Toni Kukoc was ahead of his time—literally and stylistically. Before the NBA embraced the idea of playmaking forwards and global scouting departments, Kukoc was a Croatian phenom dazzling Europe with his blend of finesse, vision, and versatility. By the time he joined the Chicago Bulls in the mid-90s, he wasn’t just another international prospect—he was one of the pioneers who helped redefine what “global basketball” would become.
Fast forward to today, the 2021 Hall of Fame inductee sees a league unrecognizable from the one he entered.
“Well right now, I am thinking the global game,” Kukoc told me. “Right now to be in the NBA is a global game that the best players all over the world are trying to come here and showcase their talent; which wasn’t the case when we first got here and the NBA was taken more than as American basketball… but right now, players all over the world want to come here.”
Kukoc noted how the league’s diversity and talent pool have exploded, highlighting how stars like Nikola Jokic, Giannis Antetokounmpo, and Luka Doncic are no longer anomalies—they’re anchors of the modern NBA.
“They want to be these MVP’s, best rebounders, best defenders and so I think it’s nice to see,” he continued. “It’s nice to see the courage of the people all over the world to just showcase their basketball and that’s why everybody wants to watch NBA games because they’re so exciting and they’re so good.”
That evolution is personal for Kukoc. He remembers a time when international players weren’t celebrated. They were doubted. Scrutinized. Even targeted. When he arrived in Chicago, he was thrust into a whirlwind of expectations and team drama. But decades later, the call that confirmed his legacy came in poetic fashion.
“I was actually in Split, Croatia,” he recalled. “I actually haven’t seen my parents in two years so I thought it was time as soon as I could travel to go see them. So the great news found me in Croatia. It was actually Mr. Jerry Reinsdorf who called me… and he said like, ‘Listen. I gotta tell you something and it’s VERY important and you’re going to be inducted into the Naismith Hall of Fame in September!’”
The setting couldn’t have been more fitting. Kukoc was back home, visiting family, and even watching his old squad, Jugoplastika Split, in the playoffs. The same team where his pro career began.
“They were in the middle of the playoffs… so it all kind of overwhelmed me because walking into the arena and everything you can see pictures of me 17, 18, 19-years old playing for that team and to get that news over there, it was just phenomenal. It was SPECIAL.”
One of today’s brightest stars, Luka Doncic, has drawn frequent comparisons to Kukoc. Toni sees it too—especially the way Doncic commanded the game while still in Europe.
“I see a little bit, but mostly when I played in Europe. That was the way I played,” Kukoc explained. “When I got to the Bulls obviously that position was more or less reserved for Scottie [Pippen]… But there were times when I would get the rebound and have the freedom to bring the ball up… coach Phil [Jackson] gave me ‘carte blanche’ to handle the ball.”
That “carte blanche” freedom was often dictated by the Triangle Offense—one of the most intricate and adaptable systems in NBA history. Kukoc was a perfect fit.
“You can actually play ANY position if you’re willing to run, if you’re willing to read the offense and read your teammates… you can play one through five,” he said. “I really liked that system. It was awesome.”
But Kukoc also admits that had the Bulls landed a player like Shaquille O’Neal during their peak Triangle days, the results might’ve been unfair to the rest of the league.
“That wouldn’t be fair I think,” Kukoc said with a grin. “You’re talking about Shaq, Dennis [Rodman], Scottie, Michael and either Harper and me… there’s so much firepower there that I don’t think that there would be ANY team that would compete with them.”
Long before he became Michael Jordan’s teammate, Kukoc famously faced off against MJ and Scottie Pippen during the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona. The result? Let’s just say it wasn’t his finest hour—but it was a turning point.
“I don’t think I was nervous… but I didn’t do much that game,” Kukoc said, reflecting on that first battle. “You’re talking about two of the BEST defensive players at the time guarding you… but thank God I did well in the Finals [laughs]. That game actually told me that it’s worth going to the NBA.”
For years, there were whispers that Jordan and Pippen used that game to “send a message” to Kukoc over tensions with then-GM Jerry Krause. But Kukoc dismissed any notion of Michael trash-talking.
“No I don’t think so,” he said. “Michael was one of those guys if you don’t wake him up, then he’s gonna play… but if you’re going to start talking trash to him, make SURE that you can cover it! Because if you can’t, he’ll hit you for 45-50 and make you feel each and EVERY bucket he scores.”
In 1994, with Jordan briefly retired, Kukoc nearly helped lead the Bulls to the NBA Finals. It was a unique season, marked by teamwork, growth, and a different style of play.
“Probably I can say that was the most team play basketball that we did,” Kukoc said. “Scottie had an awesome season… MVP kind of season. If we had a little more experience… I think that we could’ve gone at least to the NBA Finals.”
The Bulls ultimately fell to the Knicks in a brutal playoff series. For Kukoc, New York presented the most physically punishing challenge.
“The Knicks were ALWAYS the toughest for me,” he said. “We used to joke that the fouls that didn’t draw any blood, wasn’t a foul [laughs]… I needed a year or two to get used to that kind of basketball.”
Had they reached the Finals, Kukoc is adamant that Chicago would’ve taken down the Houston Rockets—despite Hakeem Olajuwon’s brilliance.
“We beat them that year every game we played,” Kukoc noted. “To me, [Hakeem] is the BEST center of all time… He shows you all these moves. He shows pretty much EVERY fundamental of basketball imaginable.”
Comparisons between Michael Jordan and LeBron James have filled barbershops and comment sections for years. Kukoc, having played with MJ and admired LeBron’s evolution, offered a thoughtful take.
“It’s hard to compare players that never played in the same era… Obviously like everything else in the game of basketball is evolving,” he said. “Michael brought world basketball to another level… LeBron is what LeBron is now that he gave a chance for Luka to be Luka or Jokic be Jokic.”
To Kukoc, Michael isn’t just a player—he’s a symbol of transcendence.
“If I can compare Michael, I would compare him to Tiger [Woods] with golf, Messi or Ronaldo with soccer, [Michael] Phelps with swimming… Because of those things, Michael is – I can’t say the best player but he is a GOAT of basketball.”
He also warns against minimizing past eras simply because they weren’t as fast-paced or data-driven.
“People want to get on social media… they say, ‘Awww they were slower, they were not physically ready…’ but they were scoring buckets from everywhere. They had so much skills; they knew basketball in their little finger.”
That reverence for greatness extended to another generational star: Allen Iverson.
“To me, one of the BEST players that I’ve ever played with,” Kukoc said. “Just his size and the way he moved through the people he looked even faster… AI was different. If he could find a way to the rim, that was his first choice… AI was willing to go in and try to score layups and then get dunks and then get himself on the free throw line.”
Toni Kukoc played in an era that bridged the old-school grit with modern finesse. He left a legacy not only as a pioneer of international excellence, but as a student—and teacher—of the game. From Split to Springfield, his story reflects how far basketball has come.
And if today’s stars are standing on someone’s shoulders?
Kukoc helped build the staircase.
