The NBA season begins tonight and again there will be a Spanish presence in it. The remittance is rejuvenated with the arrival of Garuba and Aldama and increases by one more. Marc Gasol is not available despite the fact that he has not announced that he is leaving the League despite the fact that he has been traded by the Lakers and cut by the Grizzlies to return to Spain with his family. The presence has been declining in recent years, but the Rubios, Ibaka and the Hernangómez brothers continue to bear the burden with pride. There will be six nationals who participate in 2021/22. We detail, focusing on each one, the options with which they enter the new campaign.
Ricky Rubio
· 30 years, Cavaliers, 17.8 million dollars.
There was movement and there will be movement, except surprise, this season with Ricky. His Timberwolves let him go to make a profit and the Cavaliers, who have no other aspiration than to train youngsters like Garland or the newcomer Mobley, may also do so. For a very simple reason: it is the last year of the El Masnou player’s contract. Next summer it will be free and it is a good bargaining chip although with an expensive contract. He is beginning to be considered as a possible substitute for the first time since he arrived in the NBA, a decade ago, and despite the fact that he is the current MVP of the World Cup and has just endorsed 38 points to the USA in the Olympic Games . In Cleveland he has Collin Sexton ahead and Kevin Pangos behind. The former is also a young value, but his lack of choral play has been repeatedly criticized and Ricky, if one of the two is not removed from the squad in the coming months, is a fundamental element to change that trend. The resurrection of Markkanen with Love by the hand, a case similar to that of Sexton with Rubio. Osman, Allen, Okoro or the Tacko Fall test instill, along with the names mentioned above, a feeling of improvement over the previous two years, even if they lack more progress and a quality piece or two. Cleveland is a complicated market and since the departure of LeBron James, who was there because he was from there, they have not yet found the key. Ricky, who has been undergoing constant changes for a year (Suns, Thunder, Wolves …), does not yet have an established role for this campaign, after which he will have to make decisions according to what has happened in it.
Serge Ibaka
· 32 years old, Clippers, 9.7 million dollars.
One of the only three Spanish champions continues one more year, although this time extending his contract in the summer being seriously injured. Next summer it will also be free. In the season that comes, it remains to be seen when and how he can rejoin, since a few days ago he has been seen training alone. There is progress, but slow. In the Clippers it is not the only unknown of that nature, since Kawhi Leonard should return to action around next spring. The season can be long for a team that, however, maintains a good block to fight in the Western Conference. Lue noticed the lack of Ibaka a lot, since together with Batum they gave a lot of versatility playing as a ‘5’ to the attacks that were proposed and helped to diversify the game beyond playing high with Zubac or low with Morris. Serge’s undoubted quality clashes with physical ability, which causes a large question mark to be placed next to any prediction.
Willy Hernangómez
· 27 years old, Pelicans, 2.3 million dollars.
Willy’s dream continues to lengthen and this season he has, in a team he already knows, the opportunity to climb a little further with a contract consolidated over time. The coach, Willie Green, is new and has to convince him, but he starts off as a good replacement for Jonas Valanciunas, who will have the weight of starting as a starter at the center position unless he wants to try something new with Zion Williamson, the star of the team. which is still being asked for a level up. The franchise is suffering from Zion’s little connection with his teammates and the environment, and New Orleans is a difficult place to hook other people in basketball terms, so a drastic change during the season cannot be ruled out. The Spanish pivot, with experience to get performance in a few minutes, must squeeze himself again to get his head out and be valuable, especially in attack, for the team.
Juancho Hernangómez
· 26 years old, Celtics, 6.1 million dollars.
The stage in Minnesota has ended bitterly, especially after the injury and the misinterpretation that was made of her in the face of the Olympics. Juancho went to Memphis, but they did not have him there and ended up in the Celtics, where Brad Stevens is beginning to build his scheme now from the position of manager in the offices. Tatum, Brown and Smart lead a group with experience in common but having achieved little for what they are presumed to be. Level reinforcements such as Schröder, Horford, Kanter and Richardson have been achieved, but they are players with an easy inclination (the Dominican, less) to show two very different faces on the court and without knowing which one is going to play at any given moment. If they wanted him to be a forward, Boston would have an eager asset in Juancho, but it remains to be seen if they prefer to use him in that position or at power forward. Absolutely capital that is inspired by the triple, the tool with which the seasons are validated to players of your profile.
Usman Garuba
· 19 years old, Rockets, 2.3 million dollars.
Varied options for Usman, who comes with a good baggage from his time at Real Madrid. The problem is that he has Wood in front of him as an interior reference, a Sengun who is looked favorably upon and the focus is being placed on his shortcomings, such as exterior launch or pot creation, rather than on his abilities, on all defensive. The option of going through the development league is not ruled out in his case, knowing how Houston works, but he should be gaining integers in the rotation as the weeks go by. They are in a franchise with no short-term aspirations, they just want to develop the inexperienced talent at hand, so Garuba seems to be in the right place.
Santi Aldama
· 20 years old, Grizzlies, 1.9 million dollars.
Santi will not have it easy on his arrival in the professional league even though he knows basketball in the United States closely. He is the first Spaniard to play in the NBA after being drafted directly from college. It lacks that, the experience of other compatriots who have trained before, mainly in Spain. It seems that in Memphis he may have playing opportunities, but they are scarce, although there are many young people who are burning with the desire to play good minutes. Jenkins will have to play with the rotation to balance a team that, let’s not forget, aspires to be among the top eight in the West. Aldama has no other challenge other than that of continuous but sustained progress, he is not expected to break first and foremost with the need to gain muscle and know the peculiarities of the high level he has.
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