Enrico Pagani

Despite being the son of an Italian naval officer and a Russian mother, Enrico Pagani was born in China, and went on to speak several languages. He was the playmaker for Olimpia Milano from 1949-60 and, during that time, won nine Italian titles. He made his international début in a friendly against France at Genova in March 1951 and then went on to play at the unfortunate 1952 Olympics when Italy was eliminated in the final qualification match. Pagani scored 65 points in 38 matches for the national team.

Known for his good looks, Pagani appeared in the 1957 movie I sogni nel cassetto directed by the well-known Italian Renato Castellani. The film also featured famous Italian actors like Lea Massari, Lilla Brignone and Sergio Tofano. It was the only movie Pagani appeared in, and he was known as Il bello del basket (The Beauty of Basketball).