PABLO LASO_31 Masterminds of European Basketball

Aito Garcia
Reneses
Pablo
laso
Coaching
DNA
Pablo Laso, born in Vitoria, Spain on
October 13, 1967, has met three conditions,
at least, to become a coach: he
was a player for 19 years, his position
on the court was point guard, and his
father, Pepe Laso, was also a coach.
With these factors, it’s no wonder that the bench
was his destination after a long and successful
career as a player. Of course, I cannot guarantee
100% that point guards have more chances of becoming
good coaches, but facts seem to confirm
this unproven theory.
It’s only logical. The point guard is usually the
right hand of his coach on the court, the main executor
of the plays learned in practices, and during
games, the player who sets the tempo, controls the
ball, passes it or even scores himself, if the circumstances
call for it and allow it.
If a coach has been a player, it is said that his
philosophy mirrors that of his game when he was
on the court. Pablo Laso is no exception. He was a
passing guard and he’s still the Spanish League’s
assists king with 2,896 total, having averaged as
many as 10 per game some seasons. His basketball
as a coach has the mark of his style as a player:
basketball that is joyful, fast, with many assists,
and with the point guards dominating, but always
supported by good shooters and big men inside for
rebounds.
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Vladimir Stankovic
The path of coach Laso was not as stellar as the one
of Laso, the player. After 11 seasons in Baskonia, his
good performances took him to Real Madrid in 1995.
As a coach, he would have to travel a longer road,
full of obstacles and complications. He started in the
Spanish third division at Castello in 2003-04. Signing
for Valencia in 2004-05 was a big step ahead, but his
next two stops -- Cantabria 2006-07 and Guipuzkoa
2007-08 -- would not be considered additional steps
forward. With the latter team, he won promotion to
the Spanish first division, which was his first success
as a coach.
Someone at Real Madrid had a good eye when,
in the summer of 2011, they decided to sign Laso as
head coach. The news happened on June 21, and for
many, it seemed a risky bet. Nobody doubted Laso’s
talent, but the pessimistic argued that he did not
have the experience for a great club and had not won
anything at that point. As always, time was the best
judge. During eight seasons, after more than 500
games, Laso has won 16 titles: two EuroLeagues,
four Spanish Leagues, five Spanish King’s Cups, four
Spanish SuperCups and one Intercontinental Cup.
He’s the third-most-crowned Real Madrid coach ever,
after legends like Lolo Sainz and Pedro Ferrandiz, who
are also featured in the book.
two times best EuroLeague coach
At an individual level, he won the Aleksandar
Gomelskiy Trophy, awarded to the season’s best
EuroLeague coach as voted by his fellow coaches,
in 2015 and 2018. He has also been chosen the
best coach in the Spanish League four times. In his
eight EuroLeague seasons, his worst record was in
2015-16, with 12 wins and 15 losses, but several
times his total number of losses in a season was
just six.
His two brightest moments, not taking domestic
titles for granted, were the two EuroLeague titles. The
first one arrived at home in Madrid in 2015. In semis,
Madrid defeated Fenerbahce by 96-87 with Gustavo
Ayon (18 points, 7 rebounds) and KC Rivers (17
points, 5 of 6 threes) as the main contributors. Zeljko
Obradovic was coaching that Fenerbahce team, and
he had also been Laso’s master at Real Madrid, while
the latter was a player on the team. The showdowns
between Real Madrid and Fenerbahce have become a
new European classic, with a duel of masters on the
sidelines.
Laso himself commented on that game on the EuroLeague
website: “We had a big lead at the half, but it
was very dangerous. In the second half, we knew that
something was going to happen; something was going
to change. We were able to control the emotions,
move the ball and get a big victory against a great
team. I know Zeljko Obradovic, and I knew that they
would fight until the end. I am very happy to be in this
position again.”
Laso added: “We prepared for the pick-and-roll,
knowing how important it would be to defend the
pick-and-roll and what would happen after the pickand-roll.
Only in the last quarter were they able to hit
some open jumpers.”
Zeljko Obradovic also had his say about that game:
“I believe they played an excellent game tonight. I am
really proud of my team to make it to the Final Four for
the first time in the history of the club. It’s obvious we
lost the game in the second quarter. We didn’t have
an answer. Any kind of defense, they punished us.”
He added: “I was proud of the reaction, but it was too
hard to recover from the second quarter. This will help
us in the future. And I hope Fenerbahce comes to the
Final Four again in the future.”
Fenerbahce had its revenge on Madrid in the 2017
semifinal in Istanbul, a game it won by 84-75. After
that, the tiebreaker arrived in 2018 in Belgrade on May
20. The two teams would meet again, but this time it
was in the championship game and Los Blancos lifted
a new title with an 85-80 win and young star Luka
Doncic as a leader and MVP of the tournament. On
a side note, Laso had never won a game in Belgrade
until that 2017-18 season.
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in the world. I am very happy and very proud to be
the European champions.”
During his eight years so far in Real Madrid, Laso
has not only won titles but also shown courage and
knowledge to put young players on the court, enduring
their mistakes and the pressure of the public opinion.
Up to 11 young players have made their debut
with him at the helm, among them a star called Luka
Doncic. Other “products” of his in the NBA are Willy
Hernangomez and Nikola Mirotic.
done. He does not try to invent anything, but he does
apply, in the best possible manner, whatever already
exists and works. Some coaches can do that, others
less so. Pablo Laso belongs in the first category, by
all means.
coach with character
Vladimir Stankovic
After his second European crown, Laso said: “I
always start the press conference and congratulate
the players because I think they did a great job. Today
and Friday, and if you go back to the first day
of practice, you don’t achieve these kinds of goals
without working hard since the first day. It’s been
an unbelievable year for us. In December we played
with seven guys out. The team stepped up in those
moments. I am proud of the team for what they did
all season. They sacrificed themselves all season, we
grew as a team, and finally, we got this on an unbelievable
weekend. It was a great game of basketball.
The whole weekend was amazing. The four games
that we saw, we’re talking about the best basketball
Laso is a coach with character, but he’s always
polite. He hardly ever gets called for technical fouls.
His statements are always well measured, respectful
towards the rival or the fellow coach. He never
provokes anyone. Under his leadership, players like
Sergio Llull have become superstars. Veterans like
Felipe Reyes and Jaycee Carroll play like youngsters,
while Gustavo Ayon and Edy Tavares are like life insurance
under the boards. He also got the best out
of Fabien Causeur in the 2018 final against Fenerbahce
(17 points).
From time to time, Laso can be hard on his players
(another lesson learned form Obradovic), but he
will always defend his men in public. He will use the
drawing board, but he doesn’t get mad if a player on
the court breaks the system and makes up some play.
He is among those coaches who believe that a good
coach must always learn from good players.
Despite his many successes, Laso does not live in
the past. He always looks forward, and his philosophy
is based on being able to look ahead whenever
you win and whenever you lose. He is a practical
man, and he knows that everything has already been
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