| Cibona | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 | |||
| Nickname | Vukovi (The Wolves) | ||
| Leagues | Croatian League | ||
| Founded | 1946; 74 years ago | ||
| Arena | Dražen Petrović Basketball Hall | ||
| Capacity | 5,400 | ||
| Location | Zagreb,Croatia | ||
| Team colors | Blue and white | ||
| President | Brian Lu | ||
| General manager | Tomislav Šerić | ||
| Head coach | Ivan Rudež | ||
| Team captain | Krešimir Radovčić | ||
| Championships | 2EuroLeague 2Saporta Cup 1FIBA Korać Cup 1Adriatic League 20Croatian League 9Croatian Cups 3Yugoslav League 8Yugoslav Cups | ||
| Retired numbers | 4 (4,10,11,20) | ||
| Website | www | ||
Košarkaški klub Cibona, commonly referred to asCibona Zagreb or simplyCibona, is a men's professionalbasketballclub based inZagreb,Croatia. The club is a founding member and shareholder of theAdriatic Basketball Association,[1] and competes in theCroatian League.
Cibona's history dates to late autumn of 1945 whenSloboda (Freedom) was founded as a sports society of bank workers, craftsmen, traders, and clerks. On April 24, 1946, thanks to basketball enthusiast Branimir Volfer and his friends Ljubo Prosen and Joso Miloš, basketball section of Sloboda, the predecessor of today's Cibona, was formed. Its first game was against local rival Slavija on May 7, 1946. Sloboda did not last too long under that name as in November 1946, it merged with Tekstilac, Amater and Grafičar intoSportsko društvo Zagreb (Sports Society Zagreb). Name changing continued through the next four years. In late 1948 it was known asVihor (Vortex) and already in 1949 asPolet (Elan). Finally, in June 1950, the club changed the name toLokomotiva (Locomotive) and that name is going to stick for the next 25 years. Lokomotiva competed inYugoslav top division since 1951, with only two years (1952 and 1960) spent in the second division.
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Lokomotiva's first major trophy came in 1969, when they won theYugoslav Cup, led by legendaryHall of FamerMirko Novosel. The final game againstAŠK Olimpija was played in Lokomotiva's new basketball hall "Kutija šibica" (literally meaningMatchbox). Led by phenomenal trio Većeslav Kavedžija,Nikola Plećaš and Milivoj Omašić, Lokomotiva won the game 78:77.
Their first European trophy came in 1972 when Lokomotiva won the premier edition ofFIBA Korać Cup. Their opponent in finals wasOKK Beograd and the first game was played inBelgrade. OKK Beograd won the first game 83:71 but in a return match Lokomotiva, led by greatNikola Plećaš (nicknamedSveti Nikola) who scored 40 points, trashed the Belgrade side by 94–73.
In November 1975, the basketball club split away from the Lokomotiva sports society and came under the direct control of the municipal authorities of the city of Zagreb. Politicians such asSlavko Šajber became very influential in the club during this period and set about getting the club some financial support. In that regard, the club's main sponsors became fourSR Croatia-based food industry giants (all of them state-owned at the time):Kraš,Franck,Badel and Voće. The club took the nameCibona, taken from theLatincibus bonus, which translates togood food.
For the first trophy under the new name Cibona, they had to wait until 1980, when they won theYugoslav Cup. The Final match was played inBorovo, and Cibona's opponent was mightyBosna, led byBogdan Tanjević on the bench, andMirza Delibašić on the court. But Cibona, led by impressiveAndro Knego, managed to beat them 68:62. This trophy marked the beginning of Cibona's golden era, influenced by two great basketball players andHall of Famers –Krešimir Ćosić andDražen Petrović. Between 1980 and 1988, Cibona won 14 major trophies: 3Yugoslav League championships (1982, 1984, 1985), 7Yugoslav Cups (1980, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1985, 1986, 1988), 2FIBA European Champions Cups (1985, 1986), and 2Cup Winners' Cups (1982, 1987).
At the beginning of the war in the Former Yugoslavia in 1991, the team was forced to emigrate in order to play their games, and in an area with the minimum guarantees required by FIBA. For this reason, the club played in Spain for two years (seasons 1991–92 and 1992–93), specifically inPuerto Real (Cádiz).
In independent Croatia, Cibona became a dominant force strongly backed both politically and economically. The crisis of traditionally powerful Dalmatian clubsSplit,Zadar andŠibenik also came in hand and Cibona won 11 national titles in a row (from 1992 to 2002). They were also regularEuroleague participant, reaching quarterfinals in 1996/97 and1999/00.
Cibona's dominance in the national championship was broken in 2003 whenSplit CO led by coachPetar Skansi, legendaryDino Rađa and revived talentJosip Sesar won the championship. Cibona regained the title next season but was beaten in finals byZadar season after. In 2005–06 and 2006–07 Cibona won championships beating Zadar in the final series twice but then shockingly missed the final series in 2007/08 after Split eliminated them in semifinal series.
In 2001 regional basketball league calledAdriatic League was formed and Cibona took part in it. After disappointing first and second season, Cibona hosted Final Four and reached the final game in2003/04 but was defeated on the home court byFMP Reflex.
Recent seasons have been a mixture of success and failure for Cibona.
In national championship, Cibona won four out of five recent league titles but this dominance is seriously put on test by the rise oflarge company backedCedevita.
In European competitions, Cibona lost its Euroleague license for the2011/12 season after competing in Euroleague since its formation. During2011/12 and2012/13 seasons Cibona competed inEurocup but failed to win any game.
In regional ABA League Cibona had a great2009/10 season. Cibona entered the Final four held inArena Zagreb as a top-seeded team. After beatingUnion Olimpija in semifinals, Cibona facedPartizan in the final game. Partizan won the title thanks to an off-the-glass three-pointer byDušan Kecman from half-court at the buzzer, bringing the celebration of Cibona players and staff (who already invaded the floor asBojan Bogdanović scored a corner three-pointer for Cibona with just 0.6 seconds left on the clock) to an abrupt end. The final score was 75–74 and Cibona once again didn't manage to win a title at the home court. The next three seasons in the regional league were disappointing for Cibona, finishing 12th, 7th, and 11th.
In the 2013–14 season, under head coachSlaven Rimac, Cibona won theABA League championship, despite huge financial problems the club was facing.[2] As a champion of the league, Cibona had direct spot in theEuroleague, but withdrew from it in order to stabilize financially.[3] Eventually,Crvena Zvezda, as third in the standings, took its spot in the Euroleague.[4]
Total titles: 48
The following table shows the records from the season 1990–91 in all competitions:
Note: Flags indicate national team eligibility atFIBA-sanctioned events. Players may hold other non-FIBA nationalities not displayed.
| KK Cibona roster | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Players | Coaches | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Updated:September 23, 2025 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Pos. | Starting 5 | Bench 1 | Bench 2 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C | Matej Rudan | Markus Lončar | Josip Pavković | ||
| PF | Kamaka Hepa | Luka Skorić | |||
| SF | Renato Serdarušić | Borna Katanović | |||
| SG | Justin Roberson | Vigo Bart | |||
| PG | Krešimir Radovčić | Žan Mark Šiško | Borna Burek |
Mihovil NakićDražen PetrovićAndro KnegoMarin Rozić| ^ | Denotes player who has been inducted to theNaismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame |
| x | Denotes player who has been selected for at least oneAll-NBA Team |
| # | Denotes player who has never appeared in an NBA regular-season or playoff game |
| Position | Player | Year | Round | Pick | Drafted by |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SG |  Dražen Petrović^x | 1986 | 3rd round | 60th | Portland Trail Blazers |
| C | Franjo Arapović# | 1987 | 7th round | 159th | Atlanta Hawks |
| SG/SF | Gordan Giriček | 1999 | 2nd round | 40th | Dallas Mavericks |
| SG | Josip Sesar# | 2000 | 2nd round | 47th | Portland Trail Blazers |
| SG | Zoran Planinić | 2003 | 1st round | 22nd | New Jersey Nets |
| PF | Damir Markota | 2006 | 2nd round | 59th | San Antonio Spurs |
| SG/SF | Bojan Bogdanović | 2011 | 2nd round | 31st | Miami Heat |
| PF/C | Tomislav Zubčić# | 2012 | 2nd round | 56th | Toronto Raptors |
| PF | Dario Šarić | 2014 | 1st round | 12th | Orlando Magic |
| C | Ante Žižić | 2016 | 1st round | 23rd | Boston Celtics |
Note: Flags indicate national team eligibility atFIBA-sanctioned events. Players may hold other non-FIBA nationalities not displayed.
| Criteria |
|---|
To appear in this section a player must have either:
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Jasmin HukićBariša KrasićHaris Mujezinović
Jermaine AndersonVladan AlanovićLukša AndrićFranjo ArapovićDalibor BagarićMarino BaždarićBojan BogdanovićDanko CvjetićaninKrešimir ĆosićZoran ČuturaGordan GiričekAlan GregovVinko JelovacMario KasunAndro KnegoVladimir KrstićDavor KusMatej MamićDavor MarcelićDamir MarkotaVeljko MršićDamir MulaomerovićAramis NaglićMihovil NakićSandro NicevićAleksandar PetrovićDražen PetrovićZoran PlaninićNikola PlećašMarko PopovićNikola PrkačinZdravko RadulovićDino RađaDamir RančićSlaven RimacDamjan RudežTomislav RužićJosip SesarMate SkelinRok StipčevićMarko TomasDario ŠarićBruno ŠundovJosip VrankovićStojko VrankovićAndrija ŽižićAnte ŽižićLuka ŽorićIvica Žurić
Marton Bader
Dardan Berisha
Chris Warren
Evgeni Kisurin
Chucky AtkinsAlan AndersonJerel BlassingameGerald FitchJamont GordonSmush ParkerScoonie PennBracey Wright| Season | Achievement | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Euroleague | |||
| 1982–83 | Semi-final group stage | 6th place in a group withFord Cantù,Billy Milano,Real Madrid,CSKA Moscow andMaccabi Tel Aviv | |
| 1984–85 | Champions | defeatedReal Madrid 87-78 in the final ofEuropean Champions Cup inAthens | |
| 1985–86 | Champions | defeatedŽalgiris 94-82 in the final ofEuropean Champions Cup inBudapest | |
| 1991–92 | Quarter-finals | eliminated byMontigalà Joventut, 68-73 (L) inZagreb and 67-92 (L) inBadalona | |
| 1994–95 | Quarter-finals | eliminated byReal Madrid Teka, 78-82 (L) inZagreb and 70-82 (L) inMadrid | |
| 1999–00 | Quarter-finals | eliminated byPanathinaikos, 62-73 (L) inAthens and 63-69 (L) inZagreb | |
| FIBA Saporta Cup | |||
| 1969–70 | Quarter-finals | eliminated byFides Napoli, 80-89 (L) inZagreb and 84-102 (L) inNapoli | |
| 1980–81 | Semi-finals | eliminated byFC Barcelona, 85-92 (L) inBarcelona and 79-75 (W) inZagreb | |
| 1981–82 | Champions | defeatedReal Madrid 96-95 in the final ofEuropean Cup Winners' Cup inBrussels | |
| 1983–84 | Semi-finals | eliminated byReal Madrid, 89-91 (L) inZagreb and 80-94 (L) inMadrid | |
| 1986–87 | Champions | defeatedScavolini Pesaro 89-74 in the final ofEuropean Cup Winners' Cup inNovi Sad | |
| 1988–89 | Semi-finals | eliminated byReal Madrid, 91-92 (L) inZagreb and 97-119 (L) inMadrid | |
| FIBA Korać Cup | |||
| 1972 | Champions | defeatedOKK Beograd, 71-83 (L) inBelgrade and 94-73 (W) inZagreb in the double finals ofKorać Cup | |
| 1979–80 | Final | lost toArrigoni Rieti, 71-76 in the final (Liège) | |
| 1987–88 | Final | lost toReal Madrid, 89-102 (L) inMadrid and 94-93 (W) inZagreb in the double final | |
| 1990–91 | Quarter-finals | eliminated byShampoo Clear Cantù, 70-80 (L) inCucciago and 77-80 (L) inZagreb | |
| FIBA Europe Cup | |||
| 2015–16 | Quarter-finals | eliminated 2–1 byEnisey, 92-94 (L) inKrasnoyarsk, 77-69 (W) inZagreb and 78-82 (L) inKrasnoyarsk | |
| 2016–17 | Quarter-finals | eliminated byÉlan Chalon, 87-85 (W) inZagreb and 78-83 (L) inChalon-sur-Saône | |
| Intercontinental Cup | |||
| 1985 | 3rd place | 3rd place inBarcelona, lost toFC Barcelona 68–74 in the semi-final (Girona), defeatedSan Andrés 109-82 in the 3rd place game | |
| 1986 | 3rd place | 3rd place inBuenos Aires, lost toŽalgiris 77–104 in the semi-final, defeatedCorinthians 119-96 in the 3rd place game | |
| 1987 | 3rd place | 3rd place inMilan, lost toTracer Milano 83–94 in the semi-final, defeatedMaccabi Tel Aviv 106-96 in the 3rd place game | |
| 1981–82 FIBA European Cup Winners' Cup
| 1984–85 FIBA European Champions Cup
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1985–86 FIBA European Champions Cup
| 1986–87 FIBA European Cup Winners' Cup
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