By Eurohoops team / info@eurohoops.net
Real Madrid center Vincent Poirier said that leaving the the NBA to return to Europe was far from a difficult decision for him, considering also that he wanted to be on a team that would guarantee him playing time ahead of the Olympic Games.
“I told my agent that – for the Olympics – I wanted to play and if I had to go back to Europe, I’d go back to Europe,” Poirier mentioned in an interview for the website of the French national team. France is one of the eight teams that have already qualified to the Olympics and Poirier is expected to be part of the squad for Tokyo.
“It really wasn’t a difficult choice,” Poirier added. “I was very happy to sign with Real Madrid.” The French big man joined Real Madrid after the New York Knicks waived him four days after the acquired him via trade.
While the Olympics were a factor in Poirier’s decision, he would likely make the same choice either way. “Maybe I would have thought about it a little more, give myself one last chance, one last chance to play there [the NBA]. But in view of what I was feeling, personally and the last months there, the decision was carefully considered. If the same opportunity would’ve arisen without the Olympics, I’d accept the proposal.”
Poirier signed with the Boston Celtics in 2019 and played 23 games in his debut NBA season. He was traded to the Philadelphia 76ers last December and participated in 10 matches.
Before moving to the NBA, Poirier was widely considered as one of the top centers in Europe. In his last season with Baskonia, he averaged 11.9 points and 8.3 rebounds, making the All-EuroLeague Second Team.