Alberto Díaz: "I don't feel like the hero of the people"

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Alberto Díaz

(Málaga, 1994) exudes sacrifice and character on the track, but off it he defines himself as a "very sentimental" guy, who yesterday still seemed to have tears before the torrent of congratulations.

"There are many messages that may have struck a chord with me. Before, when I suffered moments of downturn and also now, in joy," the Eurobasket hero explains to EL MUNDO.

A couple of them bore the signature of

, the star he had to replace to make Spain the champion in Berlin.

A few minutes with Alberto are enough to understand the wave of admiration he has raised in his wake.

During a brief meeting with this newspaper, prior to the party at the Wizink Center, the Unicaja guard is as grateful as he is stunned.

Somehow oblivious to the status of favorite in the hearts of the people.

"I feel the love and the incredible support that they have given us, but I don't feel like the hero of the people, or anything. We have all had our moment in each of the games, because we are a team," he assures.

In reality, for most of his career, in Malaga, Fuenlabrada and Bilbao, Díaz had had to settle for the role of anti-hero.

The typical of a defensive specialist, capable of unhinging opponents with the ease of him to cause fouls in attack and to bring out the worst in rival fans.

A trend that will be reversed from next Friday the 30th, when Unicaja visits the Buesa Arena in Vitoria on the first day of the ACB League.

Do you feel prepared for the ovations in the pavilions? I don't know.

I hope they give me the affection of him, of course, but when I live it I will know.

Alberto still looks a lot like that kid from the Malaga neighborhood of San Carlos who grew up under the orders of

.

The youth squad who lacked regularity from the perimeter, but who always hit the decisive shot.

Like on Sunday at the Mercedes Benz Arena, when with 1:33 to go he received from

and was able to take shape from the corner.

He was the triple executor (85-70) for France.

and

, shocked, still couldn't believe it.

In any case, Díaz had been showing his overwhelming intensity for a week.

With a steal from

, capital for the win against Turkey, and with a feint against

, his former teammate at Carpena, which anticipated the elimination of Lithuania.

Although he would still have to wait for the semi-final against Germany to attend his masterpiece, at the peak of his defensive ferocity against

.

How did you manage to perfect this degree of intensity? It all adds up, both the training they gave me at home and what they taught me in the Unicaja quarry.

Although in the end the most important thing is passion and enjoying this sport.

Because if you really like it, basketball is not a sacrifice, nor a job, but simply love for what you do.

That fervor for what he loves so much ended up turning to the Lakers star.

With 7:44 remaining, Schröder graced his layup with a somewhat haughty celebration against Diaz.

However, from that 77-70 to the buzzer, the German star, drowned out by Alberto, did not score a single point again.

One fact speaks of the influence of the redhead in that epic comeback: with him on the track, Spain accumulated a +25, but in the remaining 23 minutes the balance was -20.

"My whole life has changed, both in basketball and personally," admits who made effort a non-negotiable value, adding a master's degree in sports management from the University of Salamanca to his training.

And under the message of overcoming him,

's words to EL MUNDO also beat: "People identify with these kids because most seemed more normal than the superheroes of the previous generation."

On Monday, without going any further, while

and

paraded their NBA aura around the stage and captain

acted as master of ceremonies, the unanimous ovation from the Wizink opted for Díaz.

The public had not fallen in love with his numbers (5.7 points, 6.7 PIR in 16.8 minutes), nor the team's +52 with him.

Not even those intangibles that go beyond the statistical sheet.

People had fallen in love with Alberto because of his attitude and his commitment to the group.

And Llull himself wanted to congratulate him and thank him on behalf of so many Spaniards.

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