Lhe first steps in the NBA are not easy for almost anyone. It is difficult to get used to a dizzying pace both on the field and off it, inexperience weighs and gaining the coach’s trust is complicated unless they are prodigious youngsters. This is what was happening to Usman Garuba, the Spanish rookie of the Rockets, who in addition to the above has been joined by physical problems. Now, an injury to his left wrist will keep him out of action for an indefinite time. You may have to go under the knife. It is being a hard landing in the best League in the world.
Garuba, the youngest Spaniard to debut in the NBA (19 years and 225 days), was chosen in 23rd place in last year’s draft. The ceremony was held when he was focused on the selection, as he participated in the Tokyo Games. That already complicated his entry into the team. He played three games in the Summer League and, despite the fatigue accumulated by the Olympics and the trips, his defensive work stood out. His coaches praised his effort and intensity in games, but when the regular season began, the good words did not translate into minutes despite the fact that the team is in a process of reconstruction.
Team star Christian Wood, Daniel Theis and Turkish rookie Alperen Sengun share the vast majority of the Rockets’ interior minutes. Garuba is the player on the squad who averages the fewest minutes per game: 7.0. In the total for the season, only 105. His averages in the 15 games he has played are 1.3 points, 2.3 rebounds and 0.4 assists with 33% shooting from the field and 15.4% from the field. the triple.
The big problem of the Spanish pvot is the lack of continuity. The top of consecutive games in which he has played has been five. Lack of opportunity has been joined by unwelcome physical problems. He was going to have minutes when Wood was sanctioned with a game by the Texan franchise for a case of indiscipline. Right there Garuba tested positive for coronavirus. Now there is an injury to the left wrist that seems serious. “I talked to him about it and he said, ‘Yeah, I fell, but I didn’t think it was such a bad thing.’ But it turns out it is a pretty bad injury. He’s going to be out for a while,” said coach Stephen Silas, that he did not mention how the injury occurred but did say that it might require surgery.
That happened after the tough loss to the Spurs by 104-134. Losing is another of the obstacles that Garuba is having to fight against. Coming from Real Madrid, he is not used to it. The Rockets are the worst team in the West and the third worst in the NBA behind only the Magic and Pistons. His balance is 14-34. Last season, before leaving the white team, the pvot lost 23 games throughout the course. Of the 15 in which he has participated, he has only won two and did not have a minute in the surprising streak of seven consecutive victories that the team lived between November and December.
Garuba has twice been assigned to the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, the Rockets’ linked team in the G League. What seemed like a step back were opportunities to play, pick up the pace and show what he is capable of. In those periods in a competition where individualism prevails as players jump onto the court in search of an NBA contract, the Spaniard has played five games with averages of 9.0 points, 9.4 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 1.6 recoveries and 1.4 blocks in 25 minutes of play.
Now, with this wrist injury, he suffers an indefinite hiatus that leaves a season that was already being complicated enough on edge.