By Johnny Askounis/ info@eurohoops.net
With high goals in place, Spain will rely on a mix of players from the NBA and Turkish Airlines EuroLeague in upcoming international fixtures.
Senior national team selector Sergio Scariolo picked 22 players heading to the 2022 EuroBasket, including several injections from the team winning gold medals in the recent 2022 FIBA U20 European Championship. The preliminary list was released by the Spanish Basketball Federation, FEB, Thursday.
Recently obtaining Spanish citizenship, naturalized Lorenzo Brown is featured despite the recent controversy surrounding his connection to La Roja.
Spain’s selections:
Alberto Abalde (Real Madrid)
Hector Alderete (Movistar Estudiantes)
Jonathan Barreiro (Unicaja)
Dario Brizuela (Unicaja)
Lorenzo Brown (Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv)
Quino Colom (Girona)
Alberto Diaz (Unicaja)
Jaime Fernandez (Lenovo Tenerife)
Rudy Fernandez (Real Madrid)
Usman Garuba (Houston Rockets)
Fran Guerra (Lenovo Tenerife)
Juan Hernangomez (Toronto Raptors)
Willy Hernangomez (New Orleans Pelicans)
Sergio Llull (Real Madrid)
Xabi Lopez-Arostegui (Valencia)
Juan Nunez (Real Madrid)
Joel Parra (Joventut)
Jaime Pradilla (Valencia)
Sebas Saiz (Alvark Tokyo)
Miquel Salvo (Gran Canaria)
Yankuba Sima (Baxi Manresa)
Santi Yusta (Casademont Zaragoza)
The team coached by Scariolo is set to compete in Tbilisi, Georgia. Group A of the preliminary round of EuroBasket holds encounters opposite Bulgaria, Georgia, Belgium, Montenegro, and Turkey between 1 and 8 September. Ranking first through fourth would clinch a berth in the next round. The knockout stage of the tournament will be held in Berlin, Germany.
Combined with the preparations, Spain will host Iceland and visit the Netherlands on 24 and 27 August, respectively. Those games are part of the next international window launching the second and final round of the 2023 FIBA World Cup European Qualifiers.
Photo Credit: FIBA.BASKETBALL