Particle.news
Download on the App Store

Moncho Monsalve, Pillar of Spanish Basketball, Dies at 81

The news underscores a career that reshaped Spanish basketball from Real Madrid pivot to Brazil’s title-winning coach.

Overview

  • Monsalve, whose death was reported Tuesday, was 81.
  • He starred for Real Madrid in the 1960s, winning nine trophies, including three straight European Cups.
  • He earned 61 caps for Spain and played at EuroBaskets in 1963, 1965 and 1967 and the 1966 World Championship in Chile.
  • A knee injury ended his playing career, and from 1972 he coached widely across Spain and abroad, including national teams from Morocco and the Dominican Republic.
  • He led Brazil to the 2009 FIBA Americas gold and entered the Spanish Basketball Hall of Fame in 2024.