“I’m waiting for the second time. I’m ready.” This is the message that was posted Guerschon Yabusele on social networksand inside the French team is of course talking about the “second time” in the NBA. Sixteenth pick by the Celtics in the 2016 Draft, Yabusele had a whirlwind stint in the NBA, and he returned to Europe in 2019 where he became one of the best players in his position under the colors of Real Madrid.
Like Mathias Lessort, Yabusele remains on the shelf of NBA scouts and his 14 point average in the Olympic Games and his big game against Team USA prove that he deserves a “second chance”. The problem is that he is under contract with Real Madrid, and his exit clause is very long. According to Marc Stein, it’s… 2.5 million dollars!
Going from the top of the Euroleague to the NBA remains complicated
At Real, we expect a possible card for the Frenchman at the Olympics because his departure clause is set at one million dollars until July 15, then at 2.5 million dollars afterwards. You should know that NBA franchises are authorized to pay up to $850,000 to cover a departure clause. Which means $1.65 million will remain Yabusele’s responsibility.
In addition, in the NBA, the Frenchman is not guaranteed a big role, nor a big salary. Like Lessort, who was approached by the Knicks this summer, Yabusele flourished in the Euroleague and the recent examples of Sasha Vezenkov and Vasilije Micic prove that it is complicated, at the age of 25 and over, to go from of star status in Europe to “role player.” in the NBA. In January, Yabusele explained that he will not return to the NBA without a guarantee of his playing time.