Jaime Echenique debuted Thursday in victory for 110-93 from Washington about Cleveland and made history by becoming the first Colombian to play in the NBA.
The 2.11-meter pivot took advantage of the wave of coronavirus infections to make a place in the Wizards squad and had the opportunity to enter to play the last three minutes, when the game was already settled.
His form ended up empty, but the 24-year-old did not care: “I have no words. It has been an incredible day. I am simply happy for me, for my family, for my country and for the people who believed in me.”
“Right now it only passes through my mind to keep working, keep exploiting my abilities, keep believing in me. This is neither the end nor the beginning: this is the continuation of all the work that I have done throughout my career. Yes, it is worth dreaming ”, he continued, visibly moved.
Colombia had to wait 75 years, but finally has its first representative in the best basketball league in the world and, in this way, joins Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay and Venezuela as the only South American countries to achieve it.
“You don’t have to let someone tell you no. A lot of people closed the door on me, told me that I wasn’t good enough, that I was lazy, that I was just tall. But I worked and never let those comments get to me. head. They ended up making me stronger, “concluded Baby Duncan.
The NBA fires a true legend: Sam Jones passed away
At 88 years old and in a hospital in Florida, this Thursday the second highest winner in the history of the League died: 10 titles in 12 seasons, all of them with the legendary Celtics of the ’60s. A five-time All-Star, he was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1984 and was on the recent list of the best 75 players in NBA history. He was noted primarily for his ability to score, especially in decisive moments. He retired at the age of 36, when he scored 24 points to defeat the Lakers in Game 7 of the 1969 Finals.
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