As the Rio Olympics continue and Team USA looks to push for gold in the tournament, fans around the world will start to say goodbye to their native teams as they get eliminated. Some NBA stars are also coming to terms with their Olympic careers finishing up with their eliminations; one specifically is San Antonio Spurs' star point guard, Tony Parker.
France was officially eliminated from medal contention in Rio by Spain in a 92-67 loss. After the defeat, Parker made it clear that he has no intentions of returning to the French National Team, as this was his last year representing his home country. But while speaking with the FIBA press, he made an effort to explain that his time with the National Team was extremely well spent:
As a French player, I'm very proud of what we did with my generation in winning all of those medals. Especially 2013 will be my favorite moment because that was the first time in French basketball history that we won a gold medal.
Tony Parker also gave major credit to the Spanish National Team for their win, especially the Chicago Bulls' Nikola Mirotic. He also made a joke about his new Spurs teammate, Pau Gasol:
Spain had a great generation. If it hadn't been for Spain, I would have had 10 medals, 15 medals. But life is like that. (But) I beat Pau a lot in the NBA so, it balances out.
All in all, Tony Parker feels a deep accomplishment in his years representing France in international play. Despite repeatedly running into the tough obstacle that is Spain, France was able to obtain several medals over the years.
Even though he is no longer playing in Rio, Parker can always reflect on his four championships with the Spurs for comfort, and the possibility to compete for another this year alongside Pau.
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