Ex- NBA star Juan Carlos Navarro becomes the All-Time leading scorer in Euroleague
On Thursday night in Barcelona, legendary Spanish basketball player Juan Carlos Navarro aka ‘La Bomba’ appended yet another mile stone to his sparkling career.
While playing a Turkish Euroleague game against Union Olimpija at Palau Blaugrana, the 31-year-old Spaniard buried a left-handed layup off a Chuck Eidson’s steal in the third quarter and with it became the All-Time leading scorer in Euroleague.
The historic bucket earned him 2,716 career points making him the only player in the league to reach that mark.
The record was previously held by Marcus Brown, who is still regarded as one of the top U.S. athlete ever to play abroad. Brown never had a fair chance to show his abilities in NBA as he played only 27games with Portland Trailblazers and Detroit Pistons; however, internationally and especially on the European circuit, he is recognized as one of the most dominating shooting guards.
With plenty of time still left in the season and Navarro at the peak of his game, this record is all set to flourish.
Navarro, who had a brief spell in the NBA with the Memphis Grizzlies, is already a legend in Europe. The Barcelona man is the captain of the Spanish national basketball team and on the club level; he has guided his team to Euroleague Championships glory twice. He was named as the Most Valuable Player (MVP) in Euroleague in 2008-2009 season when Barca won and then was named as the MVP of the Final Four in 2010.
Carlos has appeared in five Euroleague Final Fours so far and has also been inducted to the All-Euroleague First Team five times.
Navarro’s achievements don’t end with the Euroleague. In 2006, he was named as the MVP in the Spanish league and will play the Spanish Super Cup this season as a three times defending MVP. He is the present ‘European player of the year’ and his brilliant performances in this year’s FIBA Eurobasket ensured that the Spanish side successfully defended its crown.
He was brilliant throughout that tournament and capped his dream run with a game high 27 points against France in the finals and consequently landed the MVP honour.
This however, is just the start of a great legacy.
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