• Toni Kukoc
• #7
• Forward

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2000-01:
Brought tremendous leadership qualities and championship experience to the Hawks and made an immediate impact on Lon Kruger's young team ... Traded by Philadelphia with Theo Ratliff, Nazr Mohammed and Juan "Pepe" Sanchez to Atlanta for Dikembe Mutombo and Roshown McLeod on 2/22/01 ... One of the most talented players to ever put on a Hawks uniform ... In 17 games in Atlanta, Kukoc scored 19.7 points per game - more than double his total in 48 games with Philadelphia (8.0 ppg) ... Also averaged 6.2 assists and 5.7 rebounds (.492 FG, .481 3FG, .638 FT) with the Hawks ... During his time with the Sixers, Kukoc averaged 3.4 rpg and 1.9 apg (.458 FGs, .410 3FGs, .591 FTs) ... His willingness in getting his teammates into the game was certainly evident when the 6-11 forward posted two triple-doubles in a three-game span: March 13 against Vancouver (20 pts, 11 rebs, 10 rebs) and March 17 vs. Detroit (29 pts, 10 assts, 10 rebs) ... When he played, Kukoc's addition impacted the overall performance of the team in several categories ... Atlanta increased its scoring output by nearly 11 ppg (99.4 w/Kukoc, 88.8 without), limited the number of turnovers per game (17.1 pre-Kukoc, 14.8 with him), and better ball distribution (22.4 assists with him, 18.1 without him) ... In 65 games overall, Kukoc finished with 11.1 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 3.1 apg (.473 FGs, .446 3FGs, .631 FTs) ... His 63.1 FT percentage was career worst ... Finished sixth in the NBA in three-point FG shooting (.446), and tied for fourth among triple-double leaders with two ... Led Hawks in scoring seven times and in assists eight times ... Scored 20 or more points 11 times and 10 or more 31 times ... His season came to a halt on April 12 after undergoing shockwave therapy on his right foot, which caused him to miss the final seven games ... Kukoc missed a total of 19 games because of injury or illness: lower back strain (8), back spasms (3), flu (1) and planta fascitis in right foot (7) ... HIGH GAMES: 31 pts @Milw (3/25), 11 rebs v/Hou (3/7), 11 assts (2x), 4 stls (2x), 1 blk (11x), 12 FGM v/Det (3/17), 4 3FGM (5x), 10 FTM @Milw (3/15), 46 mins (2x).

1999-2000:
Traded to Philadelphia on 2/16, in a three-way trade also involving the Golden State Warriors, whereby the Bulls received John Starks and the Washington Wizards' first round draft choice, held by Golden State. The Bulls also received Bruce Bowen from Philadelphia. Golden State received Larry Hughes and Billy Owens from Philadelphia ... Tallied a triple-double, totaling 19 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists in a 111-101 win at Indiana on 3/26 ... Posted 31 points and 8 rebounds in an 88-81 win in Seattle on 2/2 ... Logged 33 points and dished out 10 assists in a 110-103 win in Washington on 1/7 ... Activated from the injured list on 1/5 after missing 24 games (13 on the injured list) with back spasms

1998-99:
Following the retirement of Michael Jordan and the trading of Scottie Pippen, Kukoc led the Bulls in scoring, rebounding and assists in 1998-99 ... With Jordan and Pippen gone, Kukoc became the focus of the Bulls' offense in 1998-99 and led the team with career-highs of 18.8 points, 7.0 rebounds and 5.3 assists per game. ... Totaled 22 points (9-15 FG, 4-4 FT), a game-high 12 assists and 9 rebounds in a 101-86 victory over the Miami Heat on 5/1 ... Averaged 20.4 ppg, 8.8 rpg, 4.8 apg and 1.40 spg, and notched two double-doubles, in a five-game stretch from 4/11 to 4/18 ... Scored his 5,000th career point, posting game-highs of 27 points, 10 rebounds and 6 assists, against the Atlanta Hawks on 2/16 ... Registered team-highs of 27 points (2-3 3FG), 11 rebounds and 8 assists against the San Antonio Spurs on 2/14 ... Notched his 1,500th career assist, recording 16 points, 9 rebounds and 7 assists, against the Atlanta Hawks on 2/9 ... Totaled game-highs of 22 points and 11 assists, and grabbed 9 rebounds, in an 89-84 win over the L.A. Clippers on 2/7 ... Posted a game-high 32 points and 5 rebounds against the Utah Jazz on 2/5.

1997-98:
Started 52 of the 74 regular season games he played and 17 of 21 playoff games, including all six games of the NBA Finals. He led the team in three-pointers as the Bulls won their third straight title ... On the injured list from 4/4 to 4/15 due to plantar fasciatis in his left foot ... Recorded 15 points, 11 assists and 8 rebounds in a 97-87 victory over the Boston Celtics on 12/3 ... Posted a game-high 30 points (5-9 3FG), 7 rebounds and 6 assists against the Seattle SuperSonics on 11/24.

1996-97:
Came off the bench in 42 games and made 15 starts, but missed a total of 25 games due to injury. Sat out three games in December with a sprained left ankle and one in Feburary with a sprained right foot, and was on the injured list March 3-27 and April 4-10 because of planta fascitis of the right foot, an injury that limited his playoff effectiveness as well ... Scored in double figures in 42 of his 57 games, getting a season-high 31 points in a 129-123 overtime win over the Lakers on Dec. 17. Averaged 13.2 points per game, third on the team, plus 4.6 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 1.05 steals in 28.2 minutes per game ... Kukoc posted 13 assists in a 110-98 win over Toronto on Jan. 25 ... Had five double-doubles, three points-assists and two points-rebounds ... Played off the bench in all 19 playoff games and ranked third on the club in scoring, though his average dipped to 7.9 ppg.

1995-96:
With the arrival of Dennis Rodman, and with Michael Jordan back for a full season, Kukoc was asked to come off the bench and fill in at both forward positions as well as shooting guard ... Wound up winning the NBA Sixth Man Award ... Despite his stated preference to be a starter, played extremely well off the bench and was a valuable contributor for Chicago, averaging 13.1 points, 4.0 rebounds and 3.5 assists in 26.0 minutes per game ... Ranked third on the team in scoring and assists and fifth in rebounding and was a significant outside shooting threat, hitting 87-for-216 for .403 from three-point range ... Kukoc played off the bench in 61 games and made 20 starts, missing one game on Feb. 2 at the Lakers due to a sprained left ankle. As a starter he boosted his averages to 17.7 points, 4.5 rebounds and 4.4 assists in 32.8 minutes per game, and the Bulls were 17-3 in games which he started. ... Kukoc scored in double figures 48 times, getting 20 or more on a dozen occasions, including a career-high 34 points against Miami on April 4. ... Kukoc appeared in 15 playoff games, five as a starter and 10 as a reserve, missing three games due to a sprained back. He averaged 10.8 points, 4.2 rebounds and 3.9 assists in 29.3 minutes per game overall but broke out of a shooting slump to contribute 13.0 points per game in the NBA Finals against Seattle.

1994-95:
When Kukoc first joined the Bulls in 1993, he did so partly for the opportunity to play alongside Michael Jordan. He was disappointed when Jordan retired prior to Kukoc's rookie season but was elated when "His Airness" returned late in 1994-95. Although Kukoc had some trouble adjusting to Jordan's presence on the court, when he, Jordan, and Pippen were clicking together, the Bulls were a formidable team ... Bolstered by Jordan's return, Chicago finished third in the Central Division and got past the Charlotte Hornets in four games in the first round of the playoffs. The Bulls' championship aspirations ended in the conference semifinals, however, as they lost to the Orlando Magic in six games. Kukoc started all 10 playoff contests for the Bulls. He scored a career-playoff-high 22 points in Game 3 against the Hornets, then came back in the next game to record a career-playoff-high 11 rebounds. For the series, he averaged 17.3 points. He cooled off a bit in the second round against Orlando, contributing 11.5 points per outing ... Showed significant improvement in 1994-95, upping his numbers across the board ... Used as both a sixth man and a starter, Kukoc played a big role in the Chicago Bulls' surprising 47-35 season, contributing in a variety of ways ... Was team's leading scorer in 14 games, also paced the club in assists in 31 contests and was high man on the boards in 11 outings ... Topped 20 points 20 times during the season and hit for 30 or more twice, including a 33-point outburst against the Detroit Pistons on February 17 ... On March 30, recorded the first triple-double of his NBA career with 14 points, 10 rebounds, and 11 assists against the Boston Celtics ... For the season, Kukoc appeared in 81 games and started 55, including the season's final 36 contests ... Averaged 15.7 ppg, a jump of nearly 5 points over his rookie numbers ... Also showed improvement on the boards, hauling down 5.4 rebounds per game (up from 4.0 in his first season), and as a passer, handing out 4.6 assists per contest (compared with 3.6 in 1993-94).

1993-94:
Word of Toni Kukoc and his legendary accomplishments in Europe began filtering in not long after Chicago Bulls General Manager Jerry Krause made him the 29th overall pick in the 1990 NBA Draft. In fact, Kukoc was compared to Magic Johnson for his ability to dribble, pass, and shoot despite being 6-11 ... Kukoc put together a good rookie season, averaging 10.9 points and earning a spot on the NBA All-Rookie Second Team. There were times, however, when it appeared that the switch from European basketball to the NBA style of play was taking its toll, particularly on the defensive end ... The Bulls had planned to bring Kukoc along slowly, but after Michael Jordan began his temporary retirement in October, Kukoc suddenly became vital to Chicago's continued success. He appeared in 75 games for the year, starting 8, and averaged 10.9 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 3.4 assists. He was named to participate in the inaugural NBA Rookie Game during the All-Star Weekend, and at season's end he earned a spot on the NBA All-Rookie Second Team ... In his NBA debut against the Charlotte Hornets on November 5, Kukoc scored 10 points, grabbed 5 rebounds, and had 1 assist in 24 minutes. On November 26 against the Dallas Mavericks, he scored a season-high 24 points. He scored in double figures in 50 games and led the Bulls in assists on 11 occasions ... The highlight of his season occurred during Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals, when he nailed a game-winning three-pointer at the buzzer for a 104-102 victory over the New York Knicks.

PRE-NBA:
A native of Split, Croatia, Kukoc came to the NBA after an outstanding career in Europe. A three-time European Player of the Year, he led Jugoplastika Split to a European Championship in 1990. He spent the 1991-92 and 1992-93 campaigns with Benetton Treviso of the Italian League, averaging 19.9 points over the two seasons. He was also a member of the Yugoslavian Olympic team that won a silver medal at the 1988 Olympics, and he earned a second silver medal with the Croatian team in 1992

A member of three European championship teams and a three-time European Player of the Year, Kukoc had teamed with Dino Radja and the late Drazen Petrovic to lead Yugoslavia to a silver medal in the 1988 Olympic Games in Seoul. The group came together again in 1992 as Croatia and earned another Olympic silver in Barcelona

Part of the difficulty in getting Kukoc to play in the NBA was that the NBA's salary cap restricted teams from free spending, while the Italian League had no such constraints. Kukoc's team, Benetton Treviso, could give the Croatian star anything he wanted-and did-during the 1991-92 and 1992-93 seasons. But by the summer of 1993 Kukoc was able to get out of his five-year contract with Benetton and try to make a name for himself in the NBA. After a three-year wait the Bulls signed him to a contract on July 19, 1993