MVP of both the U17 World Cup and the U18 European Championship, Izan Almansa is the new nugget of Spanish basketball. This 19-year-old interior will nevertheless wait another year to join the NBA.
Jonathan Givony, ESPN's “Mr. Draft”, informed by the player's agents, actually announced that the young talent had withdrawn his name from the 2024 Draft.
What future then for Izan Almansa, before trying his luck again in 2025? Last season, he signed with the Ignite G-League team, averaging 11.7 points and 7.4 rebounds in 28 minutes. Except that we know that Team Ignite will disappear and the Spaniard must now find a new base.
His future could therefore be written in Europe or Australia, where he attracts the interest of the Perth Wildcats in the NBL, Alexandre Sarr's former team. A season in the “Next Stars” program to train young people for the NBA is an increasingly common route. It is for example the one followed by Josh Giddey, LaMelo Ball and therefore Alexandre Sarr and the Frenchman is now expected in the Top 2 of the 2024 Draft.
