1997 EuroBasket: finished 11th among 16 teams
4 Josip Sesar, 5 Damir Mulaomerović, 6 Gordan Giriček, 7 Damir Milačić, 8 Vladan Alanović, 9 Slaven Rimac, 10 Emilio Kovačić, 11 Davor Pejčinović, 12 Siniša Kelečević, 13 Nikola Prkačin, 14 Ivan Grgat, 15 Davor Marcelić
----
1999 EuroBasket: finished 9th among 16 teams
4 Vladimir Krstić, 5 Damir Mulaomerović, 6 Veljko Mršić, 7 Toni Kukoč, 8 Nikola Prkačin, 9 Gordan Zadravec, 10 Gordan Giriček, 11 Joško Poljak, 12 Jurica Ružić, 13 Ivan Tomeljak, 14 Nikola Vujčić, 15 Hrvoje Henjak
----
2001 EuroBasket: finished 7th among 16 teams
4 Damir Mulaomerović, 5 Josip Vranković, 6 Josip Sesar, 7 Veljko Mršić, 8 Nikola Prkačin, 9 Vladimir Krstić, 10 Gordan Giriček, 11 Emilio Kovačić, 12 Mate Skelin, 13 Matej Mamić, 14 Nikola Vujčić, 15 Žan Tabak
----
2003 EuroBasket: finished 11th among 16 teams
4 Damir Mulaomerović, 5 Marino Baždarić, 6 Marko Popović, 7 Sandro Nicević, 8 Nikola Prkačin, 9 Zoran Planinić, 10 Gordan Giriček, 11 Hrvoje Perinčić, 12 Andrija Žižić, 13 Matej Mamić, 14 Dalibor Bagarić, 15 Mate Skelin
----
2005 EuroBasket: finished 7th among 16 teams
4 Mario Kasun, 5 Roko Ukić, 6 Marko Popović, 7 Nikola Vujčić, 8 Nikola Prkačin, 9 Andrija Žižić, 10 Gordan Giriček, 11 Zoran Planinić, 12 Marko Tomas, 13 Matej Mamić, 14 Dalibor Bagarić, 15 Damir Rančić
----
2007 EuroBasket: finished 6th among 16 teams
4 Roko Ukić, 5 Davor Kus, 6 Marko Popović, 7 Marin Rozić, 8 Nikola Prkačin, 9 Marko Tomas, 10 Zoran Planinić, 11 Mario Stojić, 12 Damir Markota, 13 Marko Banić, 14 Mario Kasun, 15 Stanko Barać
----
2008 Olympic Games: finished 6th among 12 teams
4 Roko Ukić, 5 Davor Kus, 6 Marko Popović, 7 Marin Rozić, 8 Nikola Prkačin, 9 Marko Tomas, 10 Zoran Planinić, 11 Sandro Nicević, 12 Damjan Rudež, 13 Marko Banić, 14 Krešimir Lončar, 15 Stanko Barać
----
2009 EuroBasket: finished 6th among 16 teams
4 Roko Ukić, 5 Davor Kus, 6 Marko Popović, 7 Nikola Vujčić, 8 Nikola Prkačin, 9 Marin Rozić, 10 Zoran Planinić, 11 Mario Stojić, 12 Krešimir Lončar, 13 Marko Banić, 14 Sandro Nicević, 15 Mario Kasun
----
2010 FIBA World Cup: finished 14th among 24 teams
4 Roko Ukić, 5 Davor Kus, 6 Marko Popović, 7 Bojan Bogdanović, 8 Rok Stipčević, 9 Marko Tomas, 10 Zoran Planinić, 11 Ante Tomić, 12 Krešimir Lončar, 13 Marko Banić, 14 Luka Žorić, 15 Lukša Andrić
----
2011 EuroBasket: finished 13th among 24 teams
4 Ante Tomić, 5 Lukša Andrić, 6 Marko Popović, 7 Bojan Bogdanović, 8 Rok Stipčević, 9 Marko Tomas, 10 Dontaye Draper, 11 Krunoslav Simon, 12 Damir Markota, 13 Damjan Rudež, 14 Luka Žorić, 15 Stanko Barać
----
2013 EuroBasket: finished 4th among 24 teams
4 Ante Tomić, 5 Lukša Andrić, 6 Dontaye Draper, 7 Bojan Bogdanović, 8 Dario Šarić, 9 Damjan Rudež, 10 Roko Ukić, 11 Krunoslav Simon, 12 Damir Markota, 13 Mario Delaš, 14 Luka Žorić, 15 Ante Delaš
----
2014 FIBA World Cup: finished 10th among 24 teams
4 Ante Tomić, 5 Lukša Andrić, 6 Oliver Lafayette, 7 Bojan Bogdanović, 8 Dario Šarić, 9 Damjan Rudež, 10 Roko Ukić, 11 Krunoslav Simon, 12 Damir Markota, 13 Mario Hezonja, 14 Luka Žorić, 15 Luka Babić
----
2015 EuroBasket: finished 9th among 24 teams
4 Ante Tomić, 5 Damjan Rudež, 6 Rok Stipčević, 7 Bojan Bogdanović, 8 Dario Šarić, 9 Marko Tomas, 10 Roko Ukić ', 11 Krunoslav Simon, 13 Dontaye Draper, 15 Miro Bilan, 21 Luka Žorić, 23 Mario Hezonja
----
2016 Olympic Games: finished 5th among 12 teams
4 Luka Babić, 5 Filip Krušlin, 6 Rok Stipčević, 7 Krunoslav Simon, 8 Mario Hezonja, 9 Dario Šarić, 10 Roko Ukić ', 12 Darko Planinić, 15 Miro Bilan, 33 Željko Šakić, 35 Marko Arapović, 44 Bojan Bogdanović
----
2017 EuroBasket: finished 10th among 24 teams
5 Filip Krušlin, 6 Marko Popović, 7 Krunoslav Simon, 9 Dario Šarić, 10 Roko Ukić , 11 Luka Žorić, 12 Darko Planinić, 17 Dragan Bender, 25 Ivan Buva, 27 Ivan Ramljak, 33 Marko Tomas, 44 Bojan Bogdanović

Results and fixtures

EuroBasket 2021 Qualifiers">EuroBasket_2021_qualification#Qualifiers">EuroBasket 2021 Qualifiers

Group D">EuroBasket_2021_qualification#Group_D_2">Group D

Notable players and coaches

;Players

Individual awards

;Other notable achievements
;Coaches

Individual achievements

Record against teams at the EuroBasket

Record against teams in EuroBasket qualification

Record against teams at the FIBA World Cup

Record against teams at the Olympic Games

Biggest tournament wins

20+ point difference
Olympic GamesWorld CupEuroBasket

  • +34 vs. Iran 2008
  • +33 vs. Australia 1992
  • +31 vs. China 1996
  • +23 vs. Angola 1996
  • +32 vs. China 1994
  • +31 vs. Canada 1994
  • +26 vs. Greece 1994
  • +21 vs. Iran 2010
  • +20 vs. Cuba 1994
  • +20 vs. Tunisia 2010
  • +50 vs. Turkey 1993
  • +40 vs. Greece 1993
  • +38 vs. Czech Republic 2017
  • +32 vs. Belgium 1993
  • +25 vs. Finland 2013
  • +22 vs. Turkey 1995
  • +22 vs. Czech Republic 1999
  • +22 vs. Ukraine 2003
  • +22 vs. Portugal 2007
  • +21 vs. Bulgaria 1993
  • +20 vs. Germany 1997
  • Croatia also defeated Albania for an win margin of +24 at the 2009 Mediterranean Games.

    Biggest tournament losses

    • -20> point difference
    Olympic GamesWorld CupEuroBasket

    • -33 vs. USA 1992
    • -32 vs. USA 1992
    • -31 vs. USA 1996
  • -28 vs. Spain 2013
  • -26 vs. Spain 2013

    • Biggest qualification wins

    20+ point difference
    Olympic qualificationWorld Cup qualificationEuroBasket qualification

    • +52 vs. Portugal 1992
    • +46 vs. Italy 1992
    • +39 vs. Greece 1992
    • +23 vs. Slovenia 1992
  • +56 vs. Macedonia 1993
  • +40 vs. Belarus 1993
  • +34 vs. Latvia 1993
  • +33 vs. Romania 1993
  • +29 vs. Ukraine 1993

    • Statistics

    Record against other teams

    As of 18 Aug 2016, after 2016 Olympics
    * includes games against Czechoslovakia
    ** includes games against CIS and Soviet Union
    *** includes games against Serbia and Montenegro