By Antigoni Zachari / info@eurohoops.net
A massive chapter for French basketball has closed, but its legacy will remain for years to come when the San Antonio Spurs lift Tony Parker’s jersey up their rafters on Monday evening.
Parker, who announced his retirement earlier in 2019, has been a game-changing figure in the world of European basketball this century. From his influence to the Spurs and the NBA to his leadership in France and his active involvement with the sport on many ends, he leaves behind a great legacy for the younger generations, and he remains as the owner of ASVEL, a key figure of the game in Europe.
Let’s take things off from his presence in San Antonio.
Admittedly, before Parker, few European, let alone French, fans had none particular interest in the team. Yet every single Generation Z (also Y and X for that matter) fan seems to love both the Spurs and Parker, all thanks to the latter’s arrival to the team in 2001. It would be an educated guess to say that the Spurs had more fans in France due to Parker, rather than in the States, and it makes perfect sense considering his dominant position in French basketball through all these years. By all means, Parker remains the best point guard the Old Continent has ever produced.
Parker’s influence quickly became apparent, with coach Popovich adjusting the team’s style to one very similar to Europe’s in the early 2000s. And suddenly, the world started noticing – and admiring – the San Antonio team as it conquered ring after ring. What is more, Spurs under Parker seem to have had debunked the stereotype of scoring feasts. Their game was mindful, well-executed, team-oriented, and powered by the defense. An example, many teams have been following since.
It was just the right timing for European basketball to rise in all sides of the world, and players like Parker, Dirk Nowitzki, and Pau Gasol create a modern-day basketball euro-holy trinity. In fact, without them, it’s impossible to picture the world of modern NBA basketball.
On that note, Parker was also there when the game started merging, becoming global. The NBA grew fonder of defensively efficient teams and European talents. Simultaneously, European fans grew more attached to the NBA product, and the Spurs turned out to be the “Euro team” for several years in their prime. And somehow this exchange between fans liking the gameplay and teams feeding off new European talents still pays off up to this date, and Parker has been a pillar in this shift of interest. Long are the days of top draft prospects coming strictly from the USA!
Parker always aimed to set up an example for his generation of players, as well as the next ones. Just like that time in 2007, when he became the first-ever European-born to receive the Finals MVP honor as Spurs clinched the title that year. Pretty impressive, if you ask us. What now seems to be the norm (with the latest example of Giannis Antetokounmpo winning 2018-19 regular season MVP), back in that time was ground-breaking.
Besides his NBA influence, thankfully, there’s more to him. A long-term owner of ASVEL Villeurbanne still puts his basketball philosophy to practice in France, and the team slowly rises in European basketball. After leading the French NT to a series of successes over the years (gold in 2013 EuroBasket, silver in 2011 EuroBasket, to name a few), he now helps French basketball evolve as a whole.
And his jersey up in the rafters will be a constant reminder, that a kid who turned heads in Zadar back in the day would end up being a basketball icon on both sides of the Atlantic. And what was before an uncharted path, thanks also to him, is now a familiar road for all top European talent.