Tristan da Silva saw an open lane from the top of the perimeter and cut to the basket.
As a help defender from Great Britain shifted toward him, he swung the ball around and dumped it off to an open teammate for an easy dunk.
It was a routine play with the German national team leading by almost 30 points as the third quarter of a Sept. 1 EuroBasket matchup against Great Britain at Tampere Deck Arena in Finland came to a close.
But for the 24-year-old Magic forward who is entering his second NBA season, the moment meant so much more.
The teammate who finished off the highlight sequence with a slam dunk? Tristan’s older brother Oscar da Silva.
“He dunked it and I looked backed at him … It was just funny to be on the court together and have a little two-man game right there,” Tristan da Silva told the Orlando Sentinel over a video call this week. “That was definitely pretty sweet.”
The play between the da Silva brothers was one of many memories he’ll cherish from the experience representing his home country for the first time on a continental stage this summer.
Germany ended up recording a 63-point victory over Great Britain (the largest at the competition in more than five decades) before it went onto capture the country’s second EuroBasket championship and first since 1993.
“Truly amazing,” da Silva said. “That’s really the only thing that fits it. It’s been huge to see the impact that it was, especially [during] the couple days that I spent in Germany after we won. It’s an honor really to be a part of that.”
While it was da Silva’s first time on the court for Germany, Magic forward Franz Wagner knows the feeling of helping his home country finish on top.
Wagner was at the center of Germany’s FIBA World Cup championship in 2023 and shined this summer helping the country become just the fourth to hold both the EuroBasket title and most recent World Cup crown at the same time.
Although da Silva was familiar with Wagner’s game in the NBA, he hadn’t witnessed it first-hand with Germany.
“It’s always easy, fun and just effortless to play with Franz because of the type of player and person he is,” da Silva said. “He played an amazing EuroBasket where he’s shown why he’s one of the best players in Europe and even one of the best in the NBA, in my opinion. I’m excited to see what he does this season.
“Playing for Germany together has brought us even closer,” da Silva added. “Because that had been a thing that he had done and I hadn’t, and now it’s a thing we can share and we can say we’ve succeeded in together just like we have with the Magic. It makes it that much more special, for sure.”
He hopes their experience together, along with Magic assistant coach Randy Gregory who served as an assistant for Germany, translates to success this upcoming year in Orlando under coach Jamahl Mosley.
“It just gives a set of tools from a sense of experience, a certain mindset,” da Silva said. “You want to relive that feeling of playing in the last couple of seconds in a big game and coming out the winner at the end, and then look back at all of the work you’ve put in and the preparation for it.
“Coach Mosley is very intrigued by what what we did and wants to learn and wants to see how he can get better off of it,” da Silva added. “With the way Franz played over the summer, a lot of guys are going to look his way and follow his lead in terms of demeanor and the way they approach the games.”
AP Photo/Sergei Grits
Magic forward Tristan da Silva (5) averaged 10.4 points, 3.6 rebounds and nearly a full steal (0.9) per contest during nine EuroBasket games with Germany this summer. (AP Photo/Sergei Grits)
Da Silva and Wagner head back to Europe this season when the Magic travel to Berlin and London in January for two games against the Grizzlies. It’s pure coincidence the games were scheduled before Germany won EuroBasket.
“It was already crazy to begin with,” da Silva said in reference to their ties to Germany. “[Given] how special of an event it is to host an NBA game outside the States, and then on top of that in your home country that’s not nearby, it’s amazing to see how much basketball has become an international sport.
“I don’t know how they’re going to handle ticket sales,” he added. “There’s definitely not enough room for everybody.”
The Magic open training camp Tuesday and play their first preseason game in Puerto Rico against the Heat on Oct. 4 before tipping off the regular season Oct. 22 vs. Miami at Kia Center.
But before da Silva flips the page on the summer, he doesn’t want to take for granted the time he spent with his older brother, who played at Stanford before Tristan spent four years at Colorado.
Despite just a three-year age gap, the two don’t spend much time together given their travel and work schedules. While Tristan plays in the NBA for the Magic, Oscar competes for Bayern Munich in the Bundesliga, Germany’s top pro club league.
“He’s really the reason I started playing basketball,” Tristan da Silva said. “Without him taking that leap of faith to come to the States and play college basketball, there’s no way I would have done that. I’m beyond grateful.
“I can’t really express how much he means to me. It just filled my heart to have him by my side and do this together. Having a summer that kind of melts everything together, it’s unforgettable.”
Jason Beede can be reached at jbeede@orlandosentinel.com