SAN ANTONIO (NBA/EuroBasket 2015) - What is most important for an elite basketball player like Tony Parker?

It is, quite simply, to win.

That is something that he has done his entire career.

The veteran point guard has won regular season games, play-off games and NBA Finals with the San Antonio Spurs.

He has celebrated a championship triumph with France at EuroBasket 2013, playing so well that he was named as the tournament MVP.

Parker is a great entertainer because he has so much flair in his game. 

But when push comes to shove, the only thing that really matters to him are the wins.

After another inspirational year, one in which Parker captured a fourth NBA crown with the Spurs, he has scooped the honor as 2014 FIBA Europe Player of the Year.

It's the second time in a row he has done so.

When he looks back on 2014, he will remember the good times that came during their NBA Finals triumph over the Miami Heat, good times that followed one year on from a heartbreaking defeat to the same team.

He will remember the impact that he and the rest of the Spurs had on basketball. 

They won because of their commitment to playing as a team.

When they had avenged their defeat to the Heat in 2013, Parker sat back and reflected.

"Sport is really incredible," he said. 

"You try to understand, but you never know when you're gonna win. 

"It's like with the team of France. Who could say we would win in 2013? 

"That's what makes the beauty of the sport. I do not try to understand."

He made sure the Spurs got off on the right foot in Game 1 against the Heat by not only scoring 19 points but handing out eight assists in a 110-95 triumph at the AT&T Center.

When it was over, Parker stood alongside Tim Duncan and Manu Ginobili as one of the greatest trios the sport has ever known.

It's something that he did not do last summer, when Les Bleus knocked hosts and rivals Spain out of the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup in the Quarter-Finals in Madrid.

I can't wait to play. We'll try to win. - Parker

Parker will be eager to play for the national team because not only will an Olympic berth be at stake, but France will be the host nation of the EuroBasket.

They will play in the Group Phase in Montpellier.

"It's very important," Parker said, when asked about the tournament.

Parker's presence will be a huge cause for celebration in France.

Ten minutes after the EuroBasket 2015 draw, Tony Parker called me saying 'I am in'. - Collet

He is undoubtedly the most famous player ever to compete for the national team, and even though France showed it could win without him last summer when finishing third, everyone's happy that he'll be involved again.

France coach Vincent Collet doesn't question Parker's commitment, that's for sure.

And with that assurance in mind, most people would agree that France will be the team to beat.

FIBA