Madrid, Sep 1 (EFE) .- Usman Garuba (Madrid, 2002), Spanish basketball player for the Houston Rockets in the NBA, does not want to compare himself with other players and declared at the press conference prior to his flight to Houston that “Luka Doncic there is only one “and they are” different players “.
The 19-year-old center wanted to avoid any comparison with the Slovenian and said that they are only similar in that they have played for Real Madrid and that they will go to the NBA with the same age: “Doncic there is only one. I am different and I will focus on what If he stands out, I’ll be happy for him, but I’ll go my own way. We are different players and people. “
Garuba was presented as a Kellogg ambassador at the Museum of the Spanish Basketball Federation (FEB) and the Houston Rockets player praised his season at a press conference, which culminated in the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games: “It has been a season of learning and that has served me a lot. I am very happy, I have played the Olympic Games, something that at my age is very difficult “.
‘La pantera de Azuqueca’ was selected by Houston in number 23 of the first round of the NBA draft and will leave in the coffers of Real Madrid about three million euros after the agreement between the Spanish club and the American franchise. Garuba, who this summer played the NBA summer league with his new team, will travel to the American country this Friday.
The Madrid player assured that “getting (to the NBA) is easy”, but that the important thing is “staying, working daily and keeping in mind that you have to improve.”
Rockets stands out now for being a team made up of very young people and called to evolution. Garuba believes that this can be good for him: “It can benefit me that it is a young team. The demand has been maximum these years and in the team I go to the goal is to improve every day, it suits me. I have improved a lot but I have not had the ability to do things that I can do now. “
About his role in the team, Garuba confessed that he had spoken with his new coach: “I have spoken with my coach about my position and I will occupy several to do different things in the game, that’s the idea.”
“He does not force me to play with the big stars of the NBA, it is an extra motivation. I really want to be close to them and learn,” he said. “There is a lot of pressure. This year I have worked a lot on the mental aspect and it has helped me a lot. Sometimes it is underestimated,” he stressed when asked how he will handle the pressure of the NBA.
Regarding the selection, Garuba stated that he would like to “step forward” to take on chevrons. “There is going to be a renewal in the national team. The great players we have had are getting older and I feel that I have to take that big step in the national team. It would be a dream to take it to take the team to the top,” he concluded.