2024 NBA Draft: Why Izan Almansa Could be the Glue Guy for G League Ignite

Every successful professional or collegiate team needs a glue guy on their roster. What makes Izan Almansa the glue guy for Ignite?

With eight prospects on this Ignite roster, it’s going to take time to figure out roles, minutes and the proper rotations to make with this team to make them as successful as possible.

It’s clear that their top go-to scoring options this year will likely be Ron Holland and Matas Buzelis, who are both potential No. 1 picks in the 2024 NBA Draft.

Although those two prospects are likely to get all the attention throughout the G League season, there’s still plenty of other talent on this deep roster. One player on Ignite that deserves lottery hype is Izan Almansa out of Spain. Almansa was named the MVP of the FIBA U19 World Cup back in July.

That ended up being his third MVP award in FIBA youth competitions in just two years, which is a remarkable resume he’s already building up. The 6-foot-10 center doesn’t have the most appealing physical stature and isn’t an elite-level athlete, but it’s his high IQ and great feel for the game that gives him the edge over the opposing team.

Almansa is one of those players that when you watch him, it always feels like he makes the winning play. Offensively, he’s a smart passer that plays an unselfish style of basketball while also possessing great touch for someone at his size inside the painted area.

There’s some hope that he can eventually start making 3-point jumpers at a respectable rate but that could be a few years away. He doesn’t project to be a high scoring big man, but he brings so much to the table on the offensive end that he can open up the floor for his teammates around him.

Defensively he isn’t elite at one skill, but he’s solid to good at just about everything which makes him extremely versatile.

Almansa is an all-around big man that will bring a winning culture to this young Ignite team and if this Ignite squad wants to make their first ever playoffs, Almansa is going to have to be an effective two-way player that’s able to play his game which will allow the team to win games along the way.

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