By Johnny Askounis/ info@eurohoops.net
The Overtime Elite Board welcomes Pau Gasol.
Gasol, 42, confirmed the news of him joining the OTE Board on Friday. “Excited to announce that I have joined the Overtime Elite Board!” he wrote in a post shared on Twitter, “I look forward to working with the team and to helping grow this great league in the US and internationally.”
The two-time NBA champion had visited OTE Arena in April. Getting to know the youngsters and coaches led to the opportunity for a place on the company’s board of directors alongside Carmelo Anthony and Jay Williams. Intending to extend even more of his help to the next generation is the goal. “When I walked through OTE Arena in April and met with the players, I saw up close the life-changing experiences that Overtime Elite is providing them,” Gasol described his experience.
Touted Spanish power forward Izan Almansa is among the players working at the facilities located in Atlanta and met Gasol during the recent visit. A couple of months later, the reunion marked Spain’s retired star handing the young upstart the FIBA U17 World Cup MVP award in Malaga, Spain.
“Usually the MVP is given to a player from the winning team,” explained Gasol commenting on Spain actually losing to the USA in the gold medal game of the international tournament, “There are very few occasions in basketball that the MVP has been given to a player on a losing team. I thought I was giving the trophy to one of the American guys.”
Founded in 2021 by CEO Dan Porter and President Zack Weiner, Overtime Elite aims to train, educate and prepare elite teenage prospects toward the jump to professional basketball. Presenting an alternative path beside the NCAA or the NBA G League or playing elsewhere in the world, it aims to help the players prepare themselves to handle their personal brand and social media.
“Every field, every industry has to evolve,” said Gasol on the project, “I like to see Overtime as a little bit of a disruptor, but a disruptor in a good way that’s presenting a new avenue and new opportunity for players to get to their dream in a different way. Thanks to the tools we have today like social media, Overtime has done a great job creating this platform and promoting these players’ brands and providing an opportunity for them to train and get better with some of the best players in their age category while at the same time getting a high-level education.”