The Spanish crisis in the NBA: "Now we don't have extraordinary players"

That night in 2015 at Madison Square Garden you had to rub your eyes. 29 years had passed since a pioneer named Fernando Martín, through sheer audacity and not much success, broke down the NBA barrier and now two Spaniards were starring in the initial leap of an All Star. Spanish was spoken at the party of the best league in the world, more than a decade of milestones in terra ignota and not only with the last name Gasol. From the record-breaking 2016/2017 course in which 10 nationals took part in the current hardships, only Santi Aldama and Usman Garuba.

Not even nine years of abundance have passed.. Of rings, All Stars, million dollar contracts…. This Tuesday there will be two, solitary, among more than 120, because once again the internationalization of the NBA is a fact. There are already 10 seasons with more than 100 players born outside the US. There will be more than 20 Canadians, more than 10 Australians and French, more than five Germans, Nigerians or Serbians…. “We have to be realists. In order to be an established player in the NBA, you must have extraordinary qualities, of a very high physical, technical and mental level, competitiveness, resilience, quality, size, speed…. At this moment we do not have a greater number of players with these characteristics, it is a consideration that does not have to be embarrassing or feel that I belittle,” Sergio Scariolo analyzes this unsuspected crisis for EL MUNDO.

Due to a series of circumstances, Spain goes back two decades, when at the beginning of the century Pau Gasol burst into Memphis as number three in the draft. It was in 2001 and until the arrival of Raúl López two years later, it was unique. Precisely in the Grizzlies, Aldama extends him, with more and more stripes in a franchise that looks the best in the West in the eye. Because really only the Canarian has a guaranteed contract in the best league in the world. His generation partner Garuba, after a summer of dizziness in the market, managed to sign with the Warriors but with the two-way option, which means he can perform both with the affiliated team and alongside Steph Curry, Klay Thompson and company.

“The lace”

At the moment, the preseason notes are not too optimistic with the former Real Madrid player. Steve Kerr barely gave him two minutes in one of the duels. «We must not forget that, to be a rotation player in the NBA, you have to have a really high level and a suitable team fit, a place and a team that bets on you. “There were some like that in the past,” says the coach.

José Manuel Calderón took over from Raúl López in 2005 as Pau's companion.. The man from Extremadura, a legend in the Raptors, a protagonist in so many places, one of those who always fit in, was going to remain in the NBA for 14 years, seeing how his compatriots grew.. Garbajosa and Sergio Rodríguez arrived, Juan Carlos Navarro passed briefly, and, like an unstoppable wave, at the same time as the medals from Spain, Rudy Fernández, Marc Gasol, Ibaka, Ricky Rubio, Claver, Mirotic arrived and, suddenly, in 2016 , three more (Abrines and the Hernagómez brothers) to reach that peak of 10 that made it rare for the night that two of them did not coincide.

Pau and Marc Gasol, in the initial jump of the All Star 2015. EFE

Some were returning (Chacho, Rudy, Claver…), others retired and only Aldama and Garuba burst into 2021. Last year there were still six, but suddenly Willy, Juancho and Ibaka returned to Europe and Ricky said enough was enough due to his mental health problems.. It is not ruled out that the point guard, still on the Cavaliers roster, returns to the court to complete what would be his 13th season in the NBA.

“I don't think we will be the only two for a long time, I think that next year a few will join, with whom I have been able to share summer or different situations in recent years,” Aldama himself announced these days the future.. Because Spain is hitting rock bottom, but times of abundance are on the horizon. «The realism of the present has to be accompanied by the optimism of the future. Yes, we have players with projections who can arrive soon, in a period of three or four years, being realistic.. In the NBA we can have a few more, I sincerely trust. I see who they could be and I hope someone else can surprise us.. There is a core that has potential for it,” Scariolo highlights that exciting litter that already passed through his hands this summer in the Golden Boys 2.0 project.. “I'm looking forward to them, they come very strong, but without putting pressure on them,” adds the center in his third year in the Grizzlies, one more step in Taylor Jenkins' rotation and in search of extending his rookie contract.

Just take a look at the predictions for the next draft. Three Spaniards appear among the top 30, with Izan Almansa and Aday Mara even in the Top 10. Baba Miller and Juan Núñez could make the leap, like Madrid player Hugo González from 2025. Spain achieved gold in the Junior World Cup this summer, with talent galore from players focused from early on on training for the NBA. Almansa, MVP of that tournament, is already polishing himself in the G-League (Ignite), Mara left Zaragoza to grow at UCLA, Miller finds a place in the NCAA in Florida…. «Now it will depend on them and the bets of their teams. Playing is a decisive complement for development, regardless of talent and physical appearance.. The player can influence these factors if he grows and improves so much that, basically, he almost imposes the decision to make him play.. But it depends on the ambition of the club, on the competition in the position…”, analyzes Scariolo who already warned that “in three years we will have a team that will be familiar with the best.”