MADRID (Spain) - Spain were young and inexperienced and yet won the FIBA EuroBasket 2022. This summer's Espana team will be even younger and less experienced. But they still have the maestro on the sidelines - for one last tournament. Can LaFamilia give Sergio Scariolo one last title as a going away gift?
The 64-year-old Scariolo - the architect of all four of Spain's European crowns (2009, 2011, 2015, 2022) - will be leaving the Spanish team after the summer, following a career that also includes the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019 title, 2012 Olympic silver , 2016 Olympic bronze and a third place EuroBasket finish in 2017.
The Spanish run at EuroBasket has been incredible: 21 consecutive top eight finishes. The last time they placed outside the top eight was 1977 when Scariolo was 16 years old. Spain have reached the podium in the last seven EuroBaskets and 10 of the last 11 editions. But the cracks are starting to show - failing to reach the Quarter-Finals of the FIBA World Cup 2023 and placing 10th at the 2024 Olympics.
Schedule
August 28: vs Georgia (14:00 CET) August 30: vs Bosnia and Herzegovina (20:30 CET) August 31: vs Cyprus (17:15 CET) September 2: vs Italy (20:30 CET) September 4: vs Greece (20:30 CET)
Star Player
Santi Aldama is only 24 years old but he has already become the main leader of the Spanish national team, having played in the last two major competitions - the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023 (his senior national team debut) and the 2024 Olympics. Aldama was actually the MVP of the 2024 FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament Spain to get the Spanish to the 2024 Paris Games.
Aldama continues to improve his standing in the NBA with the Memphis Grizzlies as well, setting career highs in scoring, three-point percentage, rebounds and assists. The Las Palmas native is a deadly inside-outside weapon as the power forward has shot 43 percent on three-pointers in 10 NBA playoff games as well as 45 percent from the outside at the 2024 Olympics.
All that leaves Aldama as the main man for Spain as he plays at the EuroBasket for the first time. With the retirement of most of Spain's veteran leaders, Coach Scariolo will rely on the experience that Aldama has gathered to lead his team.
History
Spain are without a doubt one of the most dominant teams in FIBA EuroBasket history, with four continental titles won, all in the 21st century, from 2009 to 2022. They are still on a run of seven straight podium place finishes, and the only time they failed to reach the top three spots over the last 25 years was in 2005, when they finished fourth. Before that incredible sequence, they had already won four FIBA EuroBasket medals, taking their medal tally to 14 overall.
Champions: 2009, 2011, 2015, 2022 Runners-up: 1935, 1973, 1983, 1999, 2003, 2007 Third Place: 1991, 2001, 2013, 2017
EuroBasket Top Scorers
Rank | Player | Games | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
1 | Pau Gasol | 58 | 1183 |
2 | Juan Antonio San Epifanio | 52 | 894 |
3 | Emiliano Rodriguez | 53 | 864 |
4 | Juan Carlos Navarro | 53 | 768 |
5 | Wayne Brabender | 42 | 684 |
6 | Francisco Buscato | 54 | 607 |
7 | Rudy Fernandez | 61 | 547 |
8 | Alberto Herreros | 41 | 538 |
9 | Marc Gasol | 49 | 520 |
10 | Andres Jimenez | 36 | 484 |
How they qualified
Gameday 1: ESP 75-79 LAT Gameday 2: BEL 58-53 ESP Gameday 3: SVK 72-76 ESP Gameday 4: ESP 84-71 SVK Gameday 5: LAT 83-66 ESP Gameday 6: ESP 59-52 BEL
Poll: Where will they finish?
Tickets
FIBA