Ljubiša Stefanović (Serbian Cyrillic: Љубиша Стефановић, pronounced [ʎǔbiʃa stefǎːnoʋitɕ]; born 1963), commonly known as Lou Stefanovic, is a Serbian-American former professional basketball player. He played college basketball for the Illinois State.
College career
In 1981, Stefanovic went on to play for Illinois State University in Normal, Illinois. As a senior with the Redbirds in the 1984–85 season, Stefanovic averaged team-high 17.5 points and seven rebounds per game and was named to the Missouri Valley All-Second Team.[1][2]
Professional career
Stefanovic was selected with the 97th overall pick by the Seattle SuperSonics in the 1985 NBA draft.[3] Following the draft, Stefanovic officially signed for a club in the Spanish ACB League. Few days before the start of the 1985–86 season, he signed a deal with Crvena zvezda of the Yugoslav Basketball League. Afterwards, he had stints in France, Switzerland, and Italy.[4][5]
National team career
In summer 1983, Stefanovic was an initial roster member for the Yugoslavia University team, but failed to make the final 12-man roster led by Dražen Petrović for the 1983 Summer Universiade in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.[6][5]
Personal life
Stefanovic's grandfather Branko was a native of Serbia who fought in World War II before emigrating to Gary, Indiana to find work in the steel mills. His father Zoran received a visa to the United States in February 1970 and brought him as a young child.[6][4]
Stefanovic married Helen, with whom he has two sons, Dejan (b. 1994) and Sasha (b. 1998). Sasha played college basketball for the Purdue Boilermakers.[4][7][8]
See also
- List of Serbian Americans
- Oklahoma City Thunder draft history
- Saint Sava Church, Merrillville, Indiana
References
- ^ "Stefanovic ready for serbian opportunity". purduesports.exposure.co. Retrieved 10 May 2022.
- ^ "Missouri Valley Conference Teams". joomag.com. Retrieved 10 May 2022.
- ^ "1985 Seattle SuperSonics NBA Draft". sonicsrising.com. 11 January 2015. Retrieved 10 May 2022.
- ^ a b c "LJubiša Stefanović, prvi draftovani igrač iz SFRJ: Sin Saša će se odužiti Srbiji". novosti.rs. Retrieved 10 May 2022.
- ^ a b "Ko je prvi Srbin u NBA?". kosmagazin.com. 26 March 2021. Retrieved 10 May 2022.
- ^ a b "Purdue's Sasha Stefanovic following family's example". eu.jconline.com. Retrieved 10 May 2022.
- ^ Dopirak, Dustin (May 10, 2022). "Better for it: After redshirt year, Stefanovic, Wheeler ready to make impact at Purdue". The Athletic. Retrieved December 29, 2021.
- ^ "Helen and Lou Stefanovic". nwitimes.com. Retrieved 10 May 2022.