The Argentina men's national basketball team represents Argentina in basketball international competitions, and is controlled by the Argentine Basketball Confederation (CAB, for ). The national team was formed in 1921, playing its first game v. Uruguay that same year.
Argentina's national basketball team remains among the most successful in the Americas. It is the only national team in the FIBA Americas zone that has won the quintuplet crown: FIBA Basketball World Cup (they won the first edition, in 1950), Olympic Gold Medal (2004) (the highest honor and most important title of Argentina in the history of Argentina Basketball Men's Senior National Team), FIBA Diamond Ball (2008), FIBA AmeriCup (2001 and 2011) and Pan American Gold Medal (1995, 2019 and 2023). They have also won 13 South American Basketball Championships, as well as many youth championships.
The Argentine representative was also the first to defeat a United States national team with a full squad of NBA players. They did so by 87–80 in the 2002 FIBA World Championship held in Indianapolis.
1910s and 1920s
The practice of basketball in Argentina was started by Asociación Cristiana de Jóvenes (Young Men's Christian Association – YMCA) in 1912.Historia en la Argentina on Asociación Cristiana de Jóvenes en la Argentina website (Archive - March 11, 2012) Canadian Professor Paul Phillip was in charge to teach basketball at the YMCA headquarters in Paseo Colón Avenue, Buenos Aires.
The first basketball clubs in Argentina were YMCA, Hindú and Independiente. By 1912 the first basketball games were held by YMCA headquarters in Buenos Aires. In 1913 the first games between Argentine and Uruguayan YMCA are played. One year later, the YMCA organised the first internal championship. In 1919 the Uruguay national team played a game v. local team Nacional, in Buenos Aires.Linea de Tiempo del Básquet Argentino by Ricardo Orcasitas, CABB website
In 1921 the "Argentine Basketball Confederation" (original name: "Federación Argentina de Basket-Ball" – FABB) was established to organise competitions not only in Buenos Aires but in several cities around Argentina, such as Bahía Blanca and Córdoba where basketball would develop significantly in successive years.Historia del Básquet en la Argentina Argentina played its first international game (representing the FABB) against Uruguay in 1921. The players chosen to play that match were: S.G. Romero, J.C. Rodríguez Quiroga (captain), A. Birba, M. Hernandorena, J. Barbier.
In successive years, other clubs such as Ñaró, Estudiantes (LP), River Plate, Gimnasia y Esgrima, Universitario and Racing) registered their teams to the Federation. On August 30, 1929, the Argentine Basketball Federation (current "Confederación Argentina") was established, with founder members from Buenos Aires, Córdoba, Santa Fe, La Rioja, North Federation and Bahía Blanca. The Federación Argentina focused on the spread of basketball in Buenos Aires as in the rest of the provinces of Argentina.
1930s and 1940s
By the 1930s the practise of basketball had been widely spread around Buenos Aires, with the media (more remarkably El Gráfico magazine) not only covering the sport but even organising competitions.
In 1930 the first South American Championship ("Campeonato Sudamericano" in Spanish) was organised, being Argentina runner-up. The national side would win its first official title at the 3rd edition of the tournament, in 1934 in Buenos Aires. The national team finished winning all the games (6 in total) achieving the gold medal. Argentina won its second consecutive title at the 1935 Championship held in Rio de Janeiro with 3 wins and 1 loss.
After several competitions with no wins, Argentina achieved a new title in 1941, winning all the games (5). During the successive editions, Argentina would achieve its first treble after winning the 1942 and 1943 championships. Nevertheless, Argentina would not win a new South American title until 1966.
1950s
After the 1948 Olympic Tournament, FIBA decided to create a World Championship, and named Argentina as the host country for the inaugural 1950 edition. The team's coaching staff was formed by Jorge Canavesi as head coach, Casimiro González Trilla as his assistant and Jorge Boreau as the physical trainer. The squad, formed entirely by amateur players, trained in preparation for the tournament in River Plate's facilities every day in double shifts, something uncommon for the times. The Argentine government negotiated with the players' employers and studying centers to secure their times.
The team played around Oscar Furlong, a center with good mobility and passing skills. Other important players were Ricardo González (captain), Leopoldo Contarbio, Juan Carlos Uder, Raúl Pérez Varela and Roberto Viau (who was 18 years old at the time of the tournament). In the tournament itself, Argentina defeated France (56–40) in the preliminary round, followed by Brazil (40–35), Chile (62–41), France again (66–41) and EuroBasket champions Egypt (68–33) in the final round; before defeating the United States in the decisive match (64–50).
After the World Championship title, Argentina won the silver medal at the 1951 Pan American Games held in Buenos Aires and finished fourth at the 1952 Summer Olympics held in Helsinki. However, for political reasons, the country did not participate in the 1953 South American Basketball Championship, nor did they defend the World Championship title in the 1954 edition of the tournament. The last participation of the 1950s generation was in the 1955 Pan American Games held in Mexico City, where they won another silver medal.
The world championship won clean and brilliantly, but, on January 8, 1957, the military dictatorship of Pedro Aramburu, who had taken power in Argentina via a coup d'état which called itself Revolución Libertadora, provisionally suspended the 1950 World Championship winners; a measure that was later made permanent on March 27 of that year. According to the polemic amateur article a professional sportsman can not receive money, but the Argentinean players -not USA- received economic compensation for play. The suspension was for allegedly violating the Amateur Sportsman Statute, as, according to the administrators who had been installed in the Argentine Basketball Federation, the players had been paid to play by the overthrown government of Juan Perón. With a young and inexperienced team, Argentina finished fourth in the 1958 South American Basketball Championship and 10th (over 13 teams) in the 1959 FIBA World Championship.
1960s
Subsequently, the team had further disappointing third and fourth-place finishes at the 1961 and 1963 South American Championships respectively, and did not participate in the 1963 Pan American Games.
In preparation for the 1963 World Championship, Alberto Andrizzi was appointed as head coach. For different reasons, point guards Ricardo Crespi and Hugo Olariaga, shooting guards Marcelo Farías and Norberto Batillana, centers Miguel Ballicora and Guillermo Riofrío, as well as Ricardo Alix, decided not to be part of the World Championship squad. Most of the players were amateurs, who alternated the practice of the sport with their jobs and studies.
Coach Andrizzi formed a squad that averaged 22.8 years of age, the lowest in the team's history at the competition, and with only one player from the previous World Championship (Antonio Tozzi). This was also the first time Argentina took a player above the of stature to a World Championship, Zoilo Domínguez (who was ). The squad trained 8 days in Villa Allende, Córdoba Province, and played some preparation games against teams from Córdoba and Santa Fe. The delegation that traveled to Brazil (where the competition took place) had no assistant coach, nor a physician.
In the tournament itself, Argentina faced a tough group with Italy, the United States and Mexico. The team lost by a large margin their two initial games: 73–91 against Italy (that, contrary to Argentina, had a full team of professional players) and 51–81 against the United States (that had a team of university players, among them Willis Reed and Don Kojis). In the game against Mexico (that had Manuel Raga and Carlos Quintanar in their team), the 35 points scored by Alberto Desimone were not enough to avoid an 82–84 defeat. Desimone's feat of 35 points in one game were an Argentine record in the competition until Luis Scola scored 37 against Brazil in the 2010 World Championship. The team was eliminated in the preliminary round, but finished first in the "consolation round", played by the 6 teams eliminated in the first group stage.
After the tournament, both of the teams centers received offers to continue their playing careers abroad. Desimone joined Pallacanestro Cantù in the Serie A of Italy and Zoilo Domínguez the St. Joseph College in the NCAA Division II of the United States. None of them ever played again for their national team.
After the 1963 World Championship, the Argentine national team disbanded for 2 years and 8 months. In 1966, under Gimnasia y Esgrima La Plata's coach Miguel Ángel Ripullone's guidance, Argentina finished second (behind the USA) in the Torneo de la Confraternidad Americana held in Cosquín. Subsequently, in that same year, the team finished last (among 13) in the Extra World Championship held in Chile. These two tournaments were the first international experiences for Ernesto Gehrmann and Alberto Cabrera, who went on to play many years for Argentina.
For the 1966 South American Basketball Championship to be held in Mendoza, and contrary to recent experiences, Argentina did a serious pre-tournament training. Alberto López (coach of River Plate and one of the 1950 World Champions) was selected as head coach, and joined by a coaching staff of two physical trainers, a physician and a kinesiologist. The squad for the tournament had a striking average height for the time, with Gehrmann (), brothers Miguel () and Tomás () Sandor, Miguel Ballicora (), Dante Massolini] () and Samuel Oliva (). Moreover, Ricardo Alix also took part of the team, after having declined for previous tournaments. With a good team and a good preparation, Argentina won the tournament back-to-back, defeating World Champions Brazil in the process, and breaking a 23-years run without winning a South American championship. That Argentine national team came to be nicknamed "Los Cóndores" (in English: "the Condors").
For the 1967 World Championship held in Uruguay, Miguel Ángel Ripullone returned as head coach, replacing Alberto López. The squad had five players from the previous South American Championship (Gehrmann, Tomás Sandor, Samuel Oliva, Carlos Mariani and Masolini) and three with World Championship experience (the aforementioned Oliva, Atilio Fruet and Héctor Barreneche). However, the players from the European leagues did not take part of the team. These included Carlos Ferello of Victoria Libertas Pesaro and Guillermo Riofrío, Alberto Desimone and Carlos D'Aquila of Pallacanestro Cantù (the latter two would go on to win the Serie A with the team in the 1967–68 season).
In the group stage, Argentina defeated Japan and Peru (who had beaten them in the last two South American Championships), and lost heavily against the Soviet Union by 39 points. In the final round, Argentina defeated only Uruguay, losing the other 5 games (United States, Soviet Union, Yugoslavia, Brazil and Poland). Ernesto Gehrmann's 18 points against the USA earned him an offer by CB Estudiantes, though he rejected it to sign for Palmeiras in Brazil. Argentina finished the competition 6th, the best position for the team until the 2002 Championship.
After the tournament, the debate in Argentine basketball became about the importance of having tall players.