Gabriel Deck improving, hoping to pave path for other Argentinian athletes

Gabriel Deck was thrown into the action immediately for the Thunder. Head coach Mark Daigneault said he has improved each game.

The day after Gabriel Deck debuted for the Oklahoma City Thunder, he talked about how well the organization had been treating him.

“From the moment I got on the plane in Madrid up to now, everything’s been unbelievable,” he said through a translator.

Deck, an Argentinian who last played for Real Madrid in Spain, arrived in Oklahoma City in mid-April. The Thunder may have treated him well, but they also gave him a rude welcome to the court: Game 1, go defend Zion Williamson.

He did a fine job of it, and he has improved each outing. Deck had two points and defended Williamson in his debut. He scored eight points and grabbed 10 rebounds in his second game. He had 11 points, six boards and three assists in his third.

Against the Sacramento Kings on Wednesday, he posted 16 points on seven shots in 16 minutes of play.

“He’s gotten better every game,” said head coach Daigneault. “We love his physicality around the basket. Plays much bigger than he is. Plays much tougher than his size. He’s a pretty nasty dude defensively. And then offensively he really knows how to play, and that’s a pretty good combination.”

Daigneault went so far as to compare Deck to other players on the team who show these attributes.

“When you got a guy that’s got some size, some versatility, some strength, that’s tough as nails and knows how to play, you’re in Kenrich Williams, Isaiah Roby territory. And that’s a good place to be,” Daigneault said.

From afar, Argentinian legend Manu Ginobili has been paying close attention. The former San Antonio Spurs star has been tweeting along as he watches the newest Argentinian in the NBA play.

Deck hopes that he can set the standard for the next generation of Argentinian players the way Ginobili did for athletes like him and Denver Nuggets guard Facundo Campazzo, the two current NBA players from the South American country.

“I’m grateful for all of those who came before me to kind of pave the way for Argentinians in the NBA,” he said. “I hope to continue building on that lineage and hopefully create opportunities for boys and girls that are looking up to us to reach the league and have more of a presence moving forward.”

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