Basketball icons attend the FIBA AmeriCup 2025 Draws

Cortijo, Castro, and Fowles graced the stage during the women’s tournament ceremony, while Quintero, Forbes, Omier, Vásquez, Anthony, and Hardaway dazzled at the men’s event.

The draws for the FIBA AmeriCup 2025, both men’s and women’s, took place on March 26 in Miami, USA. The event featured several basketball icons from across the Americas who have left their mark not only on the continent but also on the global stage. Puerto Rican Carla Cortijo, Brazilian Iziane Castro, and American Sylvia Fowles were the guests of honor at the FIBA Women’s AmeriCup draw. These three legendary former players took the stage and participated in the procedure that determined the groups for the tournament, which will be held in Chile from June 28 to July 6. Fowles was a four-time Olympic gold medalist (2008, 2012, 2016, 2020) and a world champion in 2010. She also won MVP at the Women’s AmeriCup 2019 after leading her team to a gold medal. In the WNBA, the world’s top league, she won two league championships and two Finals MVP awards with the Minnesota Lynx (2015 and 2017). Additionally, she was named the 2017 season MVP and was a four-time Defensive Player of the Year (2011, 2013, 2016, 2021). Castro was part of Brazil’s national team for 14 years. She played in two Women’s AmeriCups (2007, winning bronze, and 2015). She also participated in three World Cups (2002, 2006, and 2015) and two Olympic Games (2004 and 2016). In the 2004 Olympics and the 2006 World Cup, Brazil finished fourth. Additionally, she won a bronze medal at the 2011 Pan American Games. In the WNBA, she played for 11 seasons with Miami, Phoenix, Seattle, Atlanta, Washington, and Connecticut, appearing in 306 games and averaging 9.6 points per game.

Meanwhile, Cortijo led Puerto Rico’s women’s national team from 2011 to 2015. During that time, the former point guard won two gold medals (2010 Central American and Caribbean Games and 2011 Pan American Games) and three silver medals (2012 and 2014 Centrobasket, and 2014 Central American and Caribbean Games). Her performance caught the attention of the WNBA, earning her a spot with the Atlanta Dream, where she played for two seasons and appeared in 29 games, averaging 4.9 points per game.

MORE HIGH-PROFILE GUESTS

The men’s FIBA AmeriCup draw featured a distinguished lineup of guests: Hall of Famer Tim Hardaway, former players Gary Forbes, Andrés Pelussi, Greivis Vásquez, Joel Anthony, and Omar Quintero (currently Mexico’s national team head coach), as well as rising Nicaraguan prospect Norchad Omier. Hardaway, inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2022, won gold at the 2000 Sydney Olympics and was a champion in the 1999 FIBA AmeriCup with Team USA. He played 15 NBA seasons with Golden State, Miami, Dallas, Denver, and Indiana, posting career averages of 17.7 points, 8.2 assists, and 1.6 steals. He was a five-time NBA All-Star and earned six All-NBA selections, including All-Rookie honors in the 1989-90 season. Anthony, a Canadian shot-blocking specialist and former center, is now co-owner and general manager of the Montreal Alliance in the Canadian Elite Basketball League (CEBL). He won two NBA championships with the Miami Heat (2011-12 and 2012-13) during a 10-season career that also included stops in Boston, Detroit, and San Antonio. Internationally, he represented Canada at the 2009, 2011, 2013, and 2017 AmeriCups, as well as the 2010 World Cup.

Vásquez also played in the world’s top league for seven seasons with teams like Memphis, New Orleans, Sacramento, Toronto, Milwaukee, and Brooklyn. In the 2012-13 season, he led the NBA in total assists with 704. At the collegiate level, he was named ACC Player of the Year (2009-10) while playing for the University of Maryland. In the AmeriCup, he represented Venezuela in the 2007, 2009, and 2011 editions. Currently, he works as a TV analyst for the Washington Wizards.

Mexican coach Quintero has led his country’s national team since 2021, guiding them to the 2022 AmeriCup and the 2023 World Cup. As a player, he competed in the 2003 AmeriCup, where he was the tournament’s top scorer with 21.1 points per game, and later played in the 2005, 2007, and 2009 editions. Forbes competed in three AmeriCup tournaments with Panama (2007, 2011, and 2017). He played two NBA seasons (2010-11 and 2011-12) with the Denver Nuggets and Toronto Raptors, appearing in 111 games.

Pelussi made his debut with Argentina’s national team in 2001. He won two gold medals in the South American Championship (2004 and 2008) and a bronze medal in the 2009 AmeriCup. He currently serves as Sports Director of the Argentine Basketball Confederation (CAB). Lastly, Omier, Nicaragua’s top basketball prospect and the host country’s rising star, has shined in NCAA Division I basketball and is eligible for the 2025 NBA Draft. He spent two seasons at Arkansas State, two at Miami, and this past season at Baylor. Over 155 collegiate games, he averaged 15.3 points, 10.9 rebounds, and 1.2 blocks. In 2022, he was named Sun Belt Conference Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year, and in 2025, he earned First Team All-Big 12 honors. He made his senior national team debut for Nicaragua in 2021 during the Central American and Caribbean Pre-Qualifiers.

Photo credit: FIBA