Vladimir Pištelak

The Czechoslovak basketball legend Vladimir Pištelak was born 30 July, 1940 in Brno, Protectorate of Moravia and Bohemia (modern-day Czech Republic). The 189-centimeters-tall combo guard spent the majority of his career with his hometown team – Spartak ZJŠ Brno (1958-1969, 1971-1973). He also played two seasons in Belgium with Racing Mechelen (1969-1971).

In 1959, Pištelak made his debut in the EuroLeague. His European journey brought plenty of success. Pištelak was one of the best scorers of the 1963/64 season, averaging 18.5 points per game and leading his team to the final against Real Madrid. Overall, in the 6 seasons he played in the EuroLeague, Pištelak reached the finals twice (1964, 1968). He also reached two semifinals (1963, 1969). The Czechoslovak international was among the Top 20 best scorers in three EuroLeague seasons and the Top 10 in two of those seasons.

On the international level, Pištelak played in 5 Eurobasket editions (1961, 1963, 1965, 1967, 1969), winning silver in 1967 and bronze in 1969. He averaged 8.2 points per game in 35 games in major tournaments.

Pištelak retired in 1973, at the age of 33. In his EuroLeague and international games from 1961 to 1970, Pištelak scored 966 points in 82 games.

ACCOLADES

EuroLeague (1964, 1968)
EuroLeague (1963, 1969)
Eurobasket (1967)
Eurobasket (1969)
Czechoslovak League (1962, 1963, 1964, 1967, 1968)
Czechoslovak League (1960, 1965, 1966, 1969, 1972)
Czechoslovak League (1973)