By Antigoni Zachari / info@eurohoops.net
FC Barcelona landed Dante Exum in the mid-season and ever since the 26-year-old guard has been a key part of Sarunas Jasikevicius’ rotation.
Exum, the 5th overall pick of the 2014 by the Utah Jazz is exploring his first season overseas after spending seven seasons in the NBA between the Jazz and the Cleveland Cavaliers, and his contribution has earned him a contract extension for the remainder of the 2021-22 campaign, as Barcelona is aiming high both in EuroLeague and the Liga Endesa.
Exum talks about getting to know different cultures and places in Europe, on EuroLeague’s latest feature:
“When the opportunity arose to come to Barcelona, come to Europe, I wanted to grab it with both hands”, Exum tells. “I’ve never been on a team with guys coming from so many different cultures, different backgrounds, and growing up at different ages, so I think that has been the most fun. Getting to know people, their personalities, what makes them who they are and how they got to be here”.
“I’ve traveled a lot, but mostly it’s just been for basketball. The first week I got here, I went to Belgrade, to Greece, [where I’ve] never been [before]. I’ve been to Spain before but I’ve never fully experienced it like I am now”.
Exum made his debut against Barcelona’s archrival, Real Madrid, on December 10, 2021, an “eye-opening” experience as he describes.
“My EuroLeague debut was a crazy one! I got off the plane 2-3 days prior, I hadn’t slept, I practiced 2-3 times, I pretty much didn’t leave my hotel room and I was just trying to catch up on sleep, and it just happened to be an El Clasico! It was definitely an eye-opening experience. The energy, the fans, the whole craziness of it, I was like “Okay, I’m in Europe, this is a whole different ball game”.
Check out the full feature below:
Photo credit: EuroLeague