The North American professional basketball league NBA is the strongest basketball league in the world. Anyone who plays here competes against the greatest basket-hunters on the planet. A Munich native will soon be part of the elite league. Tristan da Silva started his career in Munich-Schwabing and will soon be drafted into an NBA team. For the 23-year-old, this is a dream come true.
Da Silva family flies to New York for the draft
Mother Christine finds it “a little surreal” that the whole family is now flying to New York for the NBA draft and will be able to see first hand which top basketball team her son Tristan will soon be playing for. In the draft, the best young talents are generally assigned to the worst teams of the previous season.
“NBA Draft – when you hear that, everyone thinks: crazy! I think the same thing and ask myself: how did I get here?” Tristan admits in an exclusive interview with BR24Sport. “How many people dream of getting there. When you think about what a life goal that is.” There are several hundred young talents to choose from, but only 60 are drafted in the end. Da Silva’s chances are very, very good. “So I’m among the best 60 players in youth basketball this year.” He and experts expect him to end up at number ten or twenty. For comparison: Dirk Nowitzki was drafted ninth.
Brother Oscar praises: Tristan plays basketball “the way it should be played”
The German-Brazilian began his career at DJK Sportbund München. At 17, he moved to MTSV Schwabing and was promoted at the International Basketball Academy under coach Robert Scheinberg. The coach developed into a mentor and will also be present at the draft. He and his brother Oscar, a German national player and active at the Spanish top club FC Barcelona, train for their professional careers in a small hall. “He just plays basketball the way it should be played. He doesn’t think so much, he just gambles,” praises Oscar. “I think that’s a big advantage for him because he doesn’t think ten times. He lets the game come to him and then finds his solutions.” Tristan plays the position of small or power forward. He scores with a high percentage from the three-point line and also drives elegantly to the basket. “He dances on this court like a Brazilian,” says Christine da Silva, describing her son’s style of play. “Very light-footed,” adds father Valdemar.
From the small corner in Munich to the big basketball world
In 2020, the then 19-year-old took the next step and went to college in Colorado. “I went there with almost no expectations. I didn’t know how the Americans played basketball,” remembers da Silva. He played college basketball for the Colorado Buffaloes for four years and recommended himself for the NBA. “From the small corner of Munich, where we played on the outdoor court, the fact that the path now really leads to the NBA draft in New York is very, very impressive,” his brother said happily for Tristan.
Tristan da Silva can not only play basketball well
But everything could have turned out differently. As a young man, he played basketball more for fun. He only started pursuing a professional career when he was a teenager. At the same time, he plays the trumpet and is part of two orchestras. “I always liked being in the orchestra. In the first few rehearsals, it sounds terrible because no one has practiced their part and no one knows what it should actually sound like. From week to week, it sounds a little better and you realize what a big step you have taken.”
After graduating from high school, he hung up his trumpet. It is still in his grandmother’s basement, he said in an interview with BR24Sport. Starting next season, he will be playing basketball with the big boys.
Da Silva has no team wish: “Just trying to get in”
He doesn’t know which top team he will be playing for in the future, but it’s not that important to him. He has received “good feedback” from every team he has spoken to, says da Silva. “I don’t really care. I’m just trying to get in, that’s the most important thing for me,” admits the basketball talent, adding: “Let’s see where the journey takes me.”
2024-06-21 13:33:51
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