Pau Gasol, probably the best Spanish basketball player of all time, will receive one of the sport’s greatest tributes: will be inducted into the Hall of Fame the Naismith Memorial, which brings together the main figures in the history of the basket world.
The institution, based in Springfield (Massachusetts) and bearing the name of James Naismith, the Canadian doctor who invented the sport, will announce the people chosen to be part of the ‘class of 2023’ of this prestigious club this weekend, during the university basketball final.
According to sports network ESPN, Gasol is one of those chosen to earn recognition, and he will run a luxury business: legends like Dwyane Wade, Dirk Nowitzki, Tony Parker, Becky Hammon -women’s basketball star- and coach Gregg Popovich will be in her class.
Only two Spanish coaches in the Hall of Fame
Until now, the Hall of Fame had opened the door to two Spaniards, the two coaches: Antonio Díaz-Miguel (1997) and Pedro Ferrándiz (2007).
The news of Gasol comes a few weeks later Los Angeles Lakers will give him one of the greatest recognitions a franchise can offer: hanging up the jersey with his number, which happened on an emotional night in the Californian town.
It was there that Gasol got his two NBA rings, at some Lakers where he formed an unstoppable duo with the late Kobe Bryant, who was a close friend on and off the court. The Catalan center signed a career of almost two decades in the NBA after a brief stint at ACB, where he excelled at FC Barcelona. He returned to the Catalan team to say goodbye to his career in 2021.
Six times All-Star, a World Cup, two Olympic silver medals…
In the NBA, he played for the Memphis Grizzlies – an incredible landing that earned him the title of “rookie” of the year -, the Lakers, the Chicago Bulls, the San Antonio Spurs and the Milwaukee Bucks. He was selected for the All-Star six times. In one of them, vsomitted before his brotherthe only time this happened in the “star game” of the best league in the world.
His international career – with eleven medals at the World, European or Olympic Games – had as much if not more brilliance than that of the NBA. Among other achievements, he was the driving force behind Spain winning the World Cup in Japan 2006 —he was voted MVP despite missing the final through injury—and he won three Eurobasket titles —including the unforgettable performance against France in the 2015 final—and two medals Olympic silver medals, Beijing 2008 and London 2012.
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