About Peja Stojaković
Predrag Stojaković (Serbian Cyrillic: Предраг Стојаковић, pronounced [ˌprêdraːɡ ˈstôjaːkoʋit͜ɕ]; born 9 June 1977), known by his nickname Peja (Peđa, Пеђа, pronounced [ˈpêd͡ʑa]), is a Serbian former professional basketball player and basketball executive. Stojaković played for five teams in an NBA career that spanned from 1998 to 2011. Standing at 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m), he played mostly as a small forward. Stojaković starred for the Sacramento Kings in the 2000s and was named an NBA All-Star three times during his Kings tenure. He is regarded as one of the greatest shooters in NBA history, having made 1,760 three-point field goals in his career; this total ranked fourth all-time upon his retirement from the NBA. Stojaković won an NBA championship with the Dallas Mavericks in 2011. After starting in Crvena zvezda and while playing for PAOK, Stojaković was drafted 14th overall by the Sacramento Kings in the 1996 NBA draft. In the NBA, he had a breakthrough season in 2000–01, averaging 20.4 points and 5.8 rebounds while shooting.400 from three-point range in his first season as a starter. He finished second in voting for the 2001 Most Improved Player Award. A three-time All-Star and a member of the 2004 All-NBA Second Team, Stojaković enjoyed success with the Kings, reaching the 2002 Western Conference Finals. He also played for the Indiana Pacers, New Orleans Hornets and Toronto Raptors. Stojaković ended his NBA career in 2011 as a member of the Dallas Mavericks. He won the NBA Three-Point Contest two times during the All-Star Weekend competitions. Stojaković helped to lead the senior FR Yugoslavian national team to gold medals in the 2001 FIBA EuroBasket and the 2002 FIBA World Championship. Considered one of the greatest European basketball players of all time, Stojaković was named the Euroscar Basketball Player of the Year by the Italian sports newspaper Gazzetta dello Sport and the Mister Europa Player of the Year twice by the Italian sports magazine Superbasket. HoopsHype named Stojaković one of the 75 Greatest International Players Ever in 2021. On 19 December 2011, Stojaković announced his retirement from professional basketball. On 16 December 2014, the Sacramento Kings retired his number. As an executive, he has held multiple positions in the Sacramento Kings' front office. With the club, he also won a FR Yugoslav national championship, in the 1992–93 season.
Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.