Spain men’s basketball head coach Chus Mateo announced his roster on Friday at the Spanish Basketball Federation headquarters in Alcobendas for upcoming FIBA World Cup European Qualifiers.
The national team will face Montenegro on November 26 and Greece on November 29 as Group I action resumes.
“Hemos tenido que pensar mucho, pero creo que nos ha ayudado el compromiso de los clubes, especial de los de Euroliga y los jugadores,” Mateo said.
Mateo selected several EuroLeague players, changing how clubs release players for international windows.
The squad features Juancho Hernangómez of Panathinaikos, Joel Parra and Brizuela of Barcelona, Pradilla and Abalde of Real Madrid, alongside Mario Saint-Supéry and Cárdenas of Valencia.
🚨 OFICIAL | Los 1⃣5⃣ 𝗷𝘂𝗴𝗮𝗱𝗼𝗿𝗲𝘀 𝗖𝗢𝗡𝗩𝗢𝗖𝗔𝗗𝗢𝗦 (y otros 6⃣ 𝐢𝐧𝐯𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐝𝐨𝐬) por el Seleccionador @MateoChus para la Ventana de noviembre 🙌 🏆 Clasificación @FIBAWC 📆 23 al 29 de noviembre@Xunta @camino_xacobeo | #LaFamilia #SomosEquipo pic.twitter.com/fy7cBG2Rko
“Era la manera que veíamos más eficiente de hacer una lista competitiva de jugadores que han representado a España en ventanas y en veranos, que sigamos haciendo un equipo compacto y unido para tener el mayor rendimiento del baloncesto nacional,” Mateo said.
Additional players named to the squad include Francis Alonso of Breogán, Ferran Bassas and Pierre Oriola of Manresa, Jaime Fernández of Tenerife, Willy Hernangómez of Unicaja, Oriol Paulí of Lleida, Álex Reyes of Joventut, and Santi Yusta of Efes.
Invited players joining the daily training sessions without participating in matches barring injuries are Héctor Alderete, Carlos Alocén, Mikel Sanz, Yankuba Sima, Pablo Tamba, and Adrián Torres.
Spain currently sits second in Group I with five victories from eight matches, trailing group leaders Ukraine by one win.
The top three teams in the group secure qualification for the 2027 FIBA Basketball World Cup in Qatar.
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