By Antigoni Zachari / info@eurohoops.net
The world around us changes drastically. Rarely do things remain the same. Time and continuity always clash, especially when it comes to sports. Hundreds of players come and go in between teams every year, though there are some whose names become synonymous with their clubs.
7DAYS EuroCup presents the chance to observe the cases of five of such players, veterans who have been aging like fine wine alongside their beloved teams, growing with them through thick and thin. Their achievement is really unique if we take into consideration that the market is truly global these days and many teams seek to recruit players with just their type of quality and valuable experience.
But these five gentlemen have gone against the tide and remained loyal to their clubs for years. Let’s find out who they are!
Carlos Suarez – Unicaja Malaga
Age: 34
Time spent with the club: 7 years (2013-)
Madrid native Suarez found a home in Malaga when he signed in 2013, and on the flipside the team found a trusted leader to build on for its future generation. His years of experience in Estudiantes and Real Madrid added up to an appealing package for Unicaja, which aimed to remain in the elite of European basketball.
Indeed, their road together has been successful, as the team lifted the 2017 7DAYS EuroCup title in the power forward’s most productive year in the competition. Aged 31 back then, Suarez was a mentor to Unicaja’s fairly young squad and keeps up with the same role to this date.
Kostas Kaimakoglou – Unics Kazan
Age: 37
Time spent with the club: 8 years (2012-)
If there’s anything more timeless than his legendary beard, it’s his presence at UNICS. Kaimakoglou left his home country, Greece, with hopes to excel as a forward in Europe, and he found his fate in Russia.
The 2011 EuroLeague champion soon had his breakout, first season with the Russian club, and would become one of the team’s most loyal fighters through the years. Since then, he has become a pillar of stability on and off the court for the team, where more Greeks have joined in, with head coach Dimitris Priftis being the prime example.