By Giorgos Orfanakis/ info@eurohoops.net
Spain managed to overcome Greece once again and in the semifinals of this year’s EuroBasket they will face an old acquaintance, Tony Parker. The Spanish AS, in a piece published today, makes special mention of the French star and his impressive performances against Sergio Scariolo’s team.
After a short break last summer, Tony Parker returns to his national team with whom he celebrated the gold medal in the 2013 EuroBasket. His prey on the way to the top in the semifinals of that particular tournament was Spain, in a game in which the Spurs guard tallied 32 points, 6 rebounds and 1 assist. Despite the fact that every time Parker sees the Spaniards at the other end of the court he goes rampant, France as a team have not been as good. In a total of 14 confrontations, including the friendlies, Parker counts 12 defeats and only 2 wins. In the official games exclusively however, the situation is significantly better, with France counting 2 wins and 3 defeats and Tony Parker playing like a real leader, with an average of 20.8 points, 4.2 rebounds and 3 assists!
In Thursday’s big semifinal, France will try to repeat the triumph of 2013 and Tony Parker will try to continue his impressive performances. Opposite him will be the top player of the tournament so far, Pau Gasol, but the record shows that whenever Parker chances upon the Furias Rojas in an official competition he… goes wild:
Eurobasket 2005 – 3rd place game: France – Spain 98-68 (Tony Parker 25 pts, 3 reb, 5 ast)
Eurobasket 2009 – Quarter Final: Spain – France 86-66 (Tony Parker 6 pts, 1 reb, 3 ast)
Eurobasket 2011 – Final: Spain – France 98-85 (Tony Parker 26 pts, 5 reb, 5 ast)
Olympic Games 2012 – Quarter Final: Spain – France 66-59 (Tony Parker 15 pts, 6 reb, 1 ast)
Eurobasket 2013 – Semi Final: France – Spain 75-72 (Tony Parker 32 pts, 6 reb, 1 ast)