Pau enjoys with the emotion of the Spain-USA before traveling to India

22/08/2010 23:42:00

It wasn't possible. Without Pau, that was watching the game after spending the weekend with his friends and teammates, Spain won by 1 with 25 seconds left, but the USA got the win in the final moments (86-85). Following the relaxation of the holidays, in spite that he kept training all the summer, Gasol travels to India this week as an ambassador for the NBA.

Spain didn't start well and soon USA took some advantage. But Spain was always in the game despite the NBA players were 12 up at the hafltime. After the break, everything changed, with Ricky, Navarro and Marc as great builders. The difference came down to two points but the Americans escaped again from 11 at the end of the third quarter.

It was necessary another comeback and came as Spain improved on offense and defense and tied the game with 2 minutes left. A two plus one of Navarro put the Spanish ahead for the first time on the scoreboard with 25 seconds left, but free throws by Rose and a block by Durant after a zone defense that surprised the Spanish in the last play gave the victory to the Americans.

The 86-85 shows that Spain, despite not playing a great game and not having Pau, is very close to the USA, that didn't count with Rondo. In Turkey there may be a new revenge, perhaps in the semis, who knows if in the final. The night had a bad news as Jose Calderon was injured.

And there will be Pau again to support them. On Saturday night he dined with them in Madrid and lived again the great atmosphere of the team. Pau wants to play the World Cup when he is with his friends, but the decision to rest, right and necessary, make his summer has taken a different path than in recent years.

After events and media interviews in USA and Spain, together with promotional events, advertising and also humanitarian, as with UNICEF in Ethiopia, Pau took a few days to disconnect from everything. Still, he has never stopped training with his personal trainers to keep the shape and come with the proper preparation to the Lakers training camp that begins Sept. 25 in Los Angeles before traveling to Barcelona and London to play from 7 October.

Pau Exercised on campus, and have repeated this week in doublel sessions at the Palau Blaugrana court in Barcelona. Pau went to Madrid to support his friends and see the two friendly matches against Lithuania and the United States. This Sunday he participated in an act of Nike in which he designed with the colors of the Spanish and the USA teams the new Nike Hyperdunk 2010 basketball shoes.

Then he went to the court of the Caja Mágica in Madrid to watch the game, where he received a great ovation and was very close to Prince Felipe and Infanta Elena, enjoying along with stars such as Cristiano Ronaldo, with which you can see in one of the images of the Spain-United States.

But Pau keeps going, and this week travels to India as an NBA ambassador, which once again demonstrates his importance in the league and his big heart. The trip to the second most populous country in the world will last five days, and will help to expand the NBA brand with clinics in the city of Mumbai for participants in the Mahinda NBA Challenge, India's league. Gasol, who is the second NBA player to go be in India after Howard, will take the Larry O'Brien Trophy to India. Pau is very attracted by this trip, and for the Indians will be a motivation that will engage them more to basketball.