PIRAEUS (Greece) - The hosts won the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament 2024 at the Peace and Friendship Stadium in Piraeus, but Greece weren't the only winners of a week's worth of competitive basketball.
Four players used this stage to make a name for themselves, introducing their game to a global audience, while also putting a target on their backs ahead of the next major event. Because we're now expecting even more from them.
Vasilis Toliopoulos - Greece
OQT Stats: 9.0 EFF; 8.3 PPG; 2.0 APG; 61.5% 3P-FG
The most improved player of the Greek League came with loads of confidence to the national team training camp. The fact that his childhood idol, Vasilis Spanoulis, was the head coach did not intimidate him, but only made him work harder and prove his worth on the court.
Toliopoulos was an elite option off the bench for coach Spanoulis and Greece all week long, getting 8.3 points, hitting 8-of-13 three-pointers and torching Slovenia with 17 points in 17 minutes in the Semi-Finals.
His electric attitude ignited the 11,000-strong crowd in the stands of the legendary SEF arena, and the buzzer-beater from way beyond the arc is a story to tell for Toliopoulos and his family for a long, long time.
Crazy to think that this guy played in the French Second Division just 14 months ago...
Mateo Dreznjak - Croatia
OQT Stats: 5.3 EFF; 4.8 PPG; 1.3 APG; 66.7% FG
Mateo Dreznjak's contribution to Croatia was similar to that of Toliopoulos for Greece. The 25-year-old had a fine season with SC Derby in the Adriatic League, but there were plenty of question marks on what he brings to the team next to stars such as Mario Hezonja, Dario Saric and Ivica Zubac.
The answer? Mateo brings a lot. He was arguably the best Croatian player in the Final against Greece, picking up 15 points, 4 assists and 2 rebounds, while hitting 3-of-5 shots from beyond the arc.
His teammates combined for 3-of-16 from the same distance, proving Dreznjak was the only relief from the outside for Croatia's loaded inside line.
Look out for him taking on the starting role in the next FIBA EuroBasket 2025 Qualifiers, too.
Ahmed Metwaly - Egypt
OQT Stats: 20.0 EFF; 23.0 PPG; 2.5 APG; 2.0 SPG; 87.5% 2P-FG
No Adbel Nader? No Assem Marei? No Ehab Amin? So, who was the Egyptian team's leader in Greece?
It was quite obvious from the moment the 27-year-old from El Ettehad stepped on the floor. Ahmed Metwaly had 22 points against Greece and 24 against the Dominican Republic, while flirting with a 50-40-90 shooting split.
The man wearing #0 hit 54.2 percent of his field goals, 37.5 percent from three-point range, and 14-of-15 from the free throw line.
Metwaly's performances are a big reason why appearing in events like these is already a win for Egypt. Not that long ago, Metwaly struggled to break double digits in various Qualifiers, and even missed out on a place at the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023.
Hard to see him missing another big tournament if he keeps delivering his Greek numbers.
Jean Montero - Dominican Republic
OQT Stats: 13.7 EFF; 14.0 PPG; 5.0 RPG; 4.3 APG; 93% FT
Sure, he already came in as El Problema, as a kid who won the best young player award twice in the Spanish Liga Endesa. But coming off the bench, Jean Montero turned himself into the biggest offensive threat for coach Che Garcia.
Montero finished in double figures in all three games in Greece, nearly getting the exact same averages he had with MoraBanc Andorra last season, with 14.0 points, 5.0 rebounds and 4.3 assists.
The fact that he signed a three-year contract with Valencia immediately after the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament proves that the "breakout" part of his career is now over.
At 21 years of age, he is destined to turn into a genuine star, not just in the Spanish League, but also with the Dominican Republic.
FIBA