Why does Marc Gasol want to play in Girona?

Girona was left without elite men’s basketball in the summer of 2008. The Akasvayu megaproject evaporated just three years after its explosive appearance in the ACB League with the intention of competing face to face with the greats of Spain. He left scorched earth in the Catalan city, a debt of 10.2 million with the Treasury, a FIBA ​​Eurocup and galactic signings at the stroke of a checkbook: Raúl López, Fran Vázquez, Fernando San Emeterio, Gregor Fucka … But not everything was a catastrophe. Marc Gasol took his first true quality steps there, in a team where they trusted him and in which the Spanish international exploded for two seasons, from 2006 to 2008, before heading to the NBA. In the last one, he broke the record for days as MVP with 11 and was named best player of the season.

The Marc-Girona union was already created. It was indelible for the NBA champion with the Toronto Raptors. And the disappearance of his basketball town it hurt. So much so that in his head an idea was forging that in 2014 saw the light: he founded the Club Escola de Bàsquet Marc Gasol on May 16 together with Álex Formento, Jesús Escosa and Marc Pena. “He wanted to give back to Girona, what Girona had given him”, Says Stefi Batlle, the club’s head of communication and marketing. “When he left, he always said that he would like to return with gratitude that opportunity that the club gave him to show himself as a professional,” corroborates Escosa, director of the performance area.

The incipient project laid its first foundations with grassroots basketball as the mainstay. There was no rush. The first thing was the boys, to train them on the court, but also off it. Methodology, effort and commitment as a philosophy. “The idea was to offer the best training conditions, but without forgetting educational and training support. We also seek performance, technification. It was not created as a social club, the idea was a powerful training basketball, which had to be the foundation for the growth of the club “, continues Escosa, who does not look at other quarries:” We have our work model, which we established since the foundation”.

The idea flourished. In 2017 the first senior team for the EBA League was created, already as Bàsquet Girona. This season they will repeat in LEB Oro, the last step before the elite. Fast? It seems. But the growth has been step by step, without more pressure than that demanded by the conquered peaks. “There is no vertigo because in the end we did it as we wanted: a consolidated base and then the first team, which we created so that the boys had a goal, a reference. We have worked to be prepared for every step”, Assures Batlle. “We are very happy, motivated and we want to enjoy the moment.” And the fans are the same: “People are very animated and responding very well in the season ticket campaign. There is a desire for basketball and people have no doubts when it comes to taking their seats ”.

The Bàsquet Girona brand is not only limited to 5×5. In the summer of 2020, club umbrella lowered, first professional 3×3 set created with top-level players such as Nacho Martín, Sergi Pino, Álex Llorca, Xavi Guirao, Sergio de la Fuente and Javier Vega. After the stoppage forced by the pandemic, this summer the Catalan team participated in the Herbalife 3×3 Series with excellent results: champions in Madrid and Barcelona, ​​finalists in Marbella and semifinalists in El Campillo.

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Brand Gasol

A contagious joy that Gasol, at 36, wants to enjoy first-hand in his role as player-president. Marc has been (and is) the fundamental axis for the growth of something more than a simple sports project: it is his legacy. Hard-working and participative, his experiences in the best basketball league in the world have introduced in Fontajau, a pavilion that the club shares with Spar Uni Girona, one of the giants of the Endesa Women’s League, a certain NBA aroma. In the games in the city there is entertainment beyond the field, playgrounds for the children, two animation groups (something unthinkable when they were EBA) … In short, adaptation to the new times.

Marc has shown great commitment. We share information, we debate methodology, decisions … We should be very grateful for the effort he makes, for his dedication, ”Escosa emphasizes. A vision shared by Batlle: “He is very involved from sports to marketing and with institutions. From the grassroots children to the first team, they monitor daily, participate in meetings … It is something that he likes, that he works hard so that it turns out well and so that the people of Girona have first-rate men’s basketball”.

The Gasol brand, that American essence, is not only on the track, the community has a very important niche within the club. Just like the NBA franchises carry out activities with the people around them, Girona gets closer to the city. The feeling of gratitude, they remember. Workshops with different associations and basketball and English programs in schools, with students as journalists from ESPN and Yahoo Sports. The next step, nutrition with the Gasol Foundation, an entity with which the Catalan team collaborates. An initiative that the youth of the club have enjoyed, with the project Coach Plus to work on food, rest, emotions … Just like English: classes with a native teacher who helps whoever wants to prepare for the entrance exams to American universities.

A model goes beyond the courts and presents a bright future: “We will do what we can do. We will never be above our means. In no sense. It would be unreal. That is why we are very focused on the base, they want a lot of player from the territory. To train people from here so that their talent can grow ”, says the head of communication. “In the last two seasons, a group of directors has been incorporated that is helping the club grow, in the search for a sponsor and synergies that can make the club more sustainable. I am optimistic about the future and I know that with the good work of everyone and the team (the key for the last six years) we will have great results ”, closes Escosa. Bright present and future with a head. The Endesa League is already anxiously awaiting the legacy of Marc Gasol.

This report was published on July 27, 2020 and updated today.

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