Spain will have six representatives in the NBA during the 2021-2022 season, a figure that shows that the generational change also keeps intact the relevance of national basketball in the American league. To the consolidated presences of Ricky Rubio, Serge Ibaka and the Hernangómez brothers now join a new batch of young people, led by Usman Garuba and Santi Aldama. Marc Gasol still has not decided his future, although he is listed as a free agent in the American league.
This is how the course is presented for our representatives at the top of North American basketball:
Marc Gasol (Free Agent)
An unknown
The Catalan pivot, after a toxic year in the Lakers who treated him as an expendable piece in their project, ended up being transferred to Memphis this summer. Shortly after, the Grizzlies terminated his contract under mutual agreement.
After passing the covid-19, Marc was losing prominence and even stayed on the bench for many games after the failed bet by Andre Drummond in the middle of the season. The arrival of his substitute in the starting five was a jug of cold water for the veteran player, who despite everything advocated to lower his head and continue working for the benefit of the group.
In the 2020-2021 season, Marc averaged his worst numbers of his professional career: 5 points and 4.1 rebounds with a 41% accuracy in triples in 19 minutes of play. In recent weeks, three options have flown over Marc’s status: retirement, signing for the Warriors or return to Spain with Girona.
Marc Gasol celebrates a basket with the Los Angeles Lakers
Ricky Rubio (Cleveland Cavaliers)
Currency exchange and satiety
The Masnou point guard starred in one of the two great market movements on the night of the Draft. After a single year of presence on his return to Minnesota, the Catalan will return to pack his bags to join the Cleveland Cavaliers, a team that plans to use him as a mentor to its young promises.
This is Ricky’s fourth transfer in just two years. He left the Jazz for the Suns, and from Arizona he went to the Thunder for a couple of days before joining the Timberwolves, the team that selected him in the 2009 Draft.
After passing through Salt Lake City and Phoenix before the emergence of both groups, Ricky eagerly returned to Minnesota. The season, however, was a nightmare and the team became one of the worst in the NBA. In the midst of this climate, and with the weight of the pandemic, the point guard signed one of his worst courses at the individual level: 8.6 points and 6.4 assists in 26 minutes per game.
There are still questions about the role he will have in Cleveland, and whether he will start from the starting five or from the bench. In his first Cavs appearances, Ricky has made clear his ancestry as the leader of a locker room packed with young talent.
Usman Garuba (Houston Rockets)
Starting the dream from scratch
The Spanish interior, selected in 23rd place in the 2021 Draft, will begin his adventure in the American league at the age of 19. The Rockets are a team that hit rock bottom last season after the transfer of James Harden to the Brooklyn Nets. The team ended up broken and with 17 wins and 55 losses on their locker.
The focus of the franchise is to start from scratch with Jalen Green, number two of the last Draft, and with young talent of first level like Christian Wood, who already borders on All Star level.
In Houston they have valued, above all, the great athletic and defensive capacity of the former Real Madrid player, who will earn 4 million for two seasons in his first stage in the American league. In preseason, Garuba has not had too many minutes and it has been rumored that he can combine the NBA with the G-League.
Usman Garuba fights for a split ball in his Summer League debut with the Houston Rockets.
Serge Ibaka (Los Angeles Clippers)
Taking care of the back
The Spanish pivot suffered last year due to a painful and annoying injury in the lower back. His back made life miserable and he missed 30 straight regular season games. In his comeback in the playoffs, he lasted just two games and 11 minutes on the court before retiring due to injury.
The player, after undergoing surgery to try to solve the problem, decided not to risk an adventure in free agency and chose to accept his player option that ensures another year with the Clippers, who have the challenge of starting the course without its big star Kawhi Leonard. The shooting guard’s crusaders will determine how successful the campaign can be for a team that wants the ring at all costs.
Ibaka, if he recovers his back, will finally be able to contribute regularly to the impact that was already felt in his 41 games last season: 11.1 points, 6.7 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.1 blocks per game in 23 minutes of play.
Santi Aldama (Memphis Grizzlies)
A pleasant surprise
One of the surprises of the Draft and unexpected new Spanish representative in the US league. While there was no question that he was going to make it to the NBA at some point or another, few expected his pick with No. 30 in the 2021 Draft.
Aldama, who has followed an unprecedented path so far for a Spanish player, comes from the small university of Loyola Maryland, and in the last year he averaged 21.2 points and 10.1 rebounds per game. His performance in the NBA is still unknown. The Canarian interior arrives in Memphis at the age of 20, the same age with which Pau Gasol made history two decades ago.
His good performances with the lower categories of the Spanish team (he was MVP of the European 2019), foresee a good future for the young player. So far, the Grizzlies have signed him for three years with a guaranteed contract.
Santi Aldama tries to block an opponent in an NCAA game with Loyola Maryland.
Willy Hernangómez (New Orleans Pelicans)
Trust Earned
Last season, the older Hernangómez brothers took advantage of his opportunities with the Pelicans, who have re-signed him to a three-year contract after exploring free agency. The continuity of the pivot was in doubt, but his great final stretch of the course has earned him the trust of the Louisiana franchise.
Willy finished with averages of 7.8 points and 7.1 rebounds in 18 minutes per game, participating in 47 and starting in 12. His reliability in the inside game (55.6% accuracy in field goals) have allowed him follow your …