43 points, 16 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 steals and 2 blocks. That's how Hector's season ended, with a cruel loss to the Golden State Warriors. If Curry hadn't taken heat stroke, the Warriors would have lost.
It is logical that a long embrace occurred at the end of the match with Curry. The two heroes of the night are to give blows, and it was Curry who put his opponent K.O., but no one can deny the havoc that Hector did.
He missed only two shots today.
Draymond Green said it well afterward: "That's a group that fought, and you gotta respect that. I have much respect for those guys," Green said. "Sacramento Kings organization, Sacramento Kings fanbase, I gained much respect for."
"That's not the last that we'll see of that group. That group will have to be reckoned with for years to come in the NBA.". He will be correct, but that's another story.
Winner of AmeriCup before the start of the season with Mexico, All-NBA Third Team, and Second All-Star Game, he missed the All-Defensive Second Team by one vote. But that's not all. With 264 steals this season, he signs the fourth-best mark in history. The third place is at 265.
3.3 steals. This is the fifth-best average of all time.
He was the best rebounder this season with 14.2 rebounds per game; he asserts himself as an exceptional rebounder. He has passed a milestone this season, the season of confirmation is often the most complicated, but he proved that his previous season was not a scam.
23.9 points, 14.2 rebounds, 6.1 assists, 3.3 steals and 1.9 blocks. Individually it is a more than successful season, and collectively he thinks it is a failure.
Hector did not share the view of Giannis Antetokounmpo, for whom it is not necessarily a failure to lose in the first round of the playoffs despite the home-court advantage.
"It's a different situation for them as a team that has won a title, whose core has been together for years, and as the No. 1 seed and what I thought was the best team in the NBA all year. Losing like that in the first round, I think it's a different situation than ours. Double standards. ».
"For us, it will be easier to turn the page and look ahead to next year, saying, 'All right, if we did this in our first year, let's see what we can do in the second and third, the fourth, as our cohesion continues to build, as we get older and as we get better as players.'"
Then Hector returned directly to Mexico. What for? Because the Basketball World Cup is coming. This will be Mexico's 6th appearance at the FIBA Basketball World Cup, the second in the last three editions.
Mexico's group will be complex: Lithuania, Mexico, Montenegro, and Egypt. The Mexican coach indicated that his star player was on the list for the next international meeting.
For Montenegro, the presence of Nikola Vucevic has been confirmed. Four years after his last international competition with his national team, "Vooch" will return in the Montenegrin jersey.
As for Lithuania? Sabonis, All-Star this season with the Pacers is very uncertain. Even without Sabonis, Lithuania is the favorite of this group.
Mexico's national basketball team has detailed its series of games in preparation for the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023, which will be played at four venues in the Philippines, Japan, and Indonesia between August 25 and September 10. It will include a farewell game at the Juan de la Barrera Gymnasium.
At a press conference, Omar Quintero, the director of national teams, announced the five games that will be held throughout July in Puebla, Mérida, Torreón, Juárez, and Mexico City.
The so-called "12 warriors" will face their counterparts from Cuba and Colombia.
Quintero mentioned that "on July 29, after the last game against Colombia, the final list of those who travel will be given, and everyone will have the same opportunities to show who can help the National selection in the world. The pre-list will have 20 players, and the final list will have only 14".
Hector feels sorry because he was unable to participate in qualifying. The battle for the five FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023 qualifying spots in the Americas Zone was fierce, and it all came down to the final window of the Qualifiers in February 2023.
Hector already takes place. It will be foolish to leave his best player at home.