Scariolo, before his final dance with Spain: "The medals are there, but it's more important to see the national team as a whole."

Sergio Scariolo , the Spanish national basketball coach, stated before playing in the Eurobasket, his last tournament in charge of the Spanish national team, that the legacy that makes the team important, beyond the medals, is seeing the national team as a "global" structure that has even served as inspiration for other federations, such as Italy.

This was stated by Scariolo on Tuesday from Limassol (Cyprus), where Spain will play the first phase of the European Championship and where it will debut this Thursday against Georgia , in an interview with Radio Nacional de España (RNE), in which he reviewed his legacy and spoke about the team's aspirations in this championship.

"I think the medals are there and of course no one can erase them, but for me the most important thing is the young people and everything we've worked for, seeing the national team as something global, which is why it's admired and copied. Many try to be inspired by our work, and we've always opened our doors. I see it now in Italy, which is trying to grow from the bottom up (...). This is what I'm most proud of; sometimes you only see the tip of the iceberg," he reflected.

Scariolo, the most successful coach in the history of the Spanish national team, will leave his post after 13 years in charge, having won a total of eight medals - a world gold, an Olympic silver and bronze, and four European golds and a bronze - which he says is a "prelude to nostalgia," but he admits that despite so much work, he keeps himself "busy" so as not to be affected by emotions.

Regarding the tribute paid to him in his final match in Spain, in Madrid against Germany, the coach acknowledged that it was "very nice" and that he didn't even know his family would be present. He described himself as a coach who stays out of the spotlight, but is firm when it comes to "making decisions."

Despite the absences for this European Championship, which has forced Scariolo to alter his squad during the preparation phase, he explained that, in a team undergoing a generational change, lacking figures like Rudy Fernández or Sergio Llull, the character of experienced players who are carrying out a different kind of "leadership" is emerging .

"We're trying to help those coming up from behind, and they're carrying out those leadership roles well. Leadership isn't invented; to have it, you have to experience it . We may not have many of those players, but it can be a leadership role that helps others, that helps these young players lessen their worries. I do see that step forward with the players who have been here longer," he acknowledged.

Among these losses, especially at the point guard position, without players like Lorenzo Brown, Juan Núñez or Alberto Díaz, the national coach had to rely on youth and inexperience with two 19-year-old point guards like Sergio De Larrea and Mario Saint-Supèry, but as he commented it was something "fun" , since he had to work in a different way compared to other more experienced players and he was "delighted to help their leap into the senior team".

For Scariolo, the national team, which has been far from the podium in the predictions and betting, still maintains a series of "values" that have always made it different and that he considers key to competing in the tournament , regardless of its aspirations.

"Our goal is to be a team that plays intelligent, compact basketball, where people help each other and make sacrifices. These are the values ​​that have defined our team for many years, regardless of talent. We're thinking about being Spain. Everyone identifies us by four or five characteristics that we hope won't be lost," he said.

Regarding the first group stage match against Georgia, he highlighted the quality of several of his players and underlined the difficulty the group will face in order to qualify for the four spots that qualify for the round of 16.

"We have to qualify. It's very difficult in this group, that's our concern. Afterwards we'll see what position we'll get, but now we have to think about Georgia , who have two NBA players (...). It's a dangerous game and if we don't play close to our best, we're going to have a bad time," he continued.

Another of the major changes ahead of the tournament involves the coaching staff. With Luis Guil now training with Real Madrid, Scariolo's new assistants have had to take a "step forward," in a similar situation to the players, and work their way up from the bottom, although he admitted to being "very happy" with them.