As a youngster growing up in the Czech Republic, Tomas Satoransky dreamed of someday playing in the NBA, but he never imagined getting a chance to participate in the Olympics. Given that his native country had never qualified for the Summer Games in men’s basketball, becoming one of 450 NBA players in the league somehow seemed more realistic.
Satoransky fulfilled a lifelong goal in 2016, when he made his official NBA debut for Washington, after being drafted by the Wizards four years earlier. To his amazement, in 2021 he helped lead the Czech Republic to an Olympic berth, knocking off higher-ranked countries along the way.