ESP – Garba comments on Pepu firing

MADRID (Olympics) - Spain power forward Jorge Garbajosa has described the sacking of popular national team coach Pepu Hernandez as “something uncomfortable for everyone”.

Garbajosa’s heroics two years ago in the final of the FIBA World Championship – he buried six three-pointers and had 20 points - lifted Hernandez’s Spain to a gold medal triumph over Greece and last year he made a dramatic return from injury to help his country capture a silver medal.

In explaining why Hernandez had been sacked, the Spanish Basketball Federation (FEB) said the coach had shown “a lack of respect to the FEB and to its executive members” in public.

“The federation is above players, coaches – no one is indispensable.”

Garbajosa added on the federation’s website, www.feb.es: “My relationship with the federation has been fantastic for a long time and my relationship with Pepu was excellent as we speak often.”

“It's something uncomfortable for everyone and also, indirectly for the players."

Garbajosa has all but been ruled out of this year’s Olympics after missing virtually the entire NBA season with injury.

FIBA