Get a contract extension! Will the former Rockets first-round pick continue to play in La Liga powerhouse next season?

La Liga team Joventut Badalona officially announced that the team has completed a contract renewal with former NBA forward Sam Dekker, who received a one-year contract renewal from the team.

Decker was born in May 1994 and is 31 years old, 206cm tall and weighs 104kg. He is a forward player from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in the 2015 NBA Draft. Although the draft pick is not low, Decker's NBA career is obviously not going well. In addition to the Rockets, Decker has also played for the Los Angeles Clippers, the Washington Wizards, the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Toronto Raptors. He has made a total of 201 appearances in the NBA regular season, averaging 15.4 minutes per game, averaging 5.4 points, 3 rebounds, 0.8 assists, 0.5 steals and 0.2 blocks, and 0.5 turnovers and 1 foul. His shooting percentage is 47.8%, three-point shooting percentage is 28.8%, and free throw shooting percentage is 60.6%. It is also because his performance is unsatisfactory that Decker's development in the NBA is getting worse and worse, and he gradually faded out of the NBA arena.

Since the 2019-20 season, Decker has begun to switch to the overseas league. Although he has briefly joined the Raptors during this period, he was soon cut by the team and returned to the European arena. He has played in the VTB League, Turkish League, Champions League and Summer League in these seasons. Decker has also performed well in the European arena. He has helped the team win two consecutive championships in the British League and the FIBA Europe Cup championship. He has won the honors of the British League MVP, FMVP and the British Cup MVP. He has also been shortlisted for the second team of the EuroCup Best Team. In the European arena last season, he played 38 times in all competitions, averaging 26.8 minutes per game, averaging 13 points, 4.1 rebounds, 1.4 assists, 0.8 steals and 0.2 blocks, and 1.3 turnovers and 2 fouls. He shot 44% from the field, 38.1% from three-point shooting percentage and 79.8% from free throws. Decker's performance last season was also quite stable. He was able to show outstanding competitiveness in the Summer League and EuroCup. His scoring ability and his contribution on the offensive end are worthy of recognition.

Decker is a player with very comprehensive abilities, which was fully reflected in the NCAA field. This should be an important factor in the Rockets' choice of a mid-range draft pick in the first round. Unfortunately, Decker's characteristics and style of play may indeed be somewhat different from that of the NBA, and he really cannot gain a foothold in the NBA arena. However, in the European arena, Decker can show sufficient competitiveness and exert his value. It is not easy to maintain this level at this age.