Juancho Hernángomez has just started a new page in his history with the NBA. the spanish player has debuted with the San Antonio Spurs, his fifth team in the North American league, the fourth with which he plays (his time in Memphis was testimonial). So far it has been a brief first contact, disputing 1 minute and 43 seconds in the loss against the Brooklyn Nets (102-117). A new page, we said, that surely hopes to be more profitable than the last one. Because what Juancho has experienced in Boston will not be among the best experiences of his career.
The power forward He has gone unnoticed by the Celtics. What had seemed like excellent news at the beginning of the season, reaching a historic franchise, being able to wear one of the most important jerseys in the NBA and being on a team with aspirations in the East, turned into bad news over the weeks. dream. Juancho has hardly counted for his coach, Ime Udoka, signing the lowest numbers since he left for the United States: 18 games played, none as a starter, with an average of 5.3 minutes per game. 1.1 points, 1.4 rebounds and 16.7% in triples. A disaster. However, Juancho does not seem to hold a grudge for this whole situation.
“It was a tough moment. I feel like I could have helped the teamI was ready for the opportunity I was very excited to play for Boston, but it didn’t work out. as everyone thought. But I do not regret. It is what it is. I tried to help young people, they are very talented, I tried to be a good partner there and do everything I could. It was a great experience. Great group of guys, great talent, but it was not the right time for me. There was no room for me.”.
These statements were made to the San Antonio Expres News, where he recounted the bizarre way in which he found out about his transfer to the Spurs: “It’s a crazy story. I was dining out Tuesday night and I didn’t have my phone because someone stole it after the Philly game (Jan 14).”. It wasn’t until he returned home that he found out what had happened: “My brother had tried to contact me. ‘Oh, good luck on your new team. It’s going to be amazing.’ I told him? Where I go?’ San Antonio said and I was very happy. It’s a great opportunity for me.”.
For his part, Udoka wanted to explain the reasons why he had hardly had Spanish, which he curiously spoke quite well: “I love his approach, the work he kept putting in and his professionalism in cheering the guys on. It was nothing he didn’t do. It was more of what Grant Williams did early on shooting the ball and some of the defensive stuff. And sometimes we’ve played with small teams…Hopefully, for him, it’s a better situation where he’ll have a better chance.”