Exceptional screen space. The Mikael Jantuse has the opportunity to play in the top league of basketball in the NBA summer league in the ranks of the Golden State Warriors.
The 23-year-old student of Helsinki’s Wartti Basket got a place in the summer league thanks to his performances in the three-day minicamp organized by the Warriors at the beginning of June.
The exceptionality of the invitation is also highlighted by the fact that Jantunen is only the fifth Finn in the summer league all the time. “Sample window games” have reached him before Hanno Möttölä, Petteri Koponen, Erik Murphy and current NBA star Lauri Markkanen.
Jantunen has not remained a statistic. The first summer league game against the Charlotte Hornets was still getting used to (16 game minutes, two points and five rebounds), but in the second game he emerged.
In the 22 minutes he played, Jantunen scored 16 points and grabbed five rebounds, being the second best scorer on his team. That’s good for a player who is often considered the best defender of the Finnish men’s national team.
After the summer league, the memorable experiences will continue when, at the end of August, he heads to the World Championships in Okinawa, Japan, with Susijengi.
– I’m really excited that I’m here now, Jantunen tells Urheilu by phone from Las Vegas.
– The World Cup is also pretty big on my calendar. I guess you can at least say that I’m living the best time of my professional career now.
Familiar people from university days
The successful second match in the summer league was proof of Jantunen’s ability to take responsibility when needed.
– I am glad that I succeeded in that situation. It makes the rest of the summer league easier. I’m not saying it takes the pressure off, but has been able to show. The competition here has not come as a surprise, he says.
Jantunen, who played his first season in Basket Treviso in Italy, has taken a step forward in his career season by season.
Jantunen, who played college basketball in the United States for two seasons in Utah, turned professional for the 2021–22 season. At that time, he immediately won the Belgian championship in BC Oostende. That was followed by a transfer to Italy, now an invitation to join the Warriors.
– The experience here has already been very great. A whole of a different scale when compared to other events I’ve been to. You can see it in the media coverage of this, it has been different than anywhere else. “The mood of the big world”, when the framework is in order and we are taken such good care of, he describes.
The university years have brought help with new experience as well.
– It hasn’t caused any harm at all. Some of the connections I’ve had then have been a big deal. I have also met acquaintances here and some people still remember that I played in the United States back then, he says.
– University basketball and this are of course different things, although familiar players have also appeared.
No expectations for an NBA career yet
In the NBA summer league, fresh and more familiar basketball players fight for screen space in the sun. Several current NBA stars have tried the summer league, but it is not a guarantee of a career in the top league, even if the games go well.
Jantunen is still fully pursuing a place in the NBA.
– Of course I’m serious about playing here and giving displays. However, I’m not counting on playing in North America next season. I’m playing here as well as possible and I want to see what opportunities it opens up. I still don’t think about it beyond that.
– I am serious here, but there is still a long way to go before I would play here in the future.
However, Jantunen is in the right direction. The 204-centimeter winger, who was hailed as a Finnish super promise in his junior days, has taken a longer path towards the top. However, he is happy with it at the moment.
– Everyone has their own path in their career. My goal has still remained the same, i.e. I want to constantly play at the highest possible level. If every year or every other year you progress to a harder level to play, then it will go pretty well. Let’s see where this leads, surely this is a good start for something, he reflects.
The summer league is also a big screen place in the sense that coaches from all over the basketball world arrive to watch the players’ performances. Even if the opportunity in the NBA doesn’t open up, it can be offered somewhere else.
– A lot of people have their eyes directed here, we are looking for players here. That opportunity to play here must be used to advantage. Every game is watched, in every one there is an opportunity to give screens, Jantunen says knowingly.