19 Facts About Ettore Messina

Ettore Messina has won four EuroLeague championships as a head coach.

Ettore Messina was named the Italian League's Best Coach three times, in the years 1998,2001, and 2005.

Ettore Messina was inducted into the Italian Basketball Hall of Fame in 2008, and into the Russian VTB United League Hall of Fame, in 2019.

Ettore Messina previously worked with the San Antonio Spurs, as an assistant coach for Gregg Popovich, from 2014 to 2019.

Ettore Messina had two different stints as the head coach at the Italian League team, Virtus Bologna.

Ettore Messina won the Italian League national championship in 1993.

Ettore Messina added two Italian League championships to his trophy case in 1998 and 2001, as well as three Italian Cup titles in 1999,2001, and 2002.

Ettore Messina then served as the head coach of the Italian League club Benetton Treviso, where he succeeded Mike D'Antoni as head coach, in 2002.

Ettore Messina was offered a position as the technical director at CSKA, but at the time of his resignation, he had not decided whether or not he wanted to stay with the club.

Ettore Messina was announced as the new head coach of the Spanish League club Real Madrid, on 18 June 2009, and signed his contract with the club the following day.

Ettore Messina was frequently the subject of speculation linking him with vacant coaching jobs in the NBA.

In June 2012, Ettore Messina decided to leave his job as a consultant for the Los Angeles Lakers, and he returned to CSKA Moscow, to become the team's head coach.

On 15 July 2014, Ettore Messina was hired by the San Antonio Spurs, as an assistant coach.

On 19 April 2018, Ettore Messina temporarily took over head coaching duties of the team in their playoff series versus the Golden State Warriors, due to Popovich having left the team in light of his wife's death the previous night.

On 11 June 2019, Ettore Messina signed a three-year contract, and agreed to become the new head coach and President of Basketball Operations of the Italian club Olimpia Milano.

From 1993 to 1997 Ettore Messina was the head coach of the senior men's Italian national basketball team.

Ettore Messina coached Italy at the 1993 EuroBasket and the 1995 EuroBasket, and he led Italy to the silver medal at the 1997 EuroBasket.

In 2016, Ettore Messina took a short leave of absence from the San Antonio Spurs, in order to return as the head coach of the Azzurri, with the goal of qualifying for the 2016 Rio Summer Olympic Game.

Ettore Messina coached Italy at the 2016 Turin FIBA World Olympic Qualifying Tournament.