SAN JUAN (William Rosario's Somewhere in the Americas) - Ok so let's jump right back into the second part of the list. (Click here if you haven’t read the first part.)

8) USA Basketball (2014 Dream Team): Stephen Curry, James Harden, Anthony Davis, Kyrie Irving, Klay Thompson, DeMarcous Cousins, Andre Drummond, and Demarr Derozan. Isn't this a list of the breakthrough star players of the NBA in 2015? USA Basketball is a star of 2015 just because of the fact that they are always one step ahead of the game, and it needs to be recognized.

The 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup gold medal team was called a “B, maybe C team” by many, but it really was an A team put together right before everybody peaked. Kudos to Coach K, Jerry Colangelo and USA Basketball for knowing before everybody else.  

No personal anecdote here, other than this.

9) Guilherme Giovannoni - Obvious/General Idea (OGI): Giovannoni recently became the most accomplished player in the history of the Liga Sudamericana. The Brazilian won his third championship in the South American competition with Uniceub and did so at a very productive rate at 35 years of age, averaging 15.7 points along with 7.1 rebounds per game. He is a two-time MVP of the competition.

Personal Anecdote (PA): Guilherme is simply put one of the nicest players in basketball. His future as a politician within the sport is very bright and he is currently enjoying everything the game has left to offer to him as a player. Recently, during the semifinals of the Liga Sudamericana we were in Montevideo when a citywide power outage put a stop the game. Guilherme came over to the referee, who was standing right beside me and asked if there was anything we could do according to the rules. The ref indicated that we had to wait. He came over the table and I said to him: “Basketball rules are no softer on old guys”. He laughed, called me a bastard and started stretching. On top of everything he has a sense of humor. Some people luck out in life.

10) Carla Cortijo – (OGI): Cortijo did not play international basketball this year but was definitely one of the stars of 2015. The Puerto Rican point guard was signed by the Atlanta Dream in the WNBA and was immediately released after the national federation requested her presence in the 2015 FIBA Americas Women’s Championship. It broke her heart and Cortijo never made it to Edmonton to play with the national team. Her story opened up a big dialogue in the country about Women’s basketball and equality issues within the game.

(PA): My anecdote around this isn’t really about Cortijo, but about my country (I am a Puerto Rican). She became a national story and it is always good when sport can open channels through which bigger conversations can occur. But I guess it also opens up a window to the ignorant and the sensationalists. And this was interesting too. Uninformed people had a voice and became part of the conversation, the gossip tv shows got their content and then it all went away. None of the social justice warriors came to see the finals of the women’s national league and eventually Cortijo was resigned by the Dream for the final stretch of the season. What did it all mean?

(PA): Ayon was real tense as the leader of the host team in the 2015 FIBA Americas Championship. In the beginning he was all business, with little to none interaction with the media, solely focused on trying to repeat as continental champs. But in the semifinals, as soon as the team lost to Argentina, something changed in him. He came to the press conference and was honest about the political turmoil currently going on for basketball in the country. He talked about the future of the sport in Mexico and about the problems moving forward. It was genuine and the best press conference I’ve been present for. A day later, when the team lost in a last-second shot against Canada, he grabbed the mic and personally thanked the Mexican fans for coming and supporting the team. That is a leader, and the hope is he exercises some of this leadership with the country’s national federation being currently suspended. Ayon is key in their aspirations to bounce back. Hopefully he is a star of 2016 too.

13) Tuto Marchand, COPUR and FBPUR – (OGI): Read this and tell me the FIBA Americas Secretary General Emeritus, the Puerto Rican Olympic Committee and the Puerto Rican Basketball Federation are not stars of 2015.

(PA): I did the rounds and media tour with Tuto Marchand after this announcement was made a couple of weeks ago. He was the happiest 80-year old kid I’ve seen this Christmas. This was a truly historic step forward by the island’s national federation.

14) Michele O’keefe – (OGI): O’keefe was named President/CEO of Canada Basketball this past April. In eight months, her teams have won a Gold and Bronze Medal at the FIBA Americas Championships, a Gold and Silver Medal at the 2015 Pan American Games, and a Gold and Silver Medal at the FIBA Americas U16 Championships. That’s a pretty good start for the O’keefe-led national federation.

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