Santi Aldama, 22, follows the tradition of the Gasol brothers. He plays for the Memphis Grizzlies, as Pau and Marc, both NBA champions, did in their day, and emerges as the future, one of the most promising players of the new generation to take over for the Spanish team.
"I hope that this dream comes true soon," he answers when asked about his aspiration to participate in the World Cup to be held this coming summer.
He has just left the track where he has been training. "Really, I've never had so many journalists interested in talking to me," she jokes from her particular height of at least 2.13 meters. “Since I've been in Memphis I've grown,” she says. And she doesn't mean it in the figurative sense, but in the literal. He has gained width (more muscle) and length.
There are only a few hours left for those from Memphis to play the game against the Lakers in Los Angeles. Aldama does not hide the impression caused by seeing the magnificent Crypto.com Arena pavilion with the 20,000 seats covered in Pau Gasol's yellow shirt.
"I think it was my first NBA jersey I had and seeing it here excites me a lot, let's see if they leave me one to take home," he says.
He feels proud that he has won this lottery that his team, the same one that facilitated the landing of the greatest of the Gasols in this league, is the guest for the retirement ceremony on the 16th that the Catalan wore in the Californian squad and with the one who won two rings.
“Pau has been key in the development of my career. He was one of the players that I noticed as a child, and being able to experience this recognition in the first person is something that I will carry with me for the rest of my life, ”he confesses. "The fact that Pau is a benchmark for so many Spanish players makes it even more special," he adds.
His career differs from that of the Gasols or Juan Carlos Navarro, who was also part of the Grizzlies. The Canarian Aldama was forged in his school, he was not in the youth ranks of any team in the Spanish competition (ACB) nor did he play in its championship. At the age of 17, he made the leap to the United States by enrolling in the Loyola Maryland University team. His evolution, in his second season in the NBA, is making him an important player for the Grizzlies.
"I'm still learning, I'm improving every day and I try to help the team win as much as possible," he stresses. "Being a starter would be great, but the important thing is to win," he continues. In addition to gaining centimeters, Aldama analyzes himself from the sporting perspective: “I think I have grown in consistency, in being able to help the team in more ways, offensively and also defensively. And this is a bit of the development plan that exists, to try to be a little better in everything game by game”.
According to his vision, "the game in the NBA is quite different, especially when it comes to space." And the most difficult thing is that "there are certain players who can score baskets from any zone, like Damian Lillard or Stephen Curry, it is very difficult to defend them because, although it seems that they are out of range, they are always a threat."
He maintains that "you are learning to play against the veterans", although he emphasizes that the Grizzlies are a young team. "We had a great time," he says, "it seems like you're playing with your friends and it shows when you see us play basketball."
The question about Ja Morant, star of his team, removed for displaying himself with a gun, is declared inadmissible.
