Simone Fontecchio: The chase of fulfilling the NBA dream / News - Basketnews.com

Credit: D.Repečka Credit D.Repečka

Simone Fontecchio has added his name to the list of versatile European forwards who are capable of completing several tasks on the court.

Simone Fontecchio

Team:Bitci Baskonia Vitoria-GasteizPosition:SFAge:26Height:203 cmWeight:95 kgBirth place:Pescara, ItalyProfileNewsStatistics

The 26-year-old Italian, who broke into the EuroLeague with ALBA Berlin last season and is currently a starter for Bitci Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz, has gone a long way before reaching the top level.

Fontecchio moved to Bologna from his native Pescara in 2009, at the age of 14, living in shared accommodation with other Virtus youth players.

"Virtus Bologna offered me a professional contract, but above all, they showed that they have so much confidence in me. Staying in Italy was an easy choice," he told Gazzetta dello Sport in October 2014.

Back then, Virtus bore little if any resemblance to the EuroCup powerhouse they've grown into during the Massimo Zanetti era, which started in 2016.

That was the year the historic club got relegated to the second division. Fontecchio made his professional debut, but when things went south, he had to change city and team.

He moved up north, to Milan, where AX Armani Exchange gave him the chance to register his first EuroLeague appearances. Fontecchio played a total of 17 games over his three seasons there, but his playing time was as inconsistent and poor as Milan's on-court performances.

His next stop was Reggio Emilia, where he has a solid Serie A season with 11.4 points and 4 rebounds averages. That campaign led Fontecchio to his first basketball experience abroad.

The timing was right, and the best young Serie A player in 2015 headed to Germany, not just to make a living and see the world but transition to the next level.

Under veteran coach Aito Garcia Reneses, Fontecchio developed into one of the German team's standouts, averaging 10.6 points and 3.4 rebounds over 29 EuroLeague games in what turned out to be his breakout season.

Simone Fontecchio

MIN:26.46PTS:11 (50.15%)REB:4.35As:2.42ST:0.94BL:0.16TO:1.74GM:31ProfileEuroLeague2021/2022

On top of that, he also got to play more than 23 minutes per contest. His maiden season outside of Italy was concluded with the German championship trophy.

But how does one account for Fontecchio's remarkable transition, and how does one explain that he got to prosper basketball-wise right after he left his native country. It's hard to pin it down, even for himself.

"I don't know. To be honest, it's not an easy question," he tells BasketNews from Baskonia's locker room before another practice gets underway.

"I mean, many players have had amazing careers in Italy and exploded in the Italian league," he notes. It's all about self-confidence, after all.

"For me, going away made me believe in myself. Realizing that I am a foreign player on a EuroLeague team was a real boost of confidence for me. It made me feel a lot of responsibility and gave me the motivation to perform better on the court."

The irony in his case is that once he left, both Armani Milan and Virtus Bologna made their own transition to another level. Virtus especially have shown great progress, covering the distance that separates the second division and the Serie A championship title in only five years.

Despite his rather uneventful stint in the fashion capital, Fontecchio thinks Milan has always been a very attractive destination.

"It's still the only Italian team that plays in the EuroLeague. So, if an Italian guy looks at what he can achieve, he'll say: "Oh, I want to go to Milano, to play in the EuroLeague!".

Still, Milan is one of the TOP 5 teams in EuroLeague and a Final Four contender. Bologna is becoming a very important project of high expectations, and they're trying to get back to the EuroLeague, as they say."At the same time, Italian players are becoming more international and hence, more open to crossing borders.

"Now, Italians know that there are a lot of opportunities outside of Italy as well," Fontecchio remarks.

"A lot of guys of my generation - or even older ones - opened the way, like Gigi Datome, Nicolo Melli, and Daniel Hackett. They showed us that having a career outside of Italy is possible, and it can give you a lot."

On the outside, ALBA Berlin and Baskonia might look similar. Those are probably the two teams that have brought numerous lesser-known players to the forefront, helping them to take a big step in their careers. In fact, ALBA has been working under the Spanish model for quite some time because of coaches Aito Reneses, Israel Gonzalez, and GM Himar Ojeda.

"I think they're different clubs," Fontecchio argues.

"Of course, the challenge in Baskonia is more difficult than in Berlin. Expectations in Baskonia are higher because the team is trying to reach the playoffs every year. Besides, they've been many times in the Final Four.

That's why I came here. I wanted to have more expectations from myself and become a better player. I had an amazing year in Berlin, and I'm thankful for the opportunity they gave me.

I had a good time there, but I wanted to take the next step in my career, put myself in a different situation, and be under more pressure," he points out.

Nevertheless, Baskonia are still trying to find stability and consistency. In mid-November, the club fired Dusko Ivanovic and hired Neven Spahija. The coaching change has brought mixed results so far.

Despite some flashes of greatness, best showcased in their two blowout wins over FC Barcelona, the Basque side still remains out of EuroLeague playoff contention with a 7-13 record and five losses in Vitoria.

"I think coach Spahija brought some changes, especially in our offensive system, trying to make things a bit easier for us," Fontecchio comments.

"It's been working to some extent. But, still, there are some problems we got to fix, like our concentration for the whole 40 minutes, which is not at the top level.

We have to understand that and change it. Sometimes, we are obsessed with something on offense that we cannot find. That's where we lose focus and contact, letting other teams make big runs," the Italian forward explains.

On the team level, the current campaign is not going as everyone in Baskonia would have hoped for, but Fontecchio is registering career-highs in points (11.4), three-point percentage (40.8), rebounds (4.3), assists (2.2), steals (1.1) and PIR (12.4). In short, almost every statistical category demonstrates his progress compared to last year.

Apart from being an on-ball and off-ball cutter, as well as a screener, he has also turned into a finisher. Fontecchio says he wants to enhance his skillset even more.

"I try to become a better ball handler. I also want to go inside with penetrations. I have the feeling that I could use my body better than I have done so far, so I could absorb the contact and finish.

It's the thing I've been working on with Baskonia coaches. I believe it can help my game a lot."

Before his season with ALBA, Fontecchio used to be predominantly a stationary or spot-up shooter, but in Berlin, he also became an off-screen shooter, adding another layer to his game. He acknowledges that it was largely a result of Aito Reneses's system."Yeah, definitely. All our offense was based on off-screens and reading all the options," he recalls.

"I think I could do it even before I went to ALBA, but being able to do it every single day, work on it and do it during games really helped me develop my skills."What also helped him improve and showcase his game was the Olympic Games experience he had with Italy in Tokyo. Fontecchio calls this past summer amazing, highlighting its contribution to making his name heard.

Credit FIBA

A fantastic pre-Olympic tournament (19.7 points, 6.3 rebounds, on 54% three-point shooting) culminated in Japan, where he averaged 19.3 points in four games, leading the Italians to the quarterfinals.

"The experience was incredible and showed me what I'm capable of," he says. "I was one of the key players for my national team, and we went a long way both in the Pre-Olympic Tournament and in the Olympics. It was a very good run for me and my team."During the Olympics, several people were trying to figure out why he's not playing in the NBA. One of them was Tim Reynolds, NBA writer for the Associated Press.

Fontecchio recalls the comments made about him and laughs.

"Right now, I'm not thinking about it. I'm trying to live in the present and become a better player in Baskonia. I want to help my team and develop my game. That's my main priority," he maintains.

"Of course, I know I had some very good games last summer," he adds.

Fontecchio has flirted with the NBA before. He even had a draft workout with Boston before not getting selected in 2015.

For him, the NBA is a dream that, for now, it's difficult to fulfill. "Of course, it's everybody's dream to play in the NBA - and it's my dream too," he admits.

Despite the fact that many European players are transitioning to the NBA level - and quite easily on some occasions- the 2.03-meter wing believes that the tough part lies in going there and finding your role.

"Now, there are more opportunities to play in the NBA, especially for European players. Being there and getting playing time means that you have found the best situation for you. It's not really easy."

In 2015, when he was only 20, Fontecchio was an early entry candidate for the Draft two years before being automatically eligible. However, he later decided to withdraw his name from consideration."We put my name in the Draft because we wanted to see what would be the interest from NBA teams. I ended up doing only one workout with the Celtics," he explains.

"Then, my agent and I decided to take my name away because we didn't think that I would have a chance of being a first-round pick. So, we decided to wait for another year.

The following year (2016), my last one in Bologna, was very difficult for me and the team since it went down to the second division. That's how we ended up withdrawing my name."

As Fontecchio confesses, everything was done by his agent since he wasn't really into this NBA Draft thing.

"It was basically his decision. I just did what they told me to do, and that's it. I was very young at the time," he argues.Fontecchio says he hasn't had any contacts with NBA teams since he became a EuroLeague player.

"I haven't talked with anyone. If someone did, it would be my agent. But I've told him that I'm totally focused on my club," he insists.One of the fun facts of the Tokyo Olympic Basketball Tournament involved the Italian forward and his Australian counterpart Joe Ingles. The former FC Barcelona and Maccabi guard-forward, who's been playing for the Utah Jazz since 2014, spoke about Fontecchio's basketball virtues in a press conference after Italy played Australia.

Credit FIBA Media

Fontecchio had reportedly said Ingles is one of his idols, which led the Jazz forward to say that he would give his jersey to the Italian. He even joked that Fontecchio needs a better idol.

Baskonia's forward remembers the story and calls it "a big misunderstanding".

"No, he didn't give me his jersey," he says with a smile.

"I spoke with that newspaper a day before the game with Australia. They just asked me if there was one player that I admire or like from the Australian team, and I said Ingles because he plays the "3" position, as I do, and he's had an amazing career both in Europe and in the NBA," he continues.

"So, I said his name. Then, I saw that somebody told him that I said he's my idol. He's not my idol, but I really like his game."

If Ingles came up short in being a role model for Simone Fontecchio, who else other than great Italian forwards Danilo Gallinari, Marco Belinelli, or Alessandro Gentile, could fit the description?"I think Gallinari is probably the greatest player in Italian basketball history. I hope that I will be able to play with him for many years to come," his teammate says.

"When I was a little kid, I was looking at NBA players, like Kobe Bryant and LeBron James, who had amazing careers. I also looked at EuroLeague players: Jasikevicius, Diamantidis, Papaloukas, all those great guards," Fontecchio reveals.

His list includes too many guards for a player that grew to become a forward. Fontecchio has an explanation for it.

"When I was little, I wasn't thinking about positions. I didn't know whether I was going to be a '3, a '4' or a '2'. I just loved the way they handled the ball and guided the offense."

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