Portuguese player Neemias Queta confirmed yesterday that he will represent the Portuguese national basketball team in the upcoming World Cup qualifiers, after missing the previous international window.
“That is the plan: to play the games, help the team as much as possible, be competitive, and reach the World Cup—that is the main goal,” said the Boston Celtics center while attending the Estoril Open tennis tournament.
After missing the last two matches—at a time when he was renegotiating his contract with his NBA team—Neemias Queta will now join the squad for the start of the second qualifying phase, with games against Spain on August 28 and Georgia in Matosinhos three days later.
“What matters now are the national team games, getting to August 28 in Zaragoza, Spain. We want to be at our best level; I think it will be a very tough challenge, but we are united and always ready for it,” he asserted.
For Neemias, “every game is a new game, every day is a new day, and it doesn’t matter what name you have or who you are,” meaning it is possible to pull off an upset against the favorite, Spain.
“We look at each other, and from there, the game is on—the ball goes up, and the goal is to score more points than them while they score fewer than us. Once the game starts, it’s just a game; I think we have just as good a chance as they do,” he assured.
Neemias Queta was invited by the organizers to perform the coin toss for the doubles final between Brazilians Orlando Luz and Rafael Matos and French players Titouan Droguet and Kyrian Jacquet. “It is a tremendous honor for me. I think it is also a special moment for me. Tennis is a sport I have followed since childhood, and I find it a phenomenal experience to be here right now,” he said, regarding tennis as a sport where “you have to be much more psychologically prepared for all kinds of adversity.”
