Red-hot Dutch may need to look beyond Rio

NEWCASTLE (Paul Nilsen’s Women’s Basketball Worldwide) – You really have to hand it to the Netherlands after an exciting and successful summer of youth basketball; although it still may be prudent for them to consider re-drafting their short to medium term plan which has Rio 2016 at its’ heart.

The Netherlands Basketball Federation deserves huge congratulations for the positive results and performances which flowed more or less right through every age category in recent months, but as a neutral observer, I do think the task of getting the senior national team to the next Olympic Games remains overly optimistic.

I really admire Dutch basketball for aiming high, but surely reality is likely to bite hard during the next four years. Because, when this impressive glut of fine young players inevitably makes the incremental transition to the senior national team, it doesn’t necessarily mean they will be up to Rio standard in the space of just one Olympic cycle. I could be plain wrong of course.

Additionally, this is not me viewing the glass as half empty but actually quite the opposite. The Dutch glass is very much half-full and could one day be overflowing.

I think they have an absolutely wonderful opportunity to realise their lofty Olympic ambition by 2020 which I feel is a more appropriate timescale since it is the medium to long term which looks to be the brightest.

It’s a sentiment echoed loudly by Rene Spandauw who recently helped Netherlands create history at the U20 European Championship Women in Debrecen, Hungary by reaching the Semi-Finals for the very first time.

He was excited and hugely supportive of the work being undertaken at all levels but admitted that the fruits of this hard labour at youth level may not be realised by the senior national team for some time.

“Well, taking these positive results to the senior team should of course be the next step and I think the performances during this summer give us a very good basis for the next 10 years” Spandauw said.

“We set ourselves a goal of wanting to try to get to Rio 2016 and maybe that is little bit of a premature target.

“But, believe me, everybody involved with the Federation and the coaches and players at all levels are working hard on it.”

He continued: “It might be four years too early because the current generations we are working with at youth level are hugely talented but will probably need a little longer to fully realise their potential.

“However, we feel that it won’t be long before we can begin to qualify for major tournaments with the senior national team.”

After recently missing out on a place at EuroBasket Women 2013, it’s going to be at least another two to three years before they manage to achieve this goal, but I can't wait to track these young players as their respective careers unfold and also see how they evolve as a group at the elite level in coming years.

Many of the players who just missed out on a bronze in Debrecen are now too old for youth competition and will be looking to cement their respective places in the senior team very soon whilst it won’t be long for the players who reached the Semi-Finals of the U18 European Championship Women either.

Throw in those even younger players from the FIBA U17 World Championship Women and the future is bright – the future is orange.

Pouring resources into the impressive set-up at CTO Amsterdam where the players are learning their skills is terrific but perhaps the real delicate balance in terms of whether Netherlands ever truly become a force to be reckoned with in the women’s game is the standard of their own domestic league.

It’s a tricky balance since the Dutch have exciting young players such as Isabella Slim looking to explore the college route whilst other older and influential players such as Myrthe Beld and Marlou de Kleijn will be stepping out in the Spanish league this season.

Meanwhile Kourtney Treffers was just 17 years old when she moved to EuroLeague Women finalists Rivas Ecopolis last summer although it looks like she will now play in the Italian second division.

It’s a difficult situation for both the young Dutch players themselves and also for the Federation according to Spandauw.

“We must also support the many players who want to move to the other higher level European leagues and making sure they have a good reason and motivation to always come and play for the National team," he explained.

“But I think it’s also an important job for us to try and improve the level of our own women’s league in Holland too.”

The pride and success displayed by the youth teams this summer needs to now be maintained on an annual basis right through the youth ranks and into the senior national team.

That is down not only to each individual player, but also the Federation too. It’s a long time to have to maintain the momentum, but if, as I suspect, Rio comes around just a little too early for the current crop of rising stars, then a new target of the 2020 Olympic Games will for sure be an impressively realistic one.

For now though, everyone associated with Dutch basketball should simply pat themselves on the back and be satisfied with their truly excellent progress so far.

Paul Nilsen

FIBA

FIBA’s columnists write on a wide range of topics relating to basketball that are of interest to them. The opinions they express are their own and in no way reflect those of FIBA.

FIBA takes no responsibility and gives no guarantees, warranties or representations, implied or otherwise, for the content or accuracy of the content and opinion expressed in the above article.