Dirk Nowitzki, Tony Parker and Pau Gasol were among the many international basketball players who were influenced by the 1992 Olympics. Now, they represent the best class of international players to enter the Hall of Fame at the same time.
Chris Paul sat down with Mackenzie Salmon and the two discussed whether over-the-top personalities are helping to fuel the popularity of the NBA.Dirk Nowitzki, just 14 in the summer of 1992, watched the Barcelona Olympics with NBA players competing for the first time and gravitated toward the spectacular U.S. Dream Team featuring some of the biggest stars to ever play: Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, Larry Bird.
“Definitely a huge impact basketball and it transcended basketball as well,” Gasol said. “I wasn't able to go to any of the games. But just knowing that they were there and I was following the games and seeing that the display of basketball that they put together and the dominance that they showed the world, it was inspiring.
All three will go into the Hall of Fame on Saturday, the best class of international players to enter the Hall at the same time. Nowitzki, Parker and Gasol weren’t the first international NBA players and others have an impact, too. But they were among the first to feel the impact of the 1992 Olympics and the push to expand basketball’s popularity and power throughout the world.Nowitzki admits his early days in the NBA were difficult. “It was hard for me at the beginning to get adjusted off the floor,” Nowitzki said. “Then also of course, on the court as well. The game was so much faster and different.
In Nowitzki’s third season, he averaged 21.8 points, beginning a stretch of 12 consecutive seasons with at least 20 points per game. He was a 14-time All-Star, 12-time All-NBA selection, 2006-07 MVP and 2011 Finals MVP. “If me, Tony and Pau helped motivate or inspire some kids along the way − if we are part of somebody else's journey to pick up a ball − obviously that's super humbling to hear,” Nowitzki said.Gasol came to the NBA three seasons after Nowitzki, and while he didn’t have the same shooting range or touch from the outside, Gasol had offensive skills that were developed in Spain. Like Nowitzki, Gasol was another 7-footer and wasn’t pigeonholed into a limited skillset.
Gasol made six All-Star and four All-NBA teams but the sum of his career can’t be measured just in NBA success. He was a vital part of Spain’s national team, helping collect two Olympic silver medals and one bronze, one FIBA World Cup gold and three EuroBasket golds.
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