Olympic Legends - Jorge Garbajosa

BEIJING (Olympics) - There was no greater feeling for Jorge Garbajosa than to wear the Spanish shirt every summer and meet up with his good friends in the national team.

One of the finest, most versatile players ever to represent his country, 2.07m forward could mix it up with some of the best big men in international basketball on the boards.

He was a nightmare to defend because Garbajosa could spot up behind the arc and knock down one three-ball after another.

Whenever Spain’s national team went on game-killing runs from 2003 through 2010, Garbajosa was more often than not in the line-up.

He played at three Olympic Games.

Garbajosa was at Sydney 2000, four years later in Athens and also in Beijing in 2008.

His finest hour, though, came in the Final of the 2006 FIBA World Championship in Saitama, Japan.

After Spain lost superstar Pau Gasol to injury in their Semi-Final victory over Argentina, Garbajosa came to the fore and scored a game-high 20 points and corralled 10 rebounds in leading the team to the gold-medal game triumph over Greece.

Ask anyone that has played with Garbajosa and they will tell you that the intangibles make him special.

He’s always had a knack for making an important pass, hitting a crucial shot or coming up with a defensive play that turns the tide.

While suiting up for the Toronto Raptors in March of the 2006-07 campaign, Garbajosa went down with a serious left ankle injury that required surgery and ended his season.

With Garbajosa in the line-up, diving for loose balls and making clutch plays, Toronto had had the look of a team that would go deep in the play-offs.

At the time of his injury, they had a six-game lead in the Atlantic Division.

His teammate at the time, TJ Ford, said: “I hate that it happened because he brings so much to the table on the defensive end, offensive end, his intelligence, his knowledge of the game.”

The injury in Toronto allowed the basketball world to see another side of Garbajosa.

He was unequivocally, 100% devoted to his country.

Garbajosa refused to withdraw from consideration from the national squad that was to play at EuroBasket 2007.

If not fit enough, Garbajosa decided he would spend the summer with the team, making sure that Spain had one of its senior presences in the changing room and during games.

Toronto didn’t want Garbajosa to play at the EuroBasket in Spain but he did and gave his country a lift, although the national side was upset in the Final by Russia.

He wasn’t the same player after the ankle injury, yet remained effective.

He helped Spain reach the Final of the 2008 Olympics and also helped bring the country its first gold medal at a European Championship the following year in Poland.

The 2010 FIBA World Championship in Turkey was his last time with Spain.

At the announcement the following June of his retirement from the national side, Garbajosa said: "This is the day that I never wanted to experience….

"It´s a very hard day.  It´s what I must do.”

FIBA