NBA
Gabriel Deck's future up in the air
Gabriel Deck could be on his way back to Europe if his contractual situation in the NBA isn't resolved. The Argentine forward's future remains unclear.
Nobody seems to know what is going on with Gabriel Deck. The Argentinean left Real Madrid when the chance of playing in the NBA cropped up. But his future remains unclear and there is a chance that he might return to Europe. The small forward was expected to earn 4 million dollars in four months due to a modification in the salary cap, which in this instance was favourable for the Thunder and the player, who had the chance to earn a lot of money in a short period of time. However, there is no guarantee that Deck will be able to see out the remaining two years on his contract.
It was expected that Deck would earn approximately 3.6 million dollars next season, but it is not known whether that is the total or the partially guaranteed sum. There is also confusion over the remaining years on his contract. The Argentinean has average 8.4 points, 4 rebounds and 2 assists in 10 games, but he has not finished on the winning sides in any of those games and is part of a roster which is still very much in construction. There has been no commitment shown to the long-term futures of any of the players in the roster.
Deck's buy-out
"Deck’s situation has been bizarre from the beginning," explained Joe Mussato, in his piece for Oklahoman, newspaper which covers the city and the Thunder. The sensation is that Deck arrived in the States without any real guarantee that he could continue in the NBA. Real Madrid received the amount stipulated in his buy-out - 2 million euros, 650,000 of which came from the Thunder, the maximum figure they could pay. The rest was paid out of the player's own pocket.
Deck could return to Europe, as has been mentioned in an article in Eurohoops based on Mussato's comments. But no one knows if he might return to Real Madrid or go somewhere else. In 87 Euroleague games, he averaged 7 points per game, and he has also excelled with Argentina's national team at the summer Olympics in Tokyo where he finished with decent stats - averaging 11.8 points and 7.5 rebounds per game.