Screengrab of Tony Park’s post.
As Tony Parker wraps up his international career, he now shifts his focus to the NBA where he hopes to further extend his playing years.
“I want to play for another four to five more years,” he said on Sunday in a press conference at Sofitel Philippine Plaza.
READ: Tony Parker, Team France arrive in Manila for Fiba OQT
“I really enjoy playing with the Spurs. I feel blessed playing for a great team and a great organization and I feel like I can play for a long time.”
As San Antonio failed to win the NBA title this year, the 15-year veteran acknowledges the difficulty of winning the championship every year.
“In the NBA, it’s tough. Any one team can win. We know how hard it’s to win a championship. I’ve been blessed with four championships and a lot of players have zero. We know our fans want more and we have a great team and we’ll be back next year,” he said.
And Parker has every right to feel optimistic, with the reigning back-to-back Defensive Player of the Year Kawhi Leonard and last year’s free agent catch Lamarcus Aldridge leading the Spurs for the second straight season.
The 34-year-old guard made it clear that the team’s goal never changes.
“We want to win a championship like always. It’s the same goal for us every year. I trust coach (Gregg) Popovich and (general manager) RC (Buford) to improve our team and get better next year,” he said.
But before he takes his wares back in the NBA, Parker is hoping to finish his job with the French national team.
READ: Tony Parker has high hopes of winning Fiba OQT
“I always say I have two families: the Spurs family, and during the summer, my French team family. It’s two different things and they bring different joy,” he said.
“I’ve been very successful with both of them and hopefully, we can qualify for the Olympics and finish my French career the right way.” RAM/rga