May 24, 2013
Antonello Riva (1977-2002)
Antonello Riva
Teams: Cantu (ITA), Olimpia Milano (ITA), Scavolini Pesaro (ITA)
Antonello Riva
Summary: Not only was Antonello Riva a non-stop scorer, but he was also a winner. Riva helped Cantu to consecutive Euroleague titles in 1982 and 1983 and also lifted Saporta Cup titles in 1978, 1979 and 1981. Riva, the "Nembo Kid", also captured the 1993 Korac Cup with Milano. He is both the Italian League's (14,399 points) and the Italian national team's (3,785 points) all-time leading scorer. Riva guided Italy to gold at EuroBasket 1983 and won the silver medal at the 1980 Olympic Games. A natural-born scorer who always led by example, Riva was a European superstar in the 1980s.
Antonello Riva
WHAT THEY SAY...
Antonello Riva: "Being chosen as one of the 50 heroes in European Club basketball is a great thing for me, it is an honour to be here. To be honest, I didn't think that the Euroleague would honour me this way, but I am really satisfied that it happened and I am here in Madrid. I think that my biggest memory is the first European Cup title that I won with Cantu in 1982. It was very important, because Cantu had won several European club trophies in the previous decade, every kind of title but not the most important one. We won the European Cup in 1982 and when we did it, it was a great moment for the club, the team and the town."
50 GREATEST CONTRIBUTORS LIST
PLAYERS
x
COACHES
REFEREES
Artenik Aradabjian
Mikhail Davidov
Lubomir Kotleba
Ivan Mainini
Costas Rigas
x