French basketball mourns passing of legend Buffiere

PARIS - French basketball is mourning the loss of one of its greats following the passing of Andre Buffiere at the age of 91 on Friday.

A legend as a player and a coach, Buffiere appeared 96 times in the national team jersey over the course of a 10-year period (1946 to 1955).

During that time, he featured in five European Championships, two Olympics and one FIBA World Championship.

A 1.85m point guard, he helped France capture its first-ever Olympic silver medal, at the 1948 Games in London.

The Vion native was also instrumental for Les Bleus as they finished second at the 1949 European Championship and claimed third-place finishes in the same event in both 1951 and 1953.

Buffiere served as France's captain and it didn't come as a surprise that, after he brought his national team playing career to a close, he took the reins as its head coach.

Under his leadership, France played at the 1960 Olympics in Rome and in four European Championships, while also registering a fifth-place finish at the 1963 FIBA World Championship.

In his club career, Buffiere won six national titles with Lyon, Marseille and ASVEL.

At a time when the position of player-coach was common, he revolutionised French basketball by becoming the firt full-time coach with Limoges, a club he led to its first national titles as well as European Korac Cup glory in 1982 and 1983.

"He was undeniably one of the best players in the history of French basketball," said former French Basketball Federation (FFBB) and current International Basketball Foundation (IBF) President Yvan Mainini.

"He was a very precise and meticulous coach who looked to anticipate the reactions of opponents but also of others in the environment (referees and spectactors).

"He was one of the coaches that helped professionalise French basketball."

FIBA