Reigning world vice-champion, Argentina however failed to qualify for the 2023 edition and, after their defeat against the Bahamas, in the final of the Olympic pre-qualifying tournament which they were nevertheless playing at home. , the Albiceleste will not be present at the Olympic Games in Paris either, next year…
The last survivor of the “Golden Generation” who had offered Olympic gold to the country in 2004, Carlos Delfino (41) has seen that the successive retirements of Manu Ginobili, Luis Scola, Pepe Sanchez, Fabricio Oberto and others Andres Nocioni left a huge void.
“It was easy to come to the national team when there were six or seven players in the NBA, when it was a superpower” confirms Pablo Prigionithe coach. “Today, that is no longer the case. In fact, the Bahamas have three NBA players and we have none. So our reality is this: we don’t have NBA players, we have good players in Europe and we have to focus on that, on this transformation, on the growth of young players, on their progression, on those who are on an even lower scale.
The beautiful and surprising silver medal in 2019 thus masked the weaknesses of the current generation. And especially its lack of density, when the current Argentinian leaders are injured (Luca Vildoza)… or blocked in Europe.
A lack of density that pays off
“We need to make a serious assessment. I have already said why we could not qualify for the World Cup. We couldn’t rely on La Liga players (Spanish, during FIBA qualifying windows), but hopefully we can do it in the future” recalls Pablo Prigioni. “The trips take forever, they come a day before the game and we are competing against teams that are not in the same situation. Many of the teams we compete with have players who don’t need to travel as much and can train longer. As a federation, we must therefore analyze the situation well to prevent it from happening again, because everything starts with the impossibility of participating in the World Cup or having a chance to qualify in any other way. So I think we need to do a deeper analysis of the situation. »
Argentina must therefore do real groundwork to find new talent and no longer be so dependent on its leaders, who play in particular in Spain, and who are not available for most of the qualifying windows put in place. by FIBA, at the heart of national championships.
It remains to be seen whether this reconstruction work will be carried out with Pablo Prigioni, already an assistant at Wolves…
“I would like to, but it’s still a long way off. I have a job in the NBA, my current team allows me to combine the two jobs, but I don’t know if in a year or two I will still be on the same team, and I don’t know if the next team will will let it. As often as possible, if the federation agrees, I will try to be there, but I cannot guarantee it for the moment. »
