Neto aims to end Brazil's long wait for fourth Olympic basketball medal

SALT LAKE CITY (2016 Rio Olympics) - Raul Neto is among countless Brazilians dreaming of an Olympic medal at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics.

Memories of Brazil's last Olympic medal resurfaced last week when FIBA held the Draw Ceremony for the Rio 2016 Olympic Basketball Tournaments (for Men and Women). It saw Brazil's men drawn in Group B along with neighbouring Argentina, Spain, Lithuania, Nigeria and a team that will have qualified via one of the three FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournaments (OQTs).

Brazil has three bronze medals in its Olympic basketball history, the last of which came at the 1964 Tokyo Games.

Talking to Brazil's Sport TV "Ta na Area" show, Neto - currently in his NBA rookie season with the Utah Jazz - warned that as a team the host nation must be at its very best in order to win a medal.

"It's a tough group, but you can't choose your opponents at the Olympics," said the 23-year-old guard who is also known as Raulzinho.

I was talking to some of my [Utah Jazz] teammates who will play in the [Rio] Olympics, and everybody hoped to be drawn in the same group with the USA in order to avoid them in the next round. - Raulzinho

"This is what the Olympics Games is all about. We have to be ready and focus to beat everybody in order to win an Olympic medal," he added.

"My expectation is that the Olympics become a great party for sports in Brazil. I really hope we can win the much-desired Olympic medal that we have been fighting for for so long." 

"We have everything to achieve good results [in the Rio Games], and show the world that we have good athletes," Neto pointed out.

Brazil's Raul Neto and Marquinhos celebrate at the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup

Brazil has no shortage of players competing in top basketball leagues around the world. Nine of them - Raulzinho , Cristiano Felicio, Marcelinho Huertas, Bruno Caboclo, Lucas Nogueira, Tiago Splitter, Nene Hilario, Anderson Varejao and Leandrinho Barbosa - play in the NBA this season and that is one of the reasons why expectations are high for the No.9 team in the FIBA World Ranking Men.

Brazil will open their Olympic campaign against Lithuania on 7 August.

FIBA