Shavon Shields and Pippo Ricci have been name co-captains of Olimpia Milan basketball team for the 2024/25 season.

“It’s an honor to be the captain of Olimpia Milano alongside Pippo Ricci. I hope and will try hard to be a captain that makes the club and the fans proud. Now, I’m excited to work towards our goals and get the season started with this group of guys,” Shields said.

A 30-year-old from Overland Park, Kansas, Shields has been in Milan since the summer of 2020. In these four seasons he has won three championships, two Italian Cups, a Super Cup, was MVP of the 2022 championship series, and helped the team reach the EuroLeague Final Four in 2021. He is the club’s all-time leading scorer (1,347 over 98 games) and first ever for three-pointers made in the EuroLeague. He is also second in steals and third in assists. He is second all time for points scored in the Italian league championship series which he has played six times, four with Olimpia. In the Italian league, he’s played 121 games with Olimpia with 1,600 points and 189 threes.

“Being the Captain is a great honor that I’m extremely proud of. Mostly, I’m happy to share it with a friend, a leader and a great player like Shavon Shields. I feel a huge sense of responsibility in receiving the baton from the former Captains that, over the years, made the history of this club. I will keep doing my best while wearing this jersey and will do it for the fans and to be as good at doing this job as the historical Olimpia captains were,” Ricci commented.

A 33-year-old from Chieti, Abruzzo, Giampaolo Ricci came to Olimpia in the summer of 2021. Since then, he has won three championships and an Italian Cup. He played 120 Italian league games for Olimpia. A member of the Italian national team, he played in the 2021 Olympics, the 2022 European Championships, the 2023 World Cup. In his career, he’s won the last four championships and a second Italian Cup with Cremona.