Officially unveiled as the new coach of Brazil’s men’s basketball team this Tuesday, Gustavo de Conti promised to “save the spirit” of the national team. Gustavinho, as he is known, has a short-term goal in mind to qualify the team for the Worlds – the knockout phase begins in late November – and for that he needs to rely on the help of those athletes. Expects those who work in teams overseas. The decider was: there is no irreplaceable player.
This year, four players called up to compete on the pre-Olympic basketball team were asked to be released from the national team. Brazil did well in contention, but lost on decision to Germany and were eventually knocked out of the Tokyo Games.
On Tuesday, Gustavinho highlighted the importance of Brazilian athletes who work in major centers abroad. “We cannot deny that the players who play abroad, and talk more about Spain, Italy and the United States, undoubtedly play at a level above the level that we play here. , internally. This should also be considered when we are looking at players for the Brazil national team, but they have to play well to perform well. It’s no use for them, but of course we have to look at it. Needs to be considered. And the more we have players acting with minutes outside the country, in big centres, and in bigger teams, the better”, he declared.
Then, without naming anyone or making any direct references, the technician commented on the requests for waivers. “I think everyone has a reason, but there must also be a feeling involved. Here we are talking about the Brazilian team. There needs to be a lot of emotion involved and that feeling has to be involved. Things need to be contained within. Very clear. The communication has to be very clear from here to there and from there to here. Of course, there are priorities, and each has (his)”, Gustavinho said.
“Within the team, for example, Flamengo. We have goals as a team, but each one also has their individual goals. But they can never be bigger than the team’s goals. What if all of a sudden, at that moment “The goals are bigger than individual player team goals, so yes, that has to be dropped”, commented the coach. “The selection is for those who want to be involved in the selection.”
The coach believes that, at present, there is no irreplaceable player in basketball. “If you take the United States team and say LeBron James is irreplaceable, it’s not. That LeBron James is irreplaceable in the Lakers, isn’t he. The way basketball is played in the world today, I think all In team sports, but mainly basketball, which is collective in its vein, is not an irreplaceable player”, he explains, and then sends the message. “It’s not in a bad way, it’s in a good way. If a certain player has a personal objective at the time that he faces the objective of selection, it’s even better for the selection that he doesn’t at that time.” Goes. .”
Emotion – In his opening speech, Gustavo de Conti was shaken while talking about the opportunity to lead the national team. He is Brazil’s first coach in charge of the team in nearly 14 years. Koch arrived with his wife Alessandra and two of their three daughters, Bruna and Julia. Immediately, he emphasized the importance of seeking the “spirit” of the selection, adding that he accepted the invitation at the same time.
Gustavinho will stay ahead of Flamengo. He highlighted that, unlike what happens in football, competitions in basketball do not conflict with the national team’s schedule. And he saw this as an advantage: ahead of the club, he would continue to drive Brazil for the Games and that would help evaluate players for the national team.
