Manu Ginobili introduced Tony Parker this Saturday at the ceremony that marked the induction into the NBA Hall of Fame for the former French base. But the task of the bahiense did not end there, because later, once again with Tim Duncan, and with David Robinson next to them, they also received in that privileged place Gregg Popovichthe coach who led them through the most successful period in Texan franchise history.
The ceremony was held in Springfield, where Ginóbili had been recognized in the same way last September.
“manu is unique. He is the most unique player I have ever played with. It was so unique that Pop never knew what to make of it in its first two years. He was very valuable, as a point guard, to see Pop’s faces after his passes, because with Manu you had two passes; the legendary ones, the ones everyone was talking about, and the ones that went to the fans, to the bank, Pop’s favourites. We had a difficult start with Manu”, said Parker.
The French toasted a speech that, during several passages, aroused the laughter of those present. “The Argentine media thought that I didn’t like Manu and that I didn’t pass the ball to him enough, but I never fully understood it because Pop was the coach, it wasn’t my fault if he gave all the plays for Timmy, and Timmy threw all shots. So he needed an ally, and Manu was one at the beginning, ”he said, seeking the complicity of his former coach.
However, at times Parker dropped the jokes and dedicated high praise to his former teammates. “Manu was my ally from the beginning,” he said. And he completed: “Who would say that the little Frenchman, a young man from Argentina and a swimmer from the Islands, we would win four championships together. It was an honor to play with you.”
Shortly after, Popovich also spoke about Manu. “As Tony said, it took us two years to figure it out. But what I learned from Manu was one time he came to me and said, ‘I know I make you growl, but Pop, I’m Manu, this is what I do.’ It’s a story true. And from there, I learned to shut my mouth and let him play. Sometimes, it’s the best thing we coaches can do: just let them play,” he said.
In addition, he admitted that he never imagined obtaining this recognition. “I was trying to find a word that could describe how I feel. And this feels different than what I might think to me. It’s unimaginable and I’m not trying to be humble“, said.
“For anyone who’s been through it and felt it, it’s not something you think about as you get older. It’s unimaginable,” insisted the five-time NBA champion with San Antonio, four of them with Ginóbili, Duncan and Parker on the squad.
Pop, who has coached the Texas team since 1996, is the longest-serving manager in any major sports league in the United States.
Popovich’s emotion for Becky Hammon’s words
Becky Hammon, who played 16 consecutive seasons in the WNBA and later served as Popovich’s assistant on the Spurs, was another basketball Hall of Fame figure. During her speech, the former Olympic medalist, who knew how to lead the team in Summer Leagues and in the “bubble” at the Disney complex in Orlando in times of pandemic, made the coach cry.
It was when she thanked Pop for the trust placed in her and for giving space to women in the world of basketball as competitive as the NBA. “Pop, I’m not going to look at you,” she told him from her lectern. Robinson, located behind the coach, and Manu, in front, smiled while Popovich’s eyes filled with tears.
After a round of applause, Hammon continued: “You are the principle of excellence. I know you weren’t trying to be brave when you hired me. But you did something that no one in professional sports had ever done before.”
“No matter how nice your contract looks, you have to be qualified. And I have to make sure I know that you are,” the coach had told him in 2014, as Hammon herself recalled with The New York Times.
Paul Gasol, first Spanish player in the Hall of Fame: the memory of Kobe Bryant
Pau Gasol, double NBA champion with the Los Angeles Lakers, became the first Spanish player to enter the Hall of Fame. In this way, he joined the coaches Pedro Ferrándiz and Antonio Díaz-Miguel, as the only representatives of that country in the Hall of Fame.
This tribute to Gasol, 43, came just five months after the Lakers, the team in which he formed an unforgettable duo with Kobe Bryant, retired his jersey with the number 16.
A six-time NBA All-Star, Gasol has won the 2006 Basketball World Cup, the 2009, 2011 and 2015 Eurobaskets, and three Olympic medals (silver in Beijing 2008 and London 2012 and bronze in Rio 2016).
The Spanish pivot, who also won two NBA rings with Bryant with the Los Angeles Lakers (2009 and 2010)was greeted before taking the stage in Springfield (Massachusetts) by Bryant’s widow, Vanessa, who has accompanied him at various recognitions in the last year.
Gasol recalled that when he came to the Lakers in 2008 he met “the person who raised” his game “like no other, Kobe.” “He taught me how to win at the highest levelhow hard you have to work and the mentality and commitment you need to be the best, to be a leader”, he completed, to applause.
As part of the class of 2023, they also entered the NBA Hall of Fame, among others, the German Dirk Nowitzki, champion in 2011 with the Dallas Mavericks and sixth leading scorer in the history of that league; Dwyane Wade, who was crowned with the Miami Heat in 2006, 2012 and 2013 with the Miami Heat, as well as at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
With information from EFE and AFP.
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2023-08-13 02:38:05
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