The statline on Tuesday night was very good if not eye-popping. Still, Mario Hezonja showed that he’s never looked more at home than with Real Madrid in Euroleague Basketball
It’s been quite the rollercoaster of a career for Mario Hezonja. Picked ahead of Kristaps Porzingis in the same NBA draft class, he has taken a long and winding road. Finally, with Real Madrid the kings of Euroleague Basketball, he looks at home.
This is his life now
Let’s start with the stat line. Mario Hezonja logged 16 points on 5 of 8 shooting with 5 assists, 5 rebounds, 1 steal, and 1 block in victory over Maccabi Tel Aviv. All of this in 26 minutes and shockingly in line with his season averages.
With Real Madrid, Hezonja gets to play with the most loaded roster in living memory of Euroleague Basketball. They are coasting to first overall seed in the playoffs. The number of shot attempts seems low but in the flow of play it reflects what Hezonja likes.
When Mario Hezonja wants the ball, he gets it more often than not. When Super Mario wants to play off the ball, he can. There are so many options around him as both shooters and creators that he can be picky. This is the Goldilocks spot for a man who has long been in search of the right fit.
The struggle
Before we all went wild over Luka Doncic, Mario Hezonja held the spot of next hot young Euro. I first saw him playing at the ANGT in London (although it may have been a Nike event then) in 2013. He looked largely disinterested as his Barcelona team got to the final but he was already part of the senior side.
With the first team, he never really gelled with what Xavi Pascual wanted. Still, Hezonja found ways to shine and hopes were high for him going to the NBA. He was the fifth overall pick and that was as good as it got.
The statlines for his NBA career of those of just another body. He never hit double digit points per season. He never got starter minutes. In short, he was never trusted to be the key piece for anybody. There were memorable moments, just rarely for anything basketball related. Hezonja is probably best remembered by NBA fans for stepping over Giannis Antetokounmpo, and not the dunk that preceded it.
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Super Mario comes home
Everything about Mario Hezonja’s game looked suited to the NBA style…
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