Spain forward Juancho Hernangomez looks set to compete at the Tokyo Olympics … despite being ruled out earlier in the month due to a left shoulder injury.
The Minnesota Timberwolves player had originally injured his shoulder in an Olympic warm-up game against France on July 8.
Coming back to Hernangomez in a bit, but right now in Maine, you can check out the list of sports that make up the Maine sportsbook.
The Spanish Basketball Federation (FEB) originally stated that Hernangomez needed significant time to recover from his shoulder injury that he suffered against the French.
However, as he was announced in the upcoming Spanish roster for the Tokyo Olympics, it would seem that the federation trusts him to be involved in some way.
It remains to be seen just how much of an involvement Hernangomez will have on the Spanish roster in Japan this summer.
Hernangomez averaged 7.2 points and 3.9 rebounds in 17 minutes per game for Minnesota this season.
He joins an experienced, almost gold generation-Esque Spain team that features Ricky Rubio, Sergio Llull, Rudy Fernandez, Alex Abrines, Victor Claver, Alberto Abalde, Usman Garuba, Willy Hernangomez, Sergio Rodriguez, Pau Gasol, and Marc Gasol.
Spain is the reigning Basketball World Cup champion and ranked No. 2 in the world behind the USA by FIBA.
Spain has finished on the podium at each of the past three Olympics – silvers in 2008 and 2012, bronze in 2016 – and heads to Tokyo seeking its first gold medal.
Spain has also won the EuroBasket gold in 2009, 2011, and 2015. They were knocked out at the semi-final stage of the last edition in 2017 by a Goran Dragic and Luka Doncic-inspired Slovenia side, who themselves will be competing at their first Olympic tournament later this month.
Spain will get an early chance to get revenge as they play Slovenia in the group stages where they are also housed alongside hosts Japan and Argentina.
The Olympic men’s basketball tournament will take place between July 25 and August 7 with all games being played at the Saitama Super Dome in Saitama.
The Tokyo Olympics were originally scheduled for last summer but were postponed to 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Despite the new date, there has been a state of emergency declared in Japan as new cases are breaking, leading many local residents to protest against the Games, demanding a boycott, which has been ignored by the government and LOC.
