When the Dominican Republic team defeated Argentina early (Monday) 75:79, coach Nestor “Che” Garcia celebrated not only the prestigious qualification for the World Cup in the Philippines, Japan and Indonesia, but also the closing of a particularly fresh personal account with the Albiceleste.
Just last August, Garcia, an Argentine who developed professionally in his homeland and established himself as a coach of international stature, completed his role as coach of the Argentine national team, to which he was appointed after the 2021 Olympic Games. It happened precisely after a victory over the team of the Bahamas, and four days before the American Championship – at the end of which the Albiceleste won the title under the guidance of Garcia’s replacement, former coordinator Pablo Prigioni.
“‘Che’ will inform us of his departure, for private reasons that we prefer to respect,” the Argentine Basketball Association explained six months ago, but at the same time, the local media presented the termination of the contract more as dismissals than as resignations.
Around the team, they claimed “unprofessional behavior” towards the players and “bad habits” of Garcia, who, according to the reports, used to leave the hotel where the team was staying for unknown reasons. The shortness and shaky relationship between him and the players led to an explosion when the coach was absent from practice before the game in question against the Bahamas. In the game itself, you could see Garcia’s puzzling management, and timeouts full of errors and confusion on his part, to the point that the players simply stopped listening to him and got up from the bench before he finished speaking, all in full view of the television cameras.
Tonight, you could say, Garcia cleared his name and had the last laugh. Not only did he raise a much less talented team from Argentina to MundoBasket, but he also dethroned no less and no more than the reigning world runner-up, leaving his country’s representatives out of the important tournament for the first time in 41 years.
It is possible, therefore, to understand why the Argentine coach celebrated the huge failure of the Argentine national team with such demonstrativeness. For a few seconds Garcia drove with the dignity and professionalism befitting the position, when his replacement Prigioni came over to congratulate him on the victory. Seconds before, he hugged his coaching staff, then pumped his fists into the air as he smiled and hoisted himself on the shoulders of the Dominican Republic players.
Six months after parting in dubious circumstances from the Argentina national team, Nestor Garcia turned out to be its executioner. It was not the first time: “Che” also defeated his country in the final of the South American Championship in 2014 and in the final of the American Championship a year later, both times as the coach of the Venezuelan national team. This time, the blow you landed on Albiselesta was much more painful, and much more personal.