Pau Gasol unsure if he will play for Spain again (or how long he’ll continue in NBA)

Pau Gasol, at age 36, was once again the fulcrum of the Spanish international team.

In the Rio Olympics, he averaged a team-high 17 points and 8.7 rebounds a game coming into the semifinal Friday against the USA, where he had 23 points and was the only reliable scoring option for Spain (they were 8-of-26 from three, and a lot of those were uncontested looks).

After the game Gasol was understandably disappointed with the loss, saying he thought this is the best chance Spain has had to beat the USA and they fell short. As for his future, he was non-committal to Spain or even to a lengthy stay in the NBA. Here are his comments to the media, as translated by eurohoops.net.

“I always think it’s going to be my last year, both in the national team and in my NBA team. I love this sport and I love to continue playing at the highest level. The older I become the more complicated it will be for me to be back but I still play at a good level. I would be 40 years old in the next Olympic Games and I’ve been already many games for many years. During next season I’ll assess how I feel and if I will play with the national team or not. Things can change pretty quick.”

I have a feeling he’s going to feel pretty good, playing as part of the “we rest a lot” Gregg Popovich routine with the Spurs. He’s going to get wins, he’s going to get touches, and he’s not going to be overtaxed.

But that is different than wanting to go back and play for Spain again. Don’t be shocked if Pau says it’s Marc Gasol’s turn to hold down the paint for the Spanish.