By Aris Barkas/ barkas@eurohoops.net
Eurobasket 2022 is upon us and some of the top NBA stars will be competing for the next two and a half weeks on the courts of Europe.
Still, there are a number of players who will be missed, either because they are injured, because they decided to skip the national team games this summer, or even in one case because they were told they were not the right fit anymore.
And while there will be a tone of action to cover their absence, in an ideal world they would be also part of the party and some of them are still trying against the odds, like Czech Republic’s Tomas Satoransky while Nemanja Bjelica is also a last second omission due to injury. But for the following ten players, there will be no Eurobasket 2022 action.
Danilo Gallinari – Italy
One of the two most heartbreaking absences. Gallinari missed the chance to play for the Italian national team, not just in his country, but in his hometown of Milan. Add to that the fact that due to injuries “Gallo” misses the fourth Eurobasket of his career after 2007, 2013, and 2017. His message after the news is evident of his disappointment, while a whole nation was betting on him having a tournament to remember.
Bogdan Bogdanovic – Serbia
The only good thing about Bogdanovic’s absence is that it’s already considered old news. Plus Serbia even without him remains a medal contender. Still, Bogdanovic was the leader of his national team back in 2017 when nobody believed that Serbia will make it and he ended up pushing his team to the silver. Considering the circumstances, if Bogdanovic was on the court, then nobody would dare to believe that the “Eagles” will lose the gold.
Toko Shengelia – Georgia
Practically an identical case with Gallinari. The leader of Georgia lost a once-in-a-lifetime chance to play a Eurobasket in front of his home crowd. “From the day it was announced that the Eurobasket will be held in my house, there is probably not a single day that I have not thought about this event. Every move I made was directed to ensure that I am ready to be part of those games and meet your expectations. But in sports, along with many other good times, these moments happen quite often”. What more can you add to this message?
Sergio Llull – Spain
Llull missed the start of Spain’s training camp due to injury and that’s why not many heads were turned when it was announced that ultimately he is out of the Eurobasket, nobody was really surprised. Still, in this version of the Spanish national team, the presence of a veteran leader like Llull would have been more than crucial. But with him being 34, the only question at this point seems to be if he will be healthy enough to finish his illustrious career with the national team in style, either in next year’s World Cup or in the Paris Olympics.
Ricky Rubio – Spain
Missing Llull is a big blow, but at this point not having Ricky Rubio is a huge hit for Spain. Rubio led Spain to FIBA World Cup gold in 2019 and he is the de facto leader of the Spanish national team. To be exact he is expected to carry on the team in the near future since he is just 31 years old and still has at least a couple of good tournaments in him. Of course, he is out since last December, so everyone had made peace with the fact that he will not be able to play in Eurobasket 2022.
Nikola Vucevic – Montenegro
One of the top centers in the world, this year took a break from the national team competitions. In a way, it makes sense. Vucevic has already played with Montenegro in Eurobasket 2011, Eurobasket 2013, Eurobasket 2017, and the FIBA World Cup 2019. He was included in the initial extended roster of the team and that’s why a lot of people expected him to suit up once more for his national team. That wasn’t the case this summer, but his rest is well deserved considering his constant presence in the national team, plus Montenegro was included in the Eurobasket only after Russia was banned from the competition, due to the invasion of Ukraine.
Paolo Banchero – Italy
The great future hope of Italian basketball, the first pick of the 2022 NBA draft, and a player who will give us a lot in the future. That’s the outlook at least according to most Italian basketball observers. Banchero is eligible to play for the Italian national team, he is expected to do so and maybe Eurobasket 2022 would be a golden opportunity for him. Things didn’t end up like that and the fact he was the top pick of the draft didn’t help the question of the Italian federation to have him on board for this summer.