Former Raptors fan fave wins Euroleague title
Juancho Hernangomez may have seen his NBA career come to an end with the Toronto Raptors, but that hasn’t stopped him from going on to find a bit of basketball glory.
On Sunday, Hernangomez reached the pinnacle of European basketball, with his Panathinaikos side coming on top as Euroleague champions over Real Madrid, winning the one-game final by a 95-80 score.
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Hernangomez put up five points and four rebounds in 19 minutes of action off the bench in the final.
Hernangomez isn’t the only one on the championship team with NBA ties; longtime NBA vets Kendrick Nunn, Kostas Antetokounmpo (brother of Giannis), Jerian Grant (brother of Jerami), and 2019 Virginia national championship hero Kyle Guy were all also on Panathinaikos’ roster.
It’s the third major team honour for Hernangomez, who also won the 2019 World Cup and 2022 Eurobasket with the Spanish national team.
Hernangomez averaged 2.9 rebounds, 2.9 points and 0.6 assists in 42 games for the Raptors in the 2022-23 campaign. He played an average of 14.6 minutes per game.
Though he wasn’t necessarily the biggest star for his on-court play in Toronto, he came to the city with a considerable amount of fame after starring as Bo Cruz in the 2022 Netflix film Hustle alongside Adam Sandler and a host of NBA stars.
After spending much of the 2022-23 season in Toronto, he was waived in February 2023 to make room for Will Barton.
In his time in the NBA, Hernangomez played seven seasons for six teams, also suiting up for the Denver Nuggets, Utah Jazz, Minnesota Timberwolves, Boston Celtics, and San Antonio Spurs. He averaged five points and 3.3 rebounds in 339 regular-season games.
Up next for the Greek side is a chance to win a second trophy this season, with their own domestic playoffs still going on. After a 23-1 regular season, their postseason begins with a semifinal matchup this Thursday against Aris BC.