The worst record in history! Farewell, European powerhouse! What happened to the Spanish men's basketball team?

In the last Group C match of the European Basketball Championship, Greece triumphed over the reigning champions Spain 90-86. This win sealed Greece’s top spot in the group with a 4-1 record and guaranteed their progression to the round of 16.

The star player made his comeback, logging 32 minutes and posting an impressive near triple-double with 25 points, 14 rebounds, and 9 assists, showing a commanding presence.

He had sat out the previous game against Bosnia for rest, which contributed to Greece’s loss.

The final standings of Group C were: Greece, Italy, Bosnia, Georgia, Spain, and Cyprus.

In other words, Spain was eliminated.

This marks the first time in the 88-year history of the Spanish team since their debut in the European Championship in 1935 that they have been knocked out in the group stage.

Spain finished 17th in this European Championship, their lowest ranking ever in major FIBA tournaments (World Cup, European Championship, Olympics).

I remember mentioning in the preview of the European Championship,that in the past six editions, Spain had won the title three times, truly earning the title of Europe’s kings.

Over the last 20 years, essentially since the start of the 21st century, Spain has represented the pinnacle of European basketball and achieved the greatest success.

From 2004 to 2020, across five Olympic Games, Spain reached the finals twice, the semifinals once, and the quarterfinals twice.

They were able to compete neck and neck with the peak USA Dream Team.

However, this European Championship has brought Spain to rock bottom.

It’s not hindsight bias; even before the tournament started, I suspected Spain wouldn’t perform well this year.

But I never imagined they wouldn’t advance from the group stage, especially since four out of six teams qualify... Then they lost to Georgia, which was the direct cause of their elimination.

Yet, this outcome was predictable.

In six warm-up games before the European Championship, Spain only managed one win against five losses. The most notable defeat was their first-ever loss to Portugal.

If this were football, Spain losing to Portugal wouldn’t surprise me. But in basketball, this was beyond most people’s expectations.

Many casual fans unfamiliar with the situation might ask, "Do Portuguese people even play basketball?"

Little do they know, Portugal has Queta (a Celtics center) and managed to beat the Czech Republic and Estonia in this championship to advance from the group stage.

Portugal’s rise and Spain’s fall have become the most dramatic contrast of the 2025 European Championship.

It signals a new era of reshuffling in European basketball.

The former kings of Europe now face tremendous challenges.

In the early 21st century, Spanish basketball relied on a strong domestic league (like the ACB) and club youth development to produce many high-level players.

In 2006, Spain won its first men’s basketball World Championship, officially entering the world elite.

They then won silver medals at the 2008 and 2012 Olympics and claimed the World Cup title again in 2019.

But now, their roster no longer includes Pau Gasol, Juan Carlos Navarro, Marc Gasol, Ricky Rubio, Serge Ibaka, Nikola Mirotic, Raul Lopez, Sergio Rodriguez, or Jose Calderon...

The legendary Rudy Fernandez officially retired after the 2024 Paris Olympics, ending a 22-year national team career and symbolizing the end of an era.

At last year’s Olympics, Spain also failed to advance from the group stage.

So this decline was somewhat foreseeable; every dynasty goes through painful transitions.Except for the USA, every team experiences periods of rebuilding.

Players like Aldama and the Hernangomez brothers are still far behind the previous generation...

This is the inevitable generational change for the golden era and a reflection of the fierce competition in European basketball.

We can see how countries like Germany and France have developed strong talent pools and momentum in recent years... but over a decade ago, they were not even close to Spain’s level.

In today’s wave of naturalized players, the once formidable Spain team that challenged the USA Dream Team and left Chinese fans with unforgettable memories must rethink their future path.

Finally, here are the knockout stage matchups for this European Championship:

Upper bracket: Turkey vs Sweden, Bosnia vs Poland, Latvia vs Lithuania, Greece vs Israel

Lower bracket: Portugal vs Germany, Italy vs Slovenia, Serbia vs Finland, Georgia vs France