MADRID, 16 Jul. (EUROPA PRESS) –
Former basketball player José Manuel Calderón believes that the key to the current Spanish team, world and European champion, is the “mix” between seniority and youth, as well as having put “egos aside” and accepted the “roles ” that the coach, Sergio Scariolo, gives to the members of the squad, all this to “work and win”, for which he sees Spain “within the group of favorites” for the World Cup.
“Spain can look at anyone from face to face, we have a very good combination of people who already have the experience of having been in those tournaments, with new people who come with a lot of desire. And that is the key, always. Of course I put to Spain in the group of favourites”, Calderón analyzed the options of the Spanish team in the World Cup that will be held this summer in Japan, Indonesia and the Philippines, in an interview with Europa Press during his campus together with Drafteados and with Wilson as a partner.
The one who was world champion in 2006, as well as the owner of two Olympic silvers and one bronze and one continental gold, two silvers and one bronze, acknowledged that there may be “less talent” in this generation, but highlighted “other qualities that the same others did not have.” “It’s a combination of many things. The good thing is that the team plays well whenever it’s there. That’s the key and the way to go,” he analyzed.
“The key for this generation to have dominated in recent years is that mix, putting egos aside as always, accepting the roles that Sergio gives them. Those are the keys to function and win,” Calderón reiterated, who valued team spirit and a “culture” of work that comes from the lower categories.
Thus, the former player defended that “it is very difficult to only win when you are an adult.” “Normally it’s a job that takes many years,” he explained. “He comes after entering that dynamic, with that desire to compete, to represent Spain, that is key. It is a bit of that competitive gene that I think has been created in the Federation,” he defined.
“There is a group of people from some very good generations who come with very interesting players, with a lot of talent and work is being done very well both in the clubs and in the FEB. That is the key. I am happy that more people are leaving, that these tournaments are won and that Spain continues on the map”, he commented on the work with the base, also congratulating the recent world champions in the Under-19 category.
“YOU SHOULD NOT GIVE IMPORTANCE TO SOME YOUNG PEOPLE GOING TO THE US”
Some of those players who succeed in lower categories, such as Aday Mara, Izan Almansa, Conrad Martínez or Baba Miller, choose the United States to develop their professional careers, in a kind of ‘brain drain’. However, Calderón downplays the matter. “Before there were fewer people who went to the NBA, but now it’s complicated because now they can also pay,” he said.
“There is no perfect path, each one chooses their own. There are people who are better off staying in Spain because of the type of basketball and the opportunities they think they can have. And there will be people who think it may be better for them to leave there. It’s like it happened to us. There are people who left very young, others not so young, others have come out in the Draft, others not,” he added.
The former player pointed out that “it is not only a problem for Spain, but it is for everyone”, but he insisted that “leaving does not mean that you are not going to return”, because basketball “takes many turns”. “I hope they all fulfill their dream, but there will be some who make it to the NBA, others who don’t and who after studying decide to return to Spain at the age of 22. They are still young. So, that’s why I say that I think we don’t have to give too much importance to the fact that some have left”, he considered.
Finally, Calderón, who played 14 seasons in the NBA being the fourth Spanish player to ‘move’ to the United States after Fernando Martín, Pau Gasol and Raül López, remains linked to the North American league, since, since January 2022, it is advisor to the Cleveland Cavaliers, where he sees himself “capable of continuing to rise.”
“I am very happy, I have been working with them for almost two years, being part of that exceptional group. I work on the strategy, on contributing my bit with players, the future, with a lot of things. I am also learning a lot about all the rules , that many times as a player you leave them a little aside”, he indicated.
Calderón was a fundamental support for Ricky Rubio during his serious injury. “After almost a year without playing, he keeps picking up the pace, getting better. He’ll be much better next month, we’re quite happy, looking forward to seeing him again in the preseason, after seeing him in the national team first, and then seeing him with our team, to improve what was done last year”, he concluded.