Former NBA guard Carlos Arroyo got emotional Sunday after the men’s basketball team of his home country of Puerto Rico punched its ticket to the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Puerto Rico defeated Lithuania 79-68 in the championship game of the Olympic qualifying tournament held at Coliseo Jose Miguel Agrelot in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
The victors were led by New Orleans Pelicans guard Jose Alvarado, who finished with 23 points on 9/14 shooting to go along with 6 rebounds, 2 steals, and 4 triples. The win ended Puerto Rico basketball’s 20-year Olympic drought.
Arroyo, who had starred for Puerto Rico back in 2004, shared a heartwarming moment with Alvarado once the result was final.
Special moment for Carlos Arroyo as he returns to the Olympic stage with Puerto Rico
#FIBAOQT pic.twitter.com/n3Itnj3xq1
— FIBA (@FIBA) July 8, 2024
Arroyo played 9 seasons in the NBA largely as a role player. The journeyman played for 7 different teams throughout his career, averaging 6.6 points and 3.1 assists per contest.
While Arroyo didn’t have the most decorated NBA career, the 6’2″ guard built a reputation as one of the best international guards of his time.
The Puerto Rican famously lit up Team USA when the two teams faced off in the 2004 Summer Olympics. Arroyo had 25 points, 7 assists, and 4 steals in the 92-73 win, which was Team USA’s first loss in the Olympics since the program started sending NBA players in 1992.
Arroyo seems to have found his spiritual successor in Alvarado, who brings just as much energy on the court as the 44-year-old did decades ago.
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