Despite closing out group play with a blowout win over Nigeria, Utah Jazz point guard Raul Neto and Brazil have been eliminated from Olympic competition.
Heading into their final preliminary round contest in Rio, Utah Jazz point guard Raul Neto and the Brazilian national team were still looking to punch their ticket to the Olympic quarterfinals. With a win, they would keep their tournament hopes alive, but the host team would need some help to advance.
The Brazilians took care of their half of the equation, beating Nigeria 86-69. Unfortunately, Spain’s 92-73 win over Argentina left Neto and Co. just outside of qualification for the knockout stage.
It was a disappointing result for a host team considered by many to be a medal contender before the games began; a squad featuring NBA mainstays Nene Hilario and Leandro Barbosa, as well as Neto and Los Angeles Lakers point guard Marcelo Huertas.
As was the case for his team, Neto’s Olympic story was one of highs and lows. Following a 17-point performance in a pre-Olympic friendly and a 14-point effort to open the games, the Jazz guard struggled at times and Brazilian coach Rubén Magnano elected to lean more on Huertas, his starting point guard.
Over the course of his five Olympic contests, Neto averaged 4.8 points, 2.6 assists and 1.4 rebounds in just under 18 minutes per game. He shot just 31.8 percent from the field and 18.2 percent from three-point range.
Nevertheless, Neto was happy to give his countrymen something to cheer for amid concerns over government instability, an outbreak of the Zika virus and other problems facing his nation–
"“You see all the people watching our games, you can’t tell that our country is bad. Everybody’s happy here, they are enjoying basketball. We still have all the problems with the politics and everything, but we can forget about all those problems and just enjoy sports.”"
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While they didn’t achieve their goal of capturing an Olympic medal, Neto and the Brazilian hoops squad undoubtedly helped provide an escape from some of the tension that exists in their country, if only for a short while.
In the end, isn’t that what the Olympics are all about?