By Giorgos Adamopoulos/ info@eurohoops.net
A unique path led Walter Tavares to Real Madrid in 2017, way beyond an unsuccessful effort to establish himself in the NBA.
Proud to be a two-time Turkish Airlines EuroLeague champion and keen on adding more trophies as a leading player of Los Blancos, the 32-year-old center talked to Eurohoops about many topics, including moving his talents to the NBA between 2015 and 2017.
“I didn’t have an opportunity,” he described the stint with the Atlanta Hawks, “Maybe I didn’t get to Atlanta the right time. When I got there, they did not have the best Atlanta team ever. Now, they have great players, they went to the Playoffs so many times.”
He logged 11 appearances in the 2015-16 Regular Season and was waived after one game in the 2016-17 season. After a cup of tea with the Raptors 905 in the G League, he signed with the Cleveland Cavaliers, late in the 2016-17 journey.
“In Cleveland too,” he continued, “They said they loved me. They wanted me to stay in the G League to wait for the spot. I was mad. So, I decided to try a new thing to be happy as a basketball player again.”
Before joining Madrid in 2017, he was waived by the Cavs and went through yet another brief spell with the Raptors 905.
“I started to hate basketball,” the towering center said on his situation, “The main thing was to be happy again, to work hard and improve on the court.”
“Basketball saved my life”
Born in Cape Verde, his relationship with basketball was limited to knowing about Michael Jordan and his brand until becoming 17. Discovered by a German tourist, the sudden changes led him to Gran Canaria and from an emerging star in the ACB and 7DAYS EuroCup to becoming the 43rd pick of the 2014 NBA draft.
“I didn’t know nothing about basketball,” the told Eurohoops, “Basketball saved my life. I am going to die on the court every time a get a chance. So, no injury is going to put me out of the game.”
The conversation additionally included how the guards are taking over the sport.
“Now, it’s the game of guards. I think it used to be the game of bigs. I think the game has changed. Now, we can see everybody shooting threes, bigs too. Everybody wants to be a point guard, everybody wants to get the ball in their hands,” Tavares told Eurohoops, “This era is point guard basketball.”
Despite standing at 2.21 meters and striving in the paint, a game-winning effort to clinch a championship lives rent-free in the head of Tavares.
“I always dream about one day doing that. I think it’s any player’s dream, when you go to bed or when you dream something big on basketball, winning a big trophy like EuroLeague, with a play by you,” he mentioned.
“Nothing happened”
The Maio native also talked about the interest of Panathinaikos Aktor in his services during the offseason, before he penned a five-year contract extension with the team based in the capital of Spain.
“Nothing happened,” he stressed, “My focus was always staying in Madrid. I respect a lot the Panathinaikos fans. They are a great team, make a lot of investments on their team.”
Walter Tavares on Eurohoops TV
Photo Credit: EuroleagueBasketball.net