Pau Gasol is at the end of what has been an extraordinary playing career. He has won multiple championships in Spain, multiple championships in the NBA, a World Cup title, three Olympic medals.
He has nothing left to prove.
The question is: Why is he at the Tokyo Olympics?
Photo: AP
The answer: The 41-year-old is going out on his terms.
A stress fracture in his left foot required surgery, derailed the end of his NBA career and had him seriously contemplating retirement until he got back on the court with Barcelona Basquet this past season and help that club win the Liga ACB title. And now, one final Olympic run.
“I love the game,” Gasol said. “I wanted to finish my career playing. I had such an incredible, extraordinary career that I didn’t want the injury to finish it for me.”
Photo: Reuters
“And it was it was a very difficult and challenging injury,” he said. “So, I set myself this goal to get back on the floor and potentially play the Olympics again with my national team — and I worked my butt off to do it.”
Spain (2-0) face Slovenia (2-0) today for top spot in Group C. Both teams have already clinched quarter-finals berths.
Gasol is playing meaningful minutes for Spain, averaging nine points and six rebounds on 62 percent shooting in his side’s first two contests at the Olympics.
Photo: EPA-EFE
“I’m very happy for him,” said Marc Gasol, Pau Gasol’s younger brother and fellow NBA and Spain national team veteran. “I’m proud of him. He didn’t have to do this. He’s made everything you can do as a professional athlete. He’s a role model in every level that you can be, as a human being and as an athlete.”
If not for the COVID-19 postponement, Pau Gasol would not be in Tokyo.
His foot was not ready a year ago. He needed more time to continue recovery from surgery and that, combined with the isolation that the pandemic required, only made a tough task more difficult.
However, he found his way back to Barcelona and wound up playing a big role in their title run.
“I had to be really disciplined and kind of create my own routine and regimen, but with the support of people and creating a team back in the US, I had support,” Pau Gasol said. “Obviously, I can’t do it on my own, so it was challenging because the doctors weren’t giving me a lot of hope on different occasions, but I kept fighting. I kept believing that it was going to work out. And it worked.”
In results from the men’s competition yesterday, France ended Iran’s chances of advancing with a 79-62 win at the Saitama Super Arena.
Also in Group A, the US were to play the Czech Republic at about press time last night, with the winner guaranteed a quarter-final spot alongside France, but the loser reliant on results in other groups.
In Group B, Italy beat Nigeria 80-71 and Australia downed Germany 89-76, with the winners clinching quarter-finals berths.
Additional reporting by staff writer
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