Although Pesic considered him “a master”, Pau Ribas (Badalona, 1987) once again feels like a “newbie”. «I work more than before and I get involved in many … more things,” he says about his new life. The shooting guard directs teams from the Joventut youth academy and helps young people after hanging up his boots at the end of last season. “I still have a hard time not being able to play,” he admits. There were 20 years as a professional, titles with Penya, Baskonia, Valencia, Barça and the national team and unforgettable experiences. “I remember the mistakes more than the successes.”
– What is the first thing you have done that you couldn’t do as a player?
– Have a free, family, quiet weekend. I have been competing since I was 5 years old. The best thing is, psychologically, not having to be prepared to do something, that’s what’s complicated. I still have a hard time not being able to play. Especially a derby or a match like today. But on Mondays you say, it’s good that I don’t have training.
– Did anything stir you when Ricky Rubio announced his return?
– (Laughs). The previous summer there was some possibility and in the end it did not materialize. It wasn’t crazy to think about it, but I had decided. I always thought that when I didn’t enjoy it, I would leave it anyway. It was a shame, because I had another year on my contract and physically I was fine, but it’s not worth extending it if mentally I wasn’t enjoying it as much. I’m happy with my finish and seeing Ricky well. The initial boom was incredible. On the first day, 250 t-shirts were sold. 249 from Ricky and one from Tomic. It has reconnected a generation that had disconnected a little from basketball and Penya.
– What anecdote would define you as a player?
– I have been a very involved player and I talked a lot with some coaches. Sometimes they told me how annoying, ‘leave me alone now’. Pesic called me ‘philosophy’ or ‘teacher’.
– Was winning the 2008 Cup in Vitoria premonitory?
– That memory surely had an influence. Although I remember the semi-final more. I started and Aíto sent me to defend Louis Bullock. And instead of defending I scored seven points at the beginning. I didn’t play again (laughs). But I didn’t care. I was focused on winning it. Then, I had an offer from Real Madrid, but the one from Baskonia interested me a lot. It was more like Joventut and I grew up with the great Baskonia. He was great in Europe.
– Was it hard to leave Badalona?
– Very much. I’m from here. My father played here. Joventut won the Euroleague… I would have liked to do my entire career in La Penya. But the Euroleague arrived and we were left out. If you wanted to play against the best, it was the only option. In my career I have always pursued that.
– As a Baskonista, the miracle of San Emeterio made us forget his decisive robbery in the second duel of the 2010 final.
– If I’m honest, I have in mind that I lost the previous one while taking it from the bottom… a disaster. San Emeterio acted unsportsmanlike after he gave them the opportunity to win, but I kept it. I remember more of the mistakes, in quotes, than the successes.
– That day he played only ten minutes. How come I was at the end?
– Dusko told me to defend Navarro and it was difficult, he fouled me. It was probably because of that, I don’t remember well. I also remember that on the day of the two plus one of San Emeterio, I scored a triple to put us five up with less than a minute left. What happened is that Navarro scored another one and then there was a basket by Morris and the block, I think illegal by Eliyahu, which would have given more value to my triple.
– On the day of the withdrawal he published a photo of the celebration from the balcony.
– I have it one of the first. It would be the beginning of the iPhone and it is in the cloud. For me it is important. It was an incredible day. I had never seen a fan base and a city so dedicated to basketball. I remember it and it makes me sick because so many years have passed and I remember it as if it were today. The Baskonia fans are one of the best I have seen. Perhaps it is something more passionate than that of Joventut. There were many invitations those days in Vitoria from many people (laughs).
– Do you think he was a good secondary player at Baskonia?
– The first year we had an incredible roster. Huertas, Oleson, San Emeterio, Teletovic, Splitter. Then Eliyahu, Carl English, Walter Hermann. We played really well and won the League. And afterwards, it is true that I had the feeling that I played well for periods, but there was always something to improve. And the victim, by role, was me, who was the youngest. There was the lockout in the NBA and they were trying to get an American with a name and minutes. IN the end, with Dusko I began to adapt more to a defensive profile and that’s why I left. I played and had a role, but I didn’t enjoy it as much and I believed I had other virtues to exploit.
– He renewed until 2015 but leaves with three years left on his contract.
– The reality of the club changed, the economic capacity, they readjusted something and in the end we all reached an agreement. Valencia insisted a lot on signing me. And I thought it would be good to change the role. Not because he wasn’t good, but he did need a more main role in attack. It was a good agreement for everyone.
– Are young people less bothered with defense now?
– I don’t think, what happens is that there are fewer young people and you see less. But the first thing they ask is to give the level in defense. Aíto was a genius at this. He told me ‘defend and when you’re alone shoot’. And I thought, ‘it’s not that difficult to play in ACB then’. I did it well and from then on it gave you a bit of a wide berth.
– What happens now with young people?
– The generation has changed. Having a cell phone in your hand gives you access to a lot of information and everything seems very simple. And the next generation thinks like this. You want it as fast, as easy as possible and if not, then something else. That happens in basketball too. If I’m not comfortable, then I’ll go somewhere else. It is our generation’s fault, how we have influenced them. Later, training basketball has become almost professional. You have players from all over the world and in the end it is not the same. Being from Badalona, I do everything possible to succeed here. But a player who comes from Europe or further away, if he spends 3 years at Baskonia and sees that it’s not the case, he doesn’t mind leaving. The feeling of belonging to a club, to a city, is heard a lot, but it has been lost. The concept of a training player in the ACB League is doing harm in that regard.
– Is the player now empowered?
– Could be. The NBA mirror is very big and that’s how it is there. There are players who influence decisions of the team and the coach and have a lot of power. And in the end the Euroleague wants to look like the NBA. More and more games. I think there are too many. There is worse quality in some. I remember the Euroleague from my time at Baskonia and playing in the Top 16 was incredible. Every game was a blast and now, since there are so many, it is distorted a bit.
– How much has a locker room changed?
– Maybe it’s a bit of a beast, but before this was a team sport and now it’s like an individual sport that is played as a team. Before we were together all the time, eating, playing cards, going to have a few beers, having two-hour conversations, arguing about any nonsense and now it is the player with his phone, with his tablet in the room, watching anything from any field and in the end that connection has been lost a little off the court. The best friends where I was were your teammates and I don’t think this has changed much. Everyone sees the same faces every day at work and nothing happens. I believe that mobile phones and Netflix have made it possible for leisure to be individual and affect both society and groups. It affects most teams, and others on the court are able to connect, but it is much more difficult. They have to be teams with a coach who has a lot of influence on it and have certain players who have that ability, that desire to connect much more.
– Do you like the word legacy?
– It can be good and bad. My mark has been that any player, with his city’s team, doing things well, is capable of playing against the best. No fireworks. I would like the children to see themselves reflected, that if they are lucky and work with passion, enthusiasm and so on… they can achieve something. In the end I haven’t even measured two feet, nor have I been the fastest, nor the best, or anything.
– But some talent too.
– Yes, obviously I am not 1.70 tall. But the biggest key is the mentality, the feet on the ground. Don’t let them abandon you because of bad times. In the end, be persistent and try to reach as high as possible.
Anecdote with Crespi
– Are you aware that Juventut is the current executioner of Baskonia?
– In the five years I have been here now, I don’t know if we have ever lost. They are coincidences. It also happens to us the other way around. Manresa beat us well in recent years. Or Valencia. In recent years it has occurred at important intersections and has a great influence on that vision.
– Has Baskonia regained its status in the ACB this year?
– I saw that it was difficult for him at first, but I was surprised by what he has achieved. Much credit to the coach. He has managed to connect the players and with some changes that have also been good, they are in a very good dynamic. So good that if they win the two remaining games they will be seeded in the Cup. They have let the coach work, they have fixed a couple of things that perhaps weren’t working and now they are at a high level.
– Did Galbiati catch your attention when they faced Trento?
– Yes, they beat us well in both games. The team looked a bit like Baskonia now. Connected, aggressive players, scorers, a fast game and he shouted and moved a lot from the wing. But it’s true that they played well. There was a coach with less name and experience but who did it well. It is good that different coaches enter the ACB wheel.
– With Crespi it didn’t go so well.
– I bought an apartment in Plaza Los Fueros and he lived in my house, but unfortunately for me he was little. The apartment was nice and it didn’t take me long to find a tenant. The players fought to live there and in the end I sold it to a neighbor.
– Finally, tell me about the three proper names of this Joventut: Ricky Rubio
– Off the court he contributes a lot. He has returned that generation with children, I think he has reconnected. Every year more fans come to the pavilion. We have a very large pavilion but we are a small city. And you have to do things to gradually grow. Baskonia is a great mirror in which to see how to treat fans and do different things to attract followers. They leave the free chairs up and are less appreciated. If the team does well, the people go. And if there are many rainy days, the better. Less can go to the mountains and more to Buesa.
– Ante Tomic.
– He is the player I have played with the most. Ten years together. A lot of connection on the court and off. It is very easy to play with it. In the end he is the player I have passed the ball to the most. It is also the one that has happened to me the most. He has screwed me up quite a few assists. Because I give it to him and he cuts it and I don’t know what. And the assistance is yours. In the history of ACB I have fallen a little behind. He is a great player. Above all, very long-lived. He continues to contribute many things and it is because of guys like him that we are a little above the economic potential we have these years.
– Dani Miret.
– You have to try to retain it as much as possible. We cannot afford to train trainers and have them fly. You have to have confidence in the people here because they always give you that extra something. It is undeniable. He is a younger and better coach almost every month.
