By Aris Barkas/ barkas@eurohoops.net
MANILA, Philippines – “I don’t really have a connection with Greece. Why are you asking that?”
The question to Jalen Brunson was if he had any connection to Greece.
And besides the obvious, that the USA is facing Greece again in the FIBA World Cup 2023 after playing them one week ago in a prep game, there’s something that goes beyond that.
Brunson was the MVP of the 2019 FIBA U19 World Cup, held on the Greek island of Creta. On a team that included Jayson Tatum, Brunson led the USA over hosts Greece in the semifinal and beat Croatia in the final, emerging as a top NCAA prospect.
After refreshing his memory and with a sly smile on his face, Brunson took a trip down memory lane: “I remember it pretty loud and clear. It’s something that after I retire from the game of basketball and think about all the memories and moments that I had, this was special”.
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Brunson and the USA got the win in a packed gym full of Greek fans against a roster that included the current starting center of the Greek national team and former lottery pick George Papagiannis (photo) and also guard Michalis Loutzis who will be facing him again in the senior level.
“Just to get that win against the home country was pretty cool”, Brunson added.
Speaking about the upcoming game in the 2023 FIBA World Cup, he explained: “It’s going to be a hard-fought game. We played them last week, so obviously they are ready for us and we will be ready for them as well. And that’s going to be fun. We respect those guys over there who play hard, they have a lot of passion for the game”.
After all, even though he was a kid, he remembers what happened in 2006, when the USA lost to Greece in the FIBA World Cup semifinal: “I remember the noise after that, but for me, it’s a new day. You can learn from the past, but you can’t really worry about it, you can only go in and be as prepared as you can be”.