 Corbalán in 2009 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1954-08-03)August 3, 1954 (age 71) Madrid, Spain |
| Listed height | 6 ft 0.5 in (1.84 m) |
| Listed weight | 185 lb (84 kg) |
| Career information | |
| Playing career | 1970–1991 |
| Position | Point guard |
| Number | 11 |
| Career history | |
| 1970–1988 | Real Madrid |
| 1990–1991 | Valladolid |
| Career highlights | |
| |
Medals | |
Juan Antonio Corbalán Alfocea (born August 3, 1954) is a Spanish retired professionalbasketball player. The 6 ft.1⁄2 in. (1.84 m) tall. Corbalán was one of the best Europeanpoint guards of the 1970s and 1980s.[1] During his playing career, he was nicknamed"Von Karajan", like the Italian playerAldo Ossola before him, due to being a point guard with a great ability to direct the offensive rhythm and game tempo for his teams. At theclub level, Corbalan won fourFIBA Intercontinental Cup championships, and threeEuroLeague championships. He was named byFIBA Europe, to theFIBA European Selection Team, arecord total of seven times. Corbalan was named theSpanish Sportsman of the Year in 1983.
At thenational team level, Corbalan represented his native country in threeSummer Olympic Games. He competed withSpain's senior national team at the1972 Munich Summer Games, the1980 Moscow Summer Games, and the1984 Los Angeles Summer Games. He was also voted theEuroBasket MVP of the1983 FIBA EuroBasket.
Corbalan was named one ofFIBA's 50 Greatest Players in 1991. He was given theSpanish Royal Order of Sports Merit award in 1994. In 2008, he was named one of the50 Greatest EuroLeague Contributors. He was named one of the 101 Greats of European Basketball in 2018. He was inducted into the Spanish Basketball Hall of Fame in 2019.
Corbalán spent most of hisclub career playing inSpain's top-tier level competition. He played withReal Madrid, from the 1971–72 season, until the 1987–88 season. With Real Madrid, he won fourFIBA Intercontinental Cup championships, in the years1976,1977,1978, and1981, thirteenFIBA International Christmas Tournament championships (1970,1972,1973,1974,1975,1976,1977,1978, 1980, 1981, 1985, 1986, and 1987), and twoEuropean Club Super Cup championships, in the years1984 and1988.
As a member of Real Madrid, he also won threeFIBA European Champions Cups (now known as theEuroLeague) championships, in the years1974,1978, and1980, oneFIBA European Cup Winners' Cup championship, in the year1984, and oneFIBA Korać Cup championship, in the year1988.
In addition to that, Corbalan won twelve Spanish League championships while with Real Madrid, as he won nine of them in theLEB Primera División (1972,1973,1974,1975,1976,1977,1979,1980, and1982), and three of them in theLiga ACB, in1984,1985, and1986. He also won sevenSpanish Cup titles (1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1977,1985, and1986), and oneSpanish Supercup title, in the year 1984, with Real Madrid.
Corbalan was chosen for theFIBA European Selection Team a total of seven times (1976, 1977, 1979, 1980, 1981 2×, 1982).
Corbalan ended his professional club playing career with theSpanish ACB League clubValladolid. He played with the club during theACB 1990–91 season.
Corbalan was a member of the Spanish junior national teams. He played at the1971 FIBA European Championship for Cadets, where Spain finished in 4th place. He also played at the1972 FIBA European Championship for Juniors, where Spain finished in 7th place.
Corbalán was also a member of the seniorSpanish national team. He was named theMost Valuable Player of the1983 FIBA EuroBasket, after leading Spain to that tournament's final againstItaly, by a score of 105–96. Spain ended up losing to Italy in the final. Corbalan also won the silver medal with the senior Spanish national team at the1984 Los Angeles Summer Olympic Games.
Corbalan also represented Spain at the following majorFIBA tournaments: the 1972 FIBA European Olympic Qualifying Tournament, the1972 FIBA Pre-Olympic Basketball Tournament, the1972 Munich Summer Olympics, the1974 FIBA World Championship, the1975 FIBA EuroBasket, the1976 FIBA Pre-Olympic Basketball Tournament, the1977 FIBA EuroBasket, the1979 FIBA EuroBasket, the 1980 FIBA European Olympic Qualifying Tournament, the1980 Moscow Summer Olymppics, the1981 FIBA EuroBasket, and the1982 FIBA World Championship.
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