Rio de Janeiro, April 18 (IANS) Brazil’s Oscar Schmidt, one of the most prolific scorers in basketball history, died on Friday at the age of 68.

Schmidt, who had been hospitalized in the Sao Paulo metropolitan area after feeling ill, built a 30-year professional career across Brazil and Europe and was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2013, reported Xinhua.

In a statement, Schmidt’s family said he had fought a brain tumor for 15 years “with courage, dignity and resilience … while remaining a role model of determination, generosity and love of life.”

“Oscar leaves a legacy that transcends sport and inspires generations of athletes and admirers in Brazil and worldwide,” it said.

Known as one of the finest long-range shooters in the sport, Schmidt played in a record-tying five Olympics and four World Cups.

He remains the all-time leading scorer in both tournaments and holds the single-game records for points scored in the Olympics (55 vs Spain in 1988) and World Cup (52 vs Australia in 1990).

Schmidt began his career at SE Palmeiras in 1974, later representing European clubs JuveCaserta, Pavia and Valladolid before returning to his homeland to play with SC Corinthians in 1995.

He retired at the age of 45 in 2003 after a professional career spanning three decades. His unofficial world record of 49,737 points for club and country was surpassed by LeBron James in 2024.

Schmidt was nicknamed the “Holy Hand” but often played down the label in interviews, attributing his feats on the court to practice.

“The biggest player of Brazilian basketball history bids farewell as an absolute symbol of sport, the holder of a trajectory that redefined the boundaries of what was possible in a court,” the Brazil Basketball Confederation said in a statement. “His death closes an era. But his greatness remains.

–IANS

hs/