Pau Gasol

Bittersweet: Cavs Lost But LeBron Becomes the Youngest to Reach 30,000 Points

The Spurs make the King bleed for his points as Cleveland drops 4 of their last 5 games

There’s no stopping LeBron James now. He has been ripping through numerous history books and some jerseys too. Some even claim that he is the greatest player of all time to play the game of basketball, possibly greater than the likes of Kobe Bryant and yes, even His Airness, Michael Jordan.
While stopping Lebron James seems an impossible task to accomplish even among elite defenders in the NBA, stopping, beating and adding to the miseries of the still losing Cleveland Cavaliers seems a lot easier these days.
On a night when LeBron James became the youngest NBA player to reach 30,000 career points, the San Antonio Spurs finally broke out of their own slump as the Spurs beat the Cavs,114-102.
What were the differences?

LaMarcus Aldridge’s 30 points

With Kawhi Leonard, Manu Ginobili and Pau Gasol all out and are resting their injured bodies, the Spurs turned to LaMarcus Aldridge this time around. And Aldridge delivered as he led all scorers with 30 points on 12 for 18 field goal shooting. He added 8 rebounds, 2 steals and a blocked shot for another complete big man. Most of his points came from mid-range jumpers off perfect pick-and-roll plays. Now that’s efficiency, folks.

Clamped Down Defense

As mentioned, stopping LeBron James is virtually a nightmare but it doesn’t mean that you can’t slow him down. Sure, he had 28 points, 9 rebounds and 7 assists, an MVP-kind of a stat line but the Spurs played suffocating defense on the King which worked to perfection because the King shot 10 for 23 from the field including a horrible 2 for 6 performance from downtown. Also, the King turned the ball over 5 times. 

Conclusion

If you have seen Tyronn Lue’s clueless face during the game, that’s exactly how clueless the Cavs were. While there’s no denying that Cleveland is now in a crisis, they will have to fix whatever issues they have because LeBron James can’t save them every single game even if he goes supernova. 
On the other hand, it seems that the Spurs are slowly learning to play and win without Kawhi Leonard and without Tony Parker as their starting point guard and for San Antonio, that’s definitely a good sign because they continue to trust one another. After all, the Spurs might be the dark horse who can take down the empire of the Golden State Warriors. 

Opinion: The Lakers SHOULD Retire Pau Gasol’s #16

Pau Gasol and Kobe Bryant Los Angeles Lakers

Like it or not, he played better than Dwight Howard and helped LA win championships.

When your team retires your jersey number, your greatness will forever be immortalized not just by your team and your fans but by the league that you’ve been playing for a long time. A jersey retirement ceremony is definitely an emotional occasion for any player because it means that the team is making sure that your legacy as a player will forever hang among the team’s greats. 
Just last month, the Los Angeles Lakers retired not one but two of Kobe Bryant’s jersey numbers that he wore during his 20-year stint with the Purple and Gold. And frankly, the Black Mamba deserves all of the praises that he continues to receive even though he’s long retired from the NBA. Who could score 81 points in a game? Or, who could finish his career by pouring in 60 points in his final game? Only one player did those things. His name is Kobe Bean Bryant.
Back in the 2007-2008 season, the league was shocked when the Memphis Grizzlies traded Pau Gasol and a draft to the Lakers in exchange for 4 players which include KWAME BROWN and the draft rights to Marc Gasol. That trade benefited the Lakers early on as they went on to the NBA Finals that season only to lose to the Boston Celtics in 6 games. But, the Lakers came back stronger, winning the next two NBA championships, with the last one being against the Celtics in a series that went to a classic Game 7 at Staples Center.
The Lakers then parted ways with their Spanish giant as Gasol bounced from the Chicago Bulls until finding a new home with the San Antonio Spurs where he recently signed a 3-year deal. Unfortunately, Gasol’s numbers have been on a downhill drive as he’s only averaging 10 points and 8 rebounds this season. He’s the 4th leading scorer of the Spurs behind LaMarcus Aldridge, Kawhi Leonard and Rudy Gay.
After beating the Spurs for their third straight win, current Lakers Head Coach Luke Walton has said that the Lakers should indeed retire Pau Gasol’s #16.

Question: Should the Lakers retire #16 beside #8 and #24?

While it’s debatable that Pau Gasol isn’t among the best players to play for the Purple and Gold, just imagine if he wasn’t traded to Hollywood back in 2008, would the Lakers have gone to 3 straight Finals and won 2 NBA championships during that span of time? Nope!
Frankly, this pundit on wheels really thinks that Pau Gasol’s number should be retired by the Lakers for one good reason: he helped Kobe Bryant win 2 more championships while averaging 18 points for 3 seasons. 
Statistically, Pau is ranking among the greats of the Lakers. He’s in the 9th place in the all-time’s rebounding average while he’s also in 7th place in the blocks per game.

Conclusion

While Pau Gasol has been repeatedly criticized for his being “soft” on defense, there’s no denying the fact that he was fully utilized by Phil Jackson during their stint together in LA and it produced 2 championships. Is Pau among the Lakers’ great? Debatable. Does he deserve a jersey retirement ceremony? Definitely. 

Popovich: LaMarcus Aldridge Asked to be Traded before the Season

LaMarcus Aldridge San Antonio Spurs

But Pop and  LMA came to an understanding. Eventually.
Gregg Popovich has been connected with some of the greatest legends to ever play the game. Greats like David Robinson, Tim Duncan and now, Kawhi Leonard has seen their respective games improve on a tremendous rate ever since they came over to the San Antonio Spurs and play under the guidance of one of the greatest coaches in the NBA.
Nowadays, with both David Robinson and Grandpa Tim Duncan both long retired and Kawhi Leonard who only recently returned is dealing with another injury, the attention shifts to LaMarcus Aldridge. To give credit to this man, LMA has been leading the Spurs this season, averaging 22 points, 8 rebounds and 1 blocks while playing 41 games- starting all 41 games. This has helped the Spurs who despite playing most of the current season without Kawhi Leonard and Tony Parker, holds the 3rd best record in the Western Conference at 28-15. And frankly, LMA deserves the praises that he is getting nowadays.
However, did you know that LaMarcus Aldridge was almost traded prior to the season?
Almost.
According to none other than Gregg Popovich himself, he revealed that LMA asked to be traded during the summer prior to this season. The usually-too serious Popovich even joked that if an LMA trade can get the Spurs a Kevin Durant, he would even help Aldridge pack his bags, drive him to the airport and will even make sure that LMA is well seated in the plane. Fortunately, the two eventually agreed to figure things out and LMA wasn’t traded, for now.
To Gregg Popovich, the moment Aldridge requested for a trade was for him, the main catalyst for the two gentlemen to come to a better understanding which eventually helped LMA have a resurgent season. Mind you, folks. his numbers this season are way better compared to his first two seasons with San Antonio when he averaged 18 and 17 points per game respectively.

Conclusion

Imagine if LaMarcus Aldridge was traded before the start of the season, the Spurs would have been in a much worst situation because it would have meant that the Spurs would only have Manu Ginobili and Pau Gasol to start the season. Fortunately, LMA stuck around and the Spurs are gunning for another deep run come the playoffs.  Despite his struggles, LaMarcus is still among the league’s elite power forwards. 

By the Numbers: Defense, Kyrie Irving, Rebounds Help Boston Beat San Antonio

The Celtics handed the Spurs their 3rd straight loss

LaMarcus Aldridge only made 5 of his 13 attempts against the Celtics
First, they lost to the Orlando Magic who dominated the game from beginning to end. Next, came along another stunning defeat at the hands of the Indiana Pacers. Now? The San Antonio Spurs just lost their 3rd straight game, this time losing to Kyrie Irving and the Boston Celtics on a 108-94 victory by the Celtics. So how did the Celtics do it against the Spurs?  Below are the numbers:

Defense Shut Down San Antonio

To win a basketball game, you have to score more points than your opponents while trying to limit their offensive output. 
Both things were achieved by the Celtics against the free-falling Spurs. Boston, as a team, shot 47% in the field but struggled from long distance as they only made 35% of their shots from outside. 
Defensively, the Celtics successfully shut down the Spurs’ stars as LaMarcus Aldridge scored 11 points but had to take 13 shots and only made 5 of them. Pau Gasol went 4 of 10 from the field for 11 points on his own while Dejounte Murray had 10 points on 5 of 11 shooting. Rudy Gay added 14 markers on 5 of 12 shooting. 
The Spurs  did manage to finish the game on a 41% field goal shooting but we all know that Gregg Poppovich was visibly upset with how the offense of the Spurs faltered especially in the 3rd quarter when the Celtics outscored the Spurs, 26-18. Now that’s how you defend, folks. 

Kyrie Irving’s 24  Points

With the Spurs struggling on offense and equally struggling on defense, Kyrie Irving took advantage and poured in 24 points as he led his new team to another victory against another elite team in the West which improved Boston to 5-2 in the season. Irving was efficient on offense, making 10 of his 16 shot attempts in 30 minutes of action. He also had 6 assists and 3 steals plus a rare block.

54 Rebounds

If you allow a team to grab 54 rebounds against you, don’t expect to win. Especially in the NBA. 
Out of those 54 rebounds that the Celtics grabbed against the Spurs, 15 came from the offensive end. In addition to this, the Celtics had two 2 players finished the game with double-digit rebounding numbers:
  • Jayson Tatum- 11 rebounds
  • Al Horford- 13 rebounds
On the other side, the Spurs, a team who is averaging 49 rebounds per game- 4th in the league, only managed 40 rebounds- 12 from the offensive end. No wonder why the Spurs lost.

Conclusion

It’s still early to tell whether the Boston Celtics have improved since the blockbuster swap between Kyrie Irving and Isaiah Thomas during the off-season. And while it’s rare for the San Antonio Spurs to drop 3 consecutive games, everyone is asking, “What has suddenly hit the Spurs?” Is the absence of Tony Parker and Kawhi Leonard finally catching up on the Spurs? 
But one thing is certain: Kyrie Irving is in a better position than his former team, right?  

The Spurs: Still a Threat to GSW

We could see another Spurs-Warriors match-up come the West Finals

Experience plus discipline will help the Spurs this season and beyond
Sure, the Houston Rockets got Chris Paul and will now share the backcourt alongside James Harden. 
The Oklahoma City Thunder received Paul George and will now play alongside reigning MVP, Russell Westbrook. 
Rajon Rondo will now become the New Orleans Pelicans’ top playmaker who will lead the team alongside ever improving Anthony Davis. 
It seems that the rest of the West have been picking up pieces to hopefully challenge the mighty Golden State Warriors. But we’re probably forgetting one team: the San Antonio Spurs. 
Sure, the Warriors swept Kawhi Leonard and company during last season’s Western Conference Finals although many basketball pundits including the one who is writing this article, firmly believed that the outcome of the series would have been different had Tony Parker and Kawhi Leonard were healthy and playing during that series. Like it or not, Coach Gregg Popovich and his wards are still the team who can, at the very least, challenge the Warriors of Kevin Durant and Stephen Curry.
Now, you’re probably scratching your heads and asking yourselves: ‘How can the Spurs beat the Warriors?” 
Let’s run some numbers. 
While the Spurs were averaging 105.3 points per game during the 2016-2017 season, 16th in the league, the Spurs have always been known as a defensive-minded team and last season’s numbers have proven that. In terms of limiting the opponents’ total points in a game, the Spurs only limited their opponents to 98.1 points on the average, the second best in the league in that category. 
Since the Spurs have big men like LaMarcus Aldridge, Pau Gasol, guys like Danny Green, Manu Ginobili who can block shots, San Antonio, as a team, averaged 5.9 rejections- a spot behind league-leading Warriors in that category. And, don’t forget about the mere fact that Kawhi Leonard, the best two-way player in the league right now, has fully recovered from the injury he sustained during the playoffs.
While there’s doubt that the Warriors are loaded with such firepower as we saw during their impressive postseason run, the Spurs, on the other hand, remain as one of the teams in the league that have the discipline and the respect to the game, to challenge the players of Steve Kerr come the upcoming regular season and eventually, in the playoffs, should they will be pitted against each other. 
For starters, Rudy Gay has signed a 2-year deal with the Spurs and that’s a good addition to a team which has aging stars in Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili probably playing their last years in the league. Throughout his career, Gay has been averaging 18 points per game to go along with 5.9 rebounds and 2.3 assists. Gay will be providing additional firepower that the Spurs will need especially in crucial moments of the game.
The regular season will not come until October which means the Spurs will still have more time to prepare themselves because aside from their goal to hopefully dethrone the Warriors, they will also have to worry about the rest of the West because the other teams in the West have loaded themselves with additional firepower. However, chemistry will play a big role in the success of every team and when we’re talking chemistry, the chemistry that has been established by the Spurs players themselves has proven to be among the best in the league and whenever there’s a good chemistry among players, it helps them perform better on and off the court.

Digital at the Heart of FIBA and Tissot’s Expanded 5-Year Partnership

Spain’s Pau Gasol receives a watch from Tissot President François Thiébaud to reward him for his MVP performance at FIBA EuroBasket 2015
LE LOCLE/MIES, Switzerland – FIBA, the International Basketball Federation, and Tissot, a leading Swiss watch manufacturer from the Swatch Group, on September 8, 2017, have indicated that an increased involvement in digital is at the heart of a renewed five-year partnership which sees them enter international basketball’s new era together.
Under the agreement – in place until 2021 – Tissot’s presence across FIBA’s digital assets will be significantly heightened and the brand will serve as Presenting Partner for mobile apps devised for basketball’s world governing body’s premier properties.
Additionally, Tissot will present the newly-created Buzzer Beater clips featuring the most spectacular baskets scored at the buzzer during FIBA competitions which are available to fans across FIBA digital platforms.
It will also supply the new Tissot Timing & Scoring system – which includes innovative shot clocks, as featured in the NBA – for the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019.
Through its Swatch Group sister company Swiss Timing, Tissot will continue to deliver both timing and scoring services for FIBA’s leading properties including the first-ever 32-team edition of its flagship competition in China, as well as the 2017 and 2021 editions of FIBA EuroBasket. It will also provide live results services on official FIBA competitions websites.
Tissot will enjoy extensive visibility around the court as well as on TV, thanks to on-screen credits displayed in connection with scores, data and statistics of games at all FIBA competitions.
As Presenter of the MVP – the Most Valuable Player – for respective competitions, Tissot will also activate exclusive sporting-related assets by offering engraved watches as awards to the best players.
FIBA Secretary General and International Olympic Committee (IOC) Member Patrick Baumann said: “Our partnership with Tissot has delivered great benefits over the years. In part that is because of the similarities we share: both FIBA and Tissot are based in Switzerland and both have strong global ambitions. After nearly a decade together, we consider Tissot to be more than a partner. They are a part of the FIBA Family. We look forward to having Tissot at our side as we enter this new era in our sport and work so that basketball can get the most out of our expansion in digital technology.”
Tissot President François Thiébaud said: “We are not only proud to continue our partnership with FIBA, but also to share sporting values together as we do with the other sports we are committed to, with our commitment to basketball going back to 2008 and reinforced by our partnership with the NBA since 2015. Basketball is not just a great sport with a global appeal, it is a sport where the players provide a lot of emotion that can be shared by the fans. Thanks to FIBA for serving the highest level of basketball and to the players and fans for the enjoyment we will share in the coming years.”
As part of the agreement, Tissot is a designated FIBA Partner – FIBA’s premium tier of global partnership – and as such is granted exclusive rights in the product category of watches, clocks and timing/scoring system services across all of FIBA’s international competitions. This includes the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019 and its Qualifiers, the FIBA Continental Cups (Men and Women) 2017 and 2021, the FIBA Continental Cups 2021 Qualifiers, the FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup 2018, the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournaments (Men and Women) 2020 and the FIBA U17/U19 Basketball World Cups (Men and Women).
The agreement was brokered by FIBA Marketing, an innovative strategic partnership between FIBA and Infront Sports & Media.
About FIBA
FIBA (fiba.basketball) – the world governing body for basketball – is an independent association formed by 213 National Basketball Federations throughout the world. It is recognised as the sole competent authority in basketball by the International Olympic Committee (IOC).

For further information about FIBA, visit fiba.basketball or follow FIBA onfacebook.com/fiba, twitter.com/fiba, instagram.com/fiba and youtube.com/fiba.
About Tissot
The plus sign in the logo symbolises the Swiss quality and reliability Tissot has shown since 1853. The watches, sold in more than 160 countries, are authentic, accessible and use special materials, advanced functionalities and meticulous design. Tissot stands by its signature, Innovators by Tradition. The high calibre of the brand has been repeatedly recognised. Tissot has been named Official Timekeeper and Partner of many disciplines, including, basketball with the NBA and FIBA; cycling with the Tour de France and the UCI World Cycling Championships; motorsports with MotoGPTM and the FIM World Superbike Championship and rugby with the RBS 6 Nations Championship, TOP14, the European Rugby Champions and Challenge Cups. It is also the Official Timekeeper of the World Championships of fencing and ice hockey and of the AFL. http://www.tissotwatches.com

Watch: Pau Gasol Says it Will Be Weird Playing Against Brother Marc in the Playoffs

The Gasol Brothers are meeting once again and this time it won’t be for a family dinner.
Memphis and Spurs are facing each other in the playoffs early and both Pau and Marc had no choice but to battle each other out and take each others head to move to the second round playoffs.
Here’s what they got to say about each other.

Pau Gasol says it will be weird playing against his brother in the Playoffs for the first time. 

(courtesy: youtube/Basketball&More)

The Gasol Brothers Had a great season, Watch Their Best Highlights

History has repeated once again as the Spaniards are conquering the world but this time they are not looking for spices and they are not bringing the big Galleons.
Gasol Brothers has been playing in the NBA for some time now and both players have made a big impact with their respective teams such that you would consider these skillful men as one of the best bigmen in the league.
Marc Gasol of the Memphis Grizzlies Average 19.5 points, 6.3 rebounds, 4.6 assist and 1.3 blocks shot.
Pau Gasol of the Spurs average 12.4 points, 7.8 rebounds, 2.3 assist and 1.1 block shot.
Here is a look back at their highlights last season.

Check out the best from the brothers before the Grizzlies and Spurs meet in the first round of the NBA Playoffs! 

(courtesy: youtube/NBA)

San Antonio Spurs Trade Boris Diaw to Clear Cap Space and Sign Pau Gasol

Diaw of France drives against P. Gasol of Spain in Eurobasket. Photo credits to gettyimages (Javier Soriano)

The San Antonio Spurs have traded Boris Diaw to the Utah Jazz for the rights of Olivier Hanlan, a canadian combo guard and the 42nd overall pick of the 2015 NBA draft. The Spurs reportedly made the move to clear cap space and sign Pau Gasol who agreed on terms with the team for two-year, $30 million deal.

Diaw played five seasons with the Spurs and won an NBA championship in 2014. He has career averages of 8.9 points, 4.5 rebounds and 3.5 assists in his 14 years in NBA so far. After being one of the go-to-guy off the bench for the Spurs, Diaw lost his minutes with the addition of David West and LaMarcus Aldridge last season.

Meanwhile the Spurs signed Gasol as insurance of Tim Duncan who is reportedly strongly leaning toward retirement. Gasol, at 35 years old, is still producing great stats after averaging 16.5 points, 11 rebounds, 4.2 assists and 2 steals in 31.8 minutes per game last season.

Gasol will form the big three front court tandem with LaMarcus Aldridge and Kawhi Leonard.

Bulls and Pistons are Victorious in Opening Night

Chicago Bulls and Detroit Pistons both got a positive result on the season opener, after winning games against Cleveland Cavaliers and Atlanta Hawks respectively.

Bulls beat Cavaliers in a close game, 97-95 in United Center, Chicago. It was a very tight game and many beautiful plays shown by both sides. Cavaliers performed really well, and played as a solid team, but unfortunately fell short, even though they dominated in second, third and fourth quarters. Bulls led the Cavaliers 26-17, but Cavaliers stepped up and actually led Bulls for the rest of the quarters, 23-20, 28-25 and 27-26.

Jimmy Butler was the hero on the game. His steal on the last seconds Cavaliers’ attempt through Lebron James that intended to catch a pass from Mo Williams inbound ball secured the victory for the home team.

A little surprise on the line-up for the Bulls; Nikola Mirotic starts over veteran Joakim Noah. And it turned out pretty well. Mirotic ended the game with 19 points, and 9 rebounds in 25 minutes. The hero Jimmy Butler added 18 points for the Bulls. Bulls’ superstar point guard, Derrick Rose playing with a protective mask after undergoing fractured orbital bone surgery. He scored 18 points and 5 dimes. Pau Gasol had a block party, 6 blocks under his name on this season opener.

Meanwhile, Lebron James noted 25 points for Cavaliers,with 10 rebounds and 5 assists. Mo Williams, started his second stint with Cavaliers well, with 19 points and 7 assists against the Bulls. Kevin Love added 18 points and newly signed forward, Richard Jefferson made 10 points.

Another scene from the game was that President Barack Obama attended last night’s game in United Center. From his tweet, he seems very happy that Bulls ended up victorious.

Meanwhile in Philips Arena, Atlanta, The Hawks hammered by Detroit Pistons 106-94. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope was the star for the Pistons, scoring 21 points and 4 rebounds. Pistons’ big man Andre Drummond was having a game as well, with 18 points and 19 (yes, nineteen) rebounds for the away team. Marcus Morris added 18 points and 10 rebounds.

For the home team, German point guard, Dennis Schroder led the team with 20 points, while forward Paul Millsap has 19 and Jeff Teague scored 18. Hawks looked struggling without DeMarre Carroll, who left the team for Raptors in free agency, offensively and defensively, and Kent Bazemore, who played to fill Carroll’s spot, scored none.

Gasol lift Spain over Lithuania to win EuroBasket 2015 Championship title

Pau Gasol had a double-double and Spain cruised past Lithuania 80-63 on Sunday to regain the European basketball championship title. Gasol led Spain with 25 points and tallied 12 rebounds and 3 block shots. While Jonas Valanciunas scored 10 points and grabbed 9 rebounds for Lithuania.

A record crowd of 27,372 filled out Pierre Mauroy Stadium in Lille, France on Sunday night to championship game.

Earlier, France won the bronze over Serbia. Nando de Colo played a major role in helping France repay the faith in their fans who had been turning out in record numbers during the Final Phase, taking the lead for good midway through the second quarter so see off Serbia 81-68 and claim the third spot.

Pau Gasol wins EuroBasket 2015 MVP

It was never in any doubt, but the EuroBasket 2015 MVP Award presented by Tissot was officially handed over to Pau Gasol after he lifted Spain to the gold medal against Lithuania on Sunday.

The 35-year-old Chicago Bulls star had produced one of the great tournament performances in Berlin and then Lille, averaging 25.6 points-per-game and 8.8 rebounds as he inspired a Spanish side missing several of its stars.

As well as going for 25 points and 12 rebounds in the final to win his third EuroBasket title, his campaign will be remembered for a 6-of-7 three-point shooting performance against Poland and an incredible 40-point showing in the semi-final against hosts and tournament favourites, France.

NBA stars headlines All Star Five in EuroBasket 2015

Pau Gasol led this year’s All-Star Five Presented by Tissot. Gasol was joined by teammate Sergio Rodriguez. The Real Madrid guard already had Olympic and FIBA Basketball World Cup medals to his name but EuroBasket gold had eluded him until now.

His club teammate Jonas Maciulis stood alongside him in the competition’s top five having provided some talismanic efforts to guide Lithuania to a second consecutive EuroBasket silver medal.

He averaged 13.8 points, 6.3 rebounds and led the tournament in steals with 1.9 per-game, after scoring 34 points in the Round of 16 victory against Georgia and hitting the Group D game-winner against Estonia.

Lithuania center Jonas Valanciunas also earned his first All-Star Five Presented by Tissot selection after contributing 16 points and 8.4 rebounds per-game, despite suffering with illness earlier in the competition.

France’s Nando De Colo completed the fantastic five after playing a starring role in the hosts’ run to the bronze medal.

EuroBasket 2015 Semifinals: Spain beats France in OT 80-75

Spain beats France in OT in EuroBasket 2015 semifinals, secures 5th straight Olympic appearance which is the longest streak in nation’s history.

Pau Gasol dominate the EuroBasket 2015 Semifinals as he carry his national team Spain with a overtime win over France 80-75.

Gasol scored 40 points and grabbed 11 rebounds. Gasol came up big when Spain needed a basket in closing out minutes of the 4th quarter and in overtime.

Spain was leading 66-63 with 16 seconds to play in the 4th quarter when Nicolas Batum made a go ahead 3-pointer that forces the game in overtime.

In overtime, Spain was leading 78-75 with 15 seconds remaining in overtime when Victor Claver fouled Nicolas Batum shooting three.

Batum can force double overtime but misses all three free throws. Felipe Reyes secured the rebound and Spain the game with Gasol’s dunk to finish it 80-75. Gasol scored the last 8 crucial points for Spain to lead his team to EuroBasket 2015 Finals to face the winner of Lithuania and Serbia.

Batum lead the France squad with 14 points and 7 rebounds. Tony Parker scored 10 points and 6 assists.

EuroBasket: Pau Gasol leads Spain past Greece

Chicago Bulls All-Star Pau Gasol scored 27 points and teammate Nikola Mirotic added 18 to book Spain’s place in the semifinals with a 73-71 victory over Greece.

Spain guard Sergio Rodriguez contributed three points from free throws down the stretch as the two teams stayed close together throughout the match.

Previously undefeated in six games, Greece had 12 points and 17 rebounds from Giannis Antetokounmpo, who also had a pair of late turnovers.

Spain has never finished lower than fourth in the past eight Eurobasket tournaments and won the title in 2009 and 2011, before finishing third in 2013.

“We managed the tempo for most of the game,” Spain coach Sergio Scariolo said. “I am very pleased with how we came back”