Vlade Divac - Hall of Fame Basketball Player

Vlade Divac
(Born 1968)

Hall of Fame Induction: 2019

Card Shown:
2017-18 Panini Flawless
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Position: C
Height: 7’1″

Vlade Divac was an international basketball pioneer who helped pave the way for players from around the world to enter the NBA. Divac had a very successful international career which included two Olympic silver medals with Yugoslavia (with Drazen Petrovic and Dino Radja) in 1988 and Serbia and Montenegro in 1996. Vlade played in the NBA for sixteen seasons with the Los Angeles Lakers, Charlotte Hornets, and Sacramento Kings.

Known also as a great human being off the court, Divac received the J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award in 1999-00 for outstanding service and dedication to the community. Vlade has always used his influence to serve others in numerous causes around the world. He has also helped lead the Sacramento Kings as their General Manager.

Awards and Honors

In 1989-90, Divac was selected to the NBA All-Rookie First Team along with Rookie of the Year recipient David Robinson.
Vlade was an NBA All-Star in 2001.
Divac was named one of FIBA’s 50 Greatest Players in 1991 and one of the 50 Greatest EuroLeague Contributors in 2008.
Vlade had his number 21 jersey retired by the Sacramento Kings on March 31, 2009.
Divac won two FIBA world championships with Yugoslavia in Argentina in 1990 and in Indianapolis in 2002. In 2010, Vlade was inducted into the FIBA Hall of Fame.

Points of Interest

Starting with 8.5 points per game in his rookie season and ending with 16.0 points per game in 1994-95, Divac became the 17th player in NBA history to improve his scoring in each of his first six seasons.
Vlade was only traded one time during his 16-year NBA career. However, it is a trade that will be remembered for years to come. In 1996, Divac was traded by the Lakers for Kobe Bryant, who became one of the all-time greatest NBA players.
Vlade and Chris Webber led a Kings team that won two Pacific Division titles and reached the NBA playoffs six consecutive times from 1998-99 through 2003-04.
Perhaps the two best teams in the league at the time, the Lakers and Kings squared off in a memorable seven game series in the 2002 Western Conference Finals. In Game 4, leading the series two games to one, the Kings were ahead 99-97 with 11.8 seconds left. After Kobe missed a shot, Divac batted out a missed shot by Shaquille O’Neal, hoping that time would expire. Instead, Robert Horry grabbed the ball and calmly sank a three as time expired to give the Lakers the victory and help propel them to an NBA championship.
Vlade and his wife Ana founded the Ana and Vlade Divac Foundation in 2007. The foundation raised over $20 million and helped over 700,000 refugees address their housing needs. They have been active in humanitarian causes for over 30 years.

Statistics

Vlade Divac Statistics
provided by Basketball-Reference.com

Personal Autograph Interaction

We met Vlade Divac at the 2020 Hall of Fame weekend in the Mohegan Sun lobby. He had just gotten off the elevator and was heading out to an appointment. Joshua and I each asked him to sign three cards and then asked for a photo. The cards he signed for me included the 1990-91 NBA Hoops rookie, the 1991-92 NBA Hoops, and the 1992-93 Upper Deck.

Looking back, six cards and a photo is a little much to ask a player who is on the way to an appointment. Sorry, Vlade! Divac was one of the first players we saw that weekend and I guess our excitement at seeing him overruled the logic of asking him to sign one or two cards each. At the picture request, Vlade did say he was in a hurry but took the photo with Joshua before heading out.

Thank you, Vlade!