Two days away from their official debut, the Spanish national basketball team face the Paris 2024 Olympic Games with a single mission: winning their fifth-ever Olympic medal (they have won three silver medals in 1984, 2008 and 2012 and one bronze in 2016). But achieving this goal will not be an easy task, as the squads who will take part in the Olympic Games held at the French capital have shown elite performance and will demand force ‘The Family’ to give their best if they want to stand on the podium.
The Spanish side, who happen to be the reigning European champions, arrive at the competition in good shape after winning all of their games at the pre-Olympic held in Valencia. Aside from beating Lebanon (104-59), Angola (89-81), Finland (100-90) and the Bahamas (86-78), Scariolo‘s pupils have also won both of their preparation matches against Argentina (76-72) and Puerto Rico (107-84).
This series of good results has also been the stage for the definitive establishment of Santi Aldama as the leader (at least statistically speaking) of a national team that does not have as many stars or NBA players as it used to.
The Grizzlies‘ player (a franchise with great Spanish tradition marked by the Gasol brothers and Juan Carlos Navarro) was named the MVP of the pre-Olympic tournament and was the second highest scorer for ‘The Family’ (only second to Willy Hernangómez) in the six games leading up to the Olympics.
In addition to the contributions of the power forward from the Canary Islands, the leadership and experience of the last member of the team that won the silver medal in 2008, Rudy Fernández, will also play a key role. The 39-year-old will play his last tournament as the captain of the Spanish national team and become the first basketball player to compete in six Olympic Games (a milestone that Diana Taurasi, from Team USA, will also reach in the 2024 Paris Olympics).
To complete the call-up list, Aldama and the Mallorcan shooting guard will be joined by veterans of the national team such as Sergio Llull or Álex Abrines, players with NBA experience like Lorenzo Brown, the Hernangómez brothers or Usman Garuba and pieces who were already part of the 2022 EuroBasket championship roster, such as Xabi López-Arostegui, Darío Brizuela, Jaime Pradilla and Alberto Díaz.
It is the case of a group that perfectly embodies the nickname ‘The Family’, as many of its members have shared the national team’s locker room for several international tournaments. And while it is not a generation that can be compared to that of the Gasol brothers, Navarro or Calderon as far as individual talent is concerned (which does not mean that the quality of the current roster is not remarkable), its main strength lies in the collective identity of the team, an aspect that was key for them to win the European gold medal two summers ago.
It remains to be seen, however, whether experience and unity will be able to raise the already considerable level of the national team above that of countries whose squads are filled with talent.
Three solid opponents for ‘The Family’ in the Olympic Games:
For the better or worse, the answer to the previous question above will soon be revealed, as all three of Spain’s opponents in Group A have elite players in their squads.
‘The Family’s first opponent in the Olympic Games will be Australia, whose roster features eight NBA players, including Josh Giddey, a point guard of great stature who contributes in all facets of the game (with shooting as his main weakness) or Patty Mills, a classic of the Australian team whose greatest virtue is scoring.
In the game between the two teams (Saturday 27th at 11:00) we will also get to see some familiar faces from previous ACB seasons, such as Nick Kay (who played for Betis), Will Magnay (who played for Obradoiro), Joe Ingles and Dante Exum (both former Barcelona players).
Afterwards, Spain will take on the Giannis Antetokounmpo-led Greece on Tuesday, July 30th at 11:00. The Greek superstar of the Milwaukee Bucks, who averaged 30.4 points, 11.5 rebounds and 6.5 assists last season in the NBA, is often less effective under FIBA rules, but he will undoubtedly be one of the standout players of the tournament regardless. Three other former Spanish league players join him in the Greek national team: Giannoulis Larentzakis (former UCAM Murcia player), Nick Calathes and Kostas Papanikolaou (both used to play for Barça).
To wrap up the group stage, the Spanish national team will face Canada, one of the main candidates to win the gold medal, on Friday, August 2nd at 17:15. The Canadians have 10 NBA players (the second highest amount in the tournament only trailing the United States) amongst which Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the leader of the Oklahoma City Thunder and one of the best scorers on the planet, or Jamal Murray, a key player in the ring won by the Denver Nuggets in 2023, stand out. Two current ACB players like Melvin Ejim (Unicaja Málaga) and Khem Birch (Bàsket Girona) are also part of Team Canada.
With the Olympics around the corner and Team USA’s dream team as overwhelming favorites to win it all, it remains to be seen if ‘The Family’ will make qualify past a tough group stage and compete for the medals in these Olympic Games.
Main image: @BaloncestoESP.
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