To encourage the development of more young local talents, the Basketball Champions League requires its teams to register at least 5 Home Grown Players on the game score sheet (if 11 or more players listed, otherwise 4 if the roster has 10 or fewer players). Many of these players are considered top level talents in their respective countries and I will be taking a look at some of them over the course of the season.

ZARAGOZA (Spain) - Much of the attention on youth development in Spain over the years has gone to Real Madrid, FC Barcelona or Joventut Badalona. Slowly but surely, Casademont Zaragoza need to be added to the list of clubs bringing up high-level talent. With Javier Garcia being just the latest as he has shown in the Basketball Champions League.

The 19-year-old has helped Zaragoza reach the Play-Offs as he has averaged 6.3 points and 1.8 assists in 15 minutes per game. The point guard's best game came against Pszczolka Start Lublin as he picked up 14 points and 1 steal in the last game of the Regular Season, hitting 4-of-4 three-pointers 25 minutes of action.

 
"This was because I have been working on my three-pointers a lot. These are some of the results," said Garcia, who immediately continued by saying he must stay grounded. "You go 4-of-4 one day, but the next day you can miss all four. You have to work to be more consistent."

Garcia said that mentality comes from the Zaragoza club and coaches.

"It's very important for a player like me, a young player. It gives me more confidence. If you make a mistake this organization will be behind you and support you. When you are in a good moment people and coaches are saying to you be ready for bad moments and be calm because bad moments will come. You can't be too high or too low."

Chances for youngsters

It really shouldn't be a surprise at all to see a 19-year-old playing for Zaragoza in the BCL. After all, Carlos Alocen served as the team's captain last season, turning 19 years old in December and ending up winning the BCL's Best Young Player award.

 
Just like Garcia, Alocen was born and raised in the northeastern city of Zaragoza and grew up in the Casademont Zaragoza's youth ranks. And the two were friends before Alocen left this off-season to join Real Madrid.

"I had been playing with him since we were 13-14 years old. Every day I learned something new from him. He was very important to me. Carlos showed me how to be a professional player - how to handle yourself on the court and off the court," Garcia said.

Garcia and Alocen are just a couple of the young talents that Zaragoza have been producing.

The 2001-born power forward Jaime Pradilla grew up playing for his hometown club and helped Spain to the FIBA U16 European Championship 2016 and FIBA U18 European Championship 2019 titles before this season jumping to Valencia. The 2002-born big man Aitor Etxeguren last season made his BCL debut with Zaragoza and is this season playing with Caceres.

Jaime Fernandez is a 20-year-old center who came up in the youth ranks of his hometown club before leaving for Barcelona in 2018 and spending two seasons there and returning in 2020. He also debuted in the BCL this season, playing both games against Lublin.

"We call this young group 'Generation Z'," Garcia said. "We have a lot of talent and can grow up and play professionally here in the club. All of the coaches are working really well with the young players. This is the key why more and more players are playing."

Zaragoza are also attracting top talent from other countries. Czech prospect Vit Krejci arrived in Zaragoza in 2014 at just 14 years of age and turned himself into a Czech senior national team player and 2020 second round NBA Draft pick. Pavle Stosic is a 2004-born forward who left his native Serbia in 2017 to play at Real Madrid. He spent three seasons there and now is with Zaragoza. The 2003-born Gustav Knudsen is one of Denmark's biggest talents and he joined Zaragoza in 2019.

"I think the level in Zaragoza is going up, and every year here we are working better because we have very good coaches to help to improve the new young generations," Garcia said.

BCL and ACB debuts

The beginning of the 2019-20 season was special for Garcia, who made his debut in the Spanish ACB on September 29, 2019, playing nine minutes against Obradoiro and scoring six points.

"That is a special day for me, a special moment in my life. I will never forget that moment. I thought I am here. It's a dream, but I can do it. Now I have to work to stay here. Staying in the ACB is very difficult," he said.

 
"Being on the court at Pabellón Príncipe Felipe, I was very focused on the game and didn't want to see all the people supporting me. But when the game finished, I saw my mother and my father. For me, it was very special."

Garcia then on October 22, 2019 made his BCL debut against Besiktas, collecting 2 points and 1 rebound in 8 minutes.

"I remember perfectly. I didn't expect to play in that game. I was ready. Rodrigo (San Miguel) and Carlos were the two point guards, but Rodrigo could not play and I was ready," he recalled.

Garcia would end up playing 15 minutes or more in four games last season, becoming a part of the club's rotation.

"I learned that without work it's impossible to do what you want. To be a professional player, it's important if you don't work every day, if you don't wake up and think you have to work every morning and be the first person in the gym and the last to go home."

Learning from each point guard

Coming into this season, Garcia said his coaches told him to be prepared for the moment.

"I'm growing up. I am playing more minutes than last year. I'm trying my best but I must be focused on the minutes the coach gives me and be ready for everything in every game," said Garcia, who is averaging 2.6 points, 0.7 rebounds and 0.7 assists in 19 games. In the ACB, he has played 10 or more minutes in 11 games.

Playing the point guard position at Zaragoza as a youngster definitely has had its privileges as Garcia has found out. Last season he had San Miguel, Alocen and Dylan Ennis to learn from and this season TJ Bray is there as well.

"We have a lot of point guards here in Zaragoza, and every point guard is very different. I try to learn the good things from everyone but it's difficult," he said.

Garcia has also witnessed firsthand his teammates coming up big in clutch moments as both DJ Seeley and Ennis won games in the BCL - against Lublin and Nizhny Novgorod - with big plays at the end.

"We have very good players for the final moments," he said.

Disappointment and joy for Spain

Well before debuting in the Basketball Champions League, Garcia had already played on an international stage for the Spanish youth national teams - experiencing both disappointment and joy along the way.

 
In the FIBA U16 European Championship 2017 in Montenegro, Spain came in as defending champion and looking at the very least to qualify for the FIBA U17 Basketball World Cup 2018. The Spanish were beaten by Serbia in the Quarter-Finals and then lost to Lithuania in the 5-8 classification game, missing out on the global spectacle.

"We had a lot of expectations in Podgorica. I think we had a good team, but I don't know what happened against Serbia in the Quarter-Finals. The other games for the World Cup were tough for us. We didn't play as well as we could," said Garcia, who averaged 8.2 points, 2.0 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 1.5 steals in the tournament.

Garcia got hurt at the end of the first half against Lithuania and could not play the second half.

"It was really, really tough because it was the first time I got injured, but that's life. You must support your team the best way you can in those situations," he said.

But the loss definitely still stings for Garcia, who added: "That is the biggest disappointment I have ever had."

 
Garcia's best moment also came wearing a Spanish jersey though as he helped Espana to the title at the FIBA U18 European Championship 2019.

"It was an incredible feeling. We were working a month for that championship. We had to win the championship because we had the perfect team,” said Garcia, who collected 8.4 points, 1.6 rebounds and 5.9 assists as one of seven players who were back together after the disappointment at the U16 level.

"To give Spain the gold medal at that championship is a great feeling. It is one of the best feelings you can have in your career. It's the highest moment in my career - at least until now."

Playing at home - at home

While winning a European title at your age group is an absolute high, every home game is special for Garcia. That's because he is playing in front of fans and family who grew up supporting him - all the while playing at the same Pabellón Príncipe Felipe arena where he attended games as a youngster.

"Playing in your city is like a dream. You play for your fans and for the team you were grew up watching. It's a special situation and motivation to play here. The fans are my friends, too," he said.

It's all about being part of 'Generation Z".