Juan Núñez: "My style is to have fun"

• Spain national team puts foot and a half in the World Cup

On September 18, when the party at the Sheraton hotel in Berlin after the gold at the Eurobasket in Spain had just begun,

(Madrid, 2004) took the elevator to go to their rooms to rest.

They were the youngest of the expedition, inseparable from the academy of a Real Madrid in which none of them is anymore, although

, as everyone calls him, was not even part of that historic team.

had personally called him to be part of the celebrations and he took a train from Ulm.

Because there, in that small German city, in the humble Ratiopharm with a reputation for developing talents -

was the 7th in the 2020

and now plays for the Pistons -, the footsteps of one of the greatest pearls of Spanish basketball continue. , MVP in the gold of the European under 20. A point guard so different that his game of impossible passes breaks molds.

At 18, she continues to enjoy herself and having fun with the Spain of the Windows that this Monday (8:30 p.m., Teledeporte) seeks in Huelva against the Netherlands to definitively seal its qualification for the World Cup.

This Spain never tires of strong emotions. The truth is that against Italy it was a fun game.

It was good.

But it's not done yet.

We have to continue and win today.

When you arrive again, you see that off the pitch there is a very good relationship between everyone.

And that later inside then helps a lot, you can see that everyone is going for the same thing. He was at the gates of playing the Eurobasket, but Scariolo does not take his eyes off him. First of all, I am very grateful to him, because he is having confidence in me .

And, as he told me in the summer, he 'enjoys the experience and learns'.

And in that I am.How is he doing in his first months in Germany?It is a change of life more than basketball.

Living alone in a flat, getting organized... But it's going well, I'm adapting.

I'm not going to lie to you, I miss food.

ALBERTO NEVADOFEB

The greatest pearl of the quarry leaves Real Madrid to go to an unknown German club.

Surprise. It's a change.

It was a sad moment, I have been at Real Madrid since I was 11 years old, but I needed it to grow.

Madrid is one of the best teams in Europe, so for such a young boy it is difficult to stand out there.

I think this is a very good alternative.

And I'm happy with the decision.

I'm playing a lot of minutes, so for now everything is fine.

So keep working. How are you doing sportingly in Ulm? We have a good team and I think we played well.

It is true that we are young and inexperienced.

And almost all the games we have lost in extra time or in the final minutes, with very few points.

As soon as we start to better control those situations at the end of the game, we will be at the top.

Individually the same, I'm growing and I think the best is yet to come. Where does that risky, creative way of playing come from? To tell you the truth, I don't know.

Whenever I've played basketball, since I was very little, what I wanted and what my parents signed me up for was to have fun.

That's what they told me, 'if we sign you up it's for you to have a good time'.

It's my style and I have a good time.

ALBERTO NEVADOFEB

As the demand grows, do you continue to have a good time? You have to adjust a bit, because there is already a high level.

But the base is fun.

If not, it wouldn't make sense, at least for me, to play basketball.

I have a great time, that's why I play. Who are you looking at?

is a player that I have a lot of fun watching.

... they are creative players and I really like watching them play. Do those one-handed passes come from your years playing handball in your town, Villaviciosa de Odón? It could be, yes.

It is a sport in which long one-handed passes are very frequent.

I'm not going to lie to you, as a little boy I liked handball better.

But it is true that when I arrived in Madrid and the year before, which is when I started playing basketball, the truth is that I loved it from the beginning.

But before handball was my passion.

And besides, I wasn't bad at it. He passed the EVAU with flying colors just before a semi-final match against Baskonia.

How are you doing now with your studies? I am studying online from a University in Spain, the UNIR, Business Administration and Management.

And the truth is that I am combining it well and it is very comfortable.

I can connect to classes when I have time,

deliver the work and then take the online exams.

If I neglect him, I get a couple of cuffs at home. Where does his sports improvement go? I think that if I want to reach the level I want, I have to improve everything.

Physically I have to improve, but, let's see, I'm 18 years old, it's normal.

The shot too, but I'm not worried either, because I'm in good dynamics.

I have a coach in Germany with whom I am lucky enough to work only on individual technique.

I'm very happy and I notice a lot of progress. And the future, draft NBA, return to Madrid...? It's not for not answering you, but, honestly, I have no idea.

I only know that this year I am in Germany playing.

With everything that has happened from covid and all these strange situations, the injuries... you never know what is going to happen.

I am now focused on having a good year in Germany and improving as a player.

And what has to happen, will happen. But his friend Usman will tell him a lot about the NBA... With Usman I talk about everything except basketball.

He is very happy now.

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