Spanish basketball will have a star in the constellation of the Basketball Hall of Fame in the United States from next week. The legend of the Spanish national team and the Los Angeles Lakers, Pau Gasol (43 years old, Barcelona), will become part of the select Hall of Fame club, being the first Spanish player to achieve this recognition. The Catalan, retired since 2021, will join the coaches Pedro Ferrándiz and Antonio Díaz-Miguel as the representatives of national basketball in a ceremony that will take place next Saturday, August 12, in Springfield (Massachusetts), where two other legends of the NBA, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Toni Kukoc, will welcome you to the club of the greatest legends in the history of world basketball.
His entry into the Hall of Fame rounds off a very special 2023 for Gasol. In March, the Los Angeles Lakers withdrew his shirt with the mythical 16, which since then has decorated the roof of the Staples Center along with those of his great friend, Kobe Bryant, who died in 2020 in a helicopter accident. Precisely, with a screen-printed shirt with the slogan “Kobe 24 ″, Gasol has attended several media this Wednesday, including EL PAÍS, to leave his impressions on what awaits him in just over a week. “I will try to enjoy it and share it, as I have always wanted to do. That they are also Kareem [Abdul-Jabbar] and Toni [Kukoc] Those who introduce me to it are very special because they mean a lot to both me and basketball. It is an honor. It will be a magical moment”, says Gasol. “This year is being very special on an emotional level. Overwhelming. They are experiences that surpass you because you did not imagine them even in the best of dreams. I hope to celebrate and share it with so many people who have accompanied me on this path, even those who were from home and got up to watch the games at dawn. I have stolen many hours of sleep from them, ”he explains gratefully.
Along with the Spanish pivot, the American Dwyane Wade, the Frenchman Tony Parker, the German Dirk Nowitzki, and the coaches Gregg Popovich and Becky Hammon will join the Naismith memorial. Until this 2023, only 14 European players, 12 men and two women, had accessed the Hall of Fame. “This class is very special and it is a reality that European and international basketball is at the top”, acknowledges Gasol. But instead of looking at the present, in which stars like the Serbian Nikola Jokic, the Greek Giannis Antetokounmpo or the Slovenian Luka Doncic, dominate the competition, the Spaniard prefers to recognize all those who paved the way. “This has also been thanks to the contribution of those players who went to the NBA when they didn’t leave before, those European players who took that step like Fernando Martín.” Martín, who died in 1989 in a traffic accident, was the first Spaniard and the second European to play in the NBA. “His success influenced us and we have influenced the following that are now dominating. It is important to have references and people who lead the way”. Gasol is part of the Ignite academy, where he trains players to one day make the leap to the NBA. One of its most prominent members is the Spanish Izan Almansa, MVP of the last three tournaments that he has played with the lower categories of Spain, a U-17 World Cup (2022), U-18 European (2022) and U-19 World Cup ( 2023).
Pau now wants to exercise that role as a reference, helping young people who dream of becoming NBA stars one day. “I would like to be remembered as a person who has tried to take advantage of his relevance to leave a positive mark on society, helping the disadvantaged, fighting for the rights of children, fighting the childhood obesity pandemic or trying to get children and girls have more opportunities. I would like to be remembered more for this than for being a great player. There will be players in the future who score more points or win more championships, but what good is that apart from hanging on the wall? People have short memories and these things come and go, they are ephemeral. I want to continue working to have this type of impact,” reflects Gasol, who, among other projects, runs a foundation with his brother Marc that works both in the United States and in Europe to reduce the figures for childhood obesity through promotion of healthy lifestyle habits.
Selection continuity
Gasol, winner of 11 medals with the Spanish team, including four gold -one in the 2006 World Cup in Japan and three in Eurobasket championships- is, together with Rudy Fernández, the player with the most honors in the men’s category. In Spain they are only surpassed by Laia Palau, with 12 metals. In a few weeks, Rudy will set out on the road in the World Cup in the Philippines, Japan and Indonesia in search of surpassing the mark of the mythical 4. “I am not surprised by the level of the team after those of my generation left [Navarro, Felipe Reyes, Calderón…]. There has been a continuity that we have been enjoying for many years. Everything that has been built, the identity of the team, is also the merit of the new players that have arrived, who have integrated into what the national team means. Sergio’s commitment [Scariolo] It’s fundamental. Also from veterans like Rudy, Sergi [Llull] and Ricky [Rubio]who continue with the team as I did until I was 41″, he highlights.
Unlike last summer, in which Spain started the Eurobasket out of the list of favourites, this time Pau is clear that the selection is a safe bet. “Each championship is different and you have to compete. I don’t know if we are favorites to win the World Cup, but I think that after last year’s Eurobasket we have many options. We are the number one team in the FIBA ranking and we have to stick out our chests. It is not easy to be above the USA in the world of basketball. Then what happens will be seen, but I am sure that the team will go after him from start to finish, ”stresses the former player.
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