Former NBA forward Luis Scola moved into second place on FIBA's all-time scoring list during Argentina's 94-81 victory over the Nigerian side on Monday, passing Australian great Andrew Gaze. In recognition of this outstanding accomplishment, Spurs legend and fellow Argentinian Manu Ginobili sent out a congratulatory tweet to his long-time friend.
I'll repeat it. It's worth it. @Lscola climbed to the 2nd place all-time #FIBAWC scoring leader. Amazing! Thanks Capitán! https://t.co/H55f5UDRGa
— Manu Ginobili (@manuginobili) September 2, 2019
Scola, who's now playing for the Shanghai Sharks of the Chinese Basketball Association, logged just over 32 minutes in Monday's Group B win, scoring 23 points on 8-of-16 shooting from the field (1-of-5 from beyond the arc), 10 rebounds and a plus/minus score of +15. With the victory, the Argentinians clinched a berth in the second round.
Though Scola passed him for the second spot in the all-time rankings, Gaze was among the first to send congratulations:
“You've been a fantastic player for many, many years. It's a sad day for me, great day for you,” Gaze said. “By the way, it's taken you five World Cups; me – only four,” he added jokingly. “You're a champion. You've dedicated yourself to the national team for many years and I can't be more happy for your and your achievement.”
Scola now has 611 career points in FIBA World Cup play. The former Spurs star trails only the great Oscar Schmidt of Brazil. With Gaze now in third, Yugoslavia's Drazen Dalipagic (563 points) and Puerto Rico's Jose Piculin Ortiz (511 points) round up the Top 5 of all time.
Follow Us
Subscribe