Raptors' Poeltl representing Austria in the NBA

Josh Lewenberg

TSN Raptors Reporter

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TORONTO - Since training camp opened in late September, six different Austrian journalists have made the nearly nine-hour trip to Canada for the purpose of witnessing history.

Jakob Poeltl, the young man they've travelled all this way to see, has noticed the extra attention he's been getting. It's unusual for a first-year player to be summoned by the media after almost every practice so early in his career, but for the Raptors' centre it comes with the territory.

Here, he's just a rookie, one of 58 to debut around the league this past week, but back home in Vienna — more than 6,400 kilometres away — he stands alone. At just 21 years of age he's quickly become a source of national pride.

"It's cool and it's kind of crazy at the same time," said Poeltl, Austria's first ever NBA player. "I sort of get it, but it's hard to [fully] get it since I'm not actually there, where all the hype is happening. I just see it on social media. I notice it because there are media people flying all the way over here to Toronto from Austria. That's how I notice it, but I don't think I even get the chance to notice the full extent of it because I'm not at home."

Austria isn't exactly known for its basketball exports, which is what makes Poeltl's journey so unique. The country is not among the 93 included in FIBA's most recent world rankings, and its national team hasn't qualified for EuroBasket — the continent’s biennial basketball championship — since 1977. 

Poeltl started playing ball when he was six. It would've been tough to find NBA highlights on television at the time, let alone stumble upon a game of pickup in the park. Youth programs were sparse but his parents signed him up for a small basketball club and he immediately fell in love with the sport.

"It's just a sport that doesn't get a whole lot of attention," he said. "So there's not a whole lot of money in it. The courts we used to play on were pretty bad and small. It's usually big groups with only one coach at a time. So it's hard to work your way out of there."

Ernst Weiss, an editor for Austria Press Agency, just returned home after spending a week in Toronto and hopes to be back later in the season. For him, being in attendance to watch Poeltl play his first NBA game at the Air Canada Centre last Wednesday was a special moment.

Weiss has known Poeltl since 2007. His son was playing for an Under-12 club and Poeltl — who had just turned 12 — was also on the team. He was tall for his age and already playing in the post but, according to Weiss, he wasn't the tallest kid on the team.

That resonates with the player he is today. He may not be the biggest, the quickest or the most athletic on the court but, even at a young age, there's always been something special about him.

"You could see at the time how talented he was," Weiss said. "He always was as a young kid. He was outstanding.

"I think he always was focused. All the coaches you talk to, here in Toronto too, will tell you he's coachable. He recognizes [if] you tell him [something] once and he'll do it correctly. He's really a great guy."

It wasn't until he was 15, playing for the Under-16 Austrian team in an international tournament, that Poeltl had a chance to compare himself to other European talents.

"That's when I noticed that this might actually happen for me," he remembers.

Now, all these years later, the Raptors' 7-footer hopes to inspire kids back home with his success story. 

"We're a small country," Weiss said of Austria, which has a population of less than nine million. "Very small country in basketball, [but] kids now see it is possible. It's not only a dream. We have this first guy and so it is possible, you can make it. That's really important."

"I really hope it's going to have a great and positive impact on our Austrian basketball because there's still lot that needs to improve. I think we're on our way. It's just a matter of improving with our youth work and improving the basketball leagues in Austria so that young players actually have a chance and get some great competition, players to learn from."

Poeltl was Toronto's ninth-overall selection back in June's NBA draft after two NCAA seasons with the Utah Utes. While it's not uncommon for lottery picks to step right into the regular rotation, it's rare to see them do it on a winning team. With a maturity level and basketball intellect well beyond his years, Poeltl impressed in camp and when an early opportunity presented itself — courtesy of Lucas Nogueira's ankle injury — he took advantage. Poeltl appears to be locked in as the team's backup centre, at least for the time being, and he hasn't looked out of place.

"He's a great kid," head coach Dwane Casey said. "The future is going to be bright for him. He's not who he's going to be at all. I mean he's making mistakes now but they're learning mistakes. He's going to continue to improve. He's going to continue to get the time to play. So he's a great ambassador for the country and a great kid from a great family and we're just excited to have him in our program."

Having barely gotten his feet wet in the NBA, Poeltl is already the face of basketball in his country. It’s a burden for any young player to carry, but he doesn't look at it as pressure. While reaching this level is an accomplishment he can be proud of, it's not enough. To make a real impact on the future of the sport in Austria he knows he has to be something more than a pioneer, a trailblazer. Like Germany's Dirk Nowitzki, Argentina's Manu Ginobili, Spain's Gasol brothers and Canada's Steve Nash before him, Poeltl aspires to become an icon. Needless to say, he's got some work to do.

"I think if I actually start thinking about it maybe I would feel the pressure a little bit," he said. "I try to just basically live my life and worry about myself right now because there is enough I need to worry about out here in Toronto. But it's definitely a cool story and it means a lot to me to be the first Austrian to accomplish such a thing."