In the locker room of the majestic Chase Center, Usman Garuba sits right next to Steph Curry, not far from Klay Thompson, nor Chris Paul or Draymond Green. In the Warriors, a boy from Azuqueca de Henares dreams big and listens to how after training Steve Kerr tells him to keep going like this, that he is doing well, that the future is his. The international center, who likes to walk the streets of San Francisco, speaks with EL MUNDO a couple of days before the start of the NBA, willing to take advantage of a unique opportunity.

What is it like sharing a team and court with Steph Curry? Incredible. What you don't see on television is that he is a hard worker, a person who is always training, to the maximum.. Spend a lot of time in the gym. I would say one thing, it makes the game easier. If you know how to play basketball, if you know how to use spaces well, the advantages that a player like him generates, you can take advantage. The players who have passed through here have taken advantage of that to become better. The same thing happens with Klay Thompson, they are great shooters, threats. Two guys who you can't leave even a millimeter to, because, at the slightest moment, bam!, they're going to shove it in your face.. You can take advantage of all that, you just have to be smart. Is it difficult to adapt to the Warriors' style of play? It's not hard for me, on the contrary, I'm very comfortable in training, I feel good. The transfer of the game for me has been super simple. One of the decisions why I came to this team is that both they and I know that I stand out in his style of play. They compare him to Draymond Green. Seeing him up close, more than in defending or how we understand the game, we are similar in the engine playing. We both have a lot of intensity. I am working to be as much like him as Kevon Looney, to contribute as much as possible in the future. What does Steve Kerr ask of you? He has told me many times, when training ends, that I am doing very well, that I reminded him of Draymond and Looney and he had a game very similar to them. He tells me to keep going like this, to keep working, that I'm going to be good for them.. He doesn't ask me to be a scorer or do crazy things, he asks me to do the basics. And, by doing the basics, on this team, especially on this team, I can take advantage of many things. The Rockets traded him, the Thunder fired him…. It hasn't been an easy summer. Did it affect you? If I'm honest, it didn't affect me. They cut me three days before the World Cup and then I could have decided my future. But I wanted to wait because I was in talks with many teams at the same time. It was made official quite late, at the end of September, but he had already had an agreement with the Warriors for a long time. Uncertainty and all that is tough, but this is the business of the NBA. Not even the stars are untouchable. If they have traded Kevin Durant, they can trade me at any time. Those days, he protested in a tweet: “I will prove everyone wrong.” I always say one thing, in this league all the players are good, very good. What they are not always in is in the right situations. And this happened to me. With all due respect to the Rockets, which is an organization that has made me be in the league, with all the gratitude to the General Manager and the coaches, I think they were not fair enough to me. But this league is like that.

Garuba, with the Warriors. Jeff Chiu WORLD When things don't go well, who does Usman lean on? I encourage myself. Luck is there, but you are luckier when you work. I trust a lot in my work, I put a lot of hours into this and I know that sooner or later everything will turn out well. I trust myself a lot, to be honest. Did you consider returning to Europe, to Madrid? It was clear to me, Europe can always wait. For me, with all due respect, the worst scenario is to return to Europe. It wouldn't be a bad scenario, but it's something that doesn't interest me right now.. I have been in the elite for a long time, but I am still 21 years old, I have not achieved what I want in this league, which is to be me and be able to give my best version. And there's a lot left for that. Are you discouraged by having played so little in the preseason? What's up?. Because I already know how this league works, I've been there for three years.. Last year I didn't play much in preseason either and the first two or three months I ended up playing a lot of minutes. You never know what can happen, there are injuries, transfers, there are days when things are going wrong for someone and you have your chance. You have to be ready for everything and you can't be scared. Our salary is not for playing well or playing badly, it is for being professional at all times. That's what I'm trying to do. He played the World Cup without a contract, with the risk that an injury would have affected his future. I have always been committed to the national team since I was a child. It is often forgotten that my draft year I could have not gone to the national team and have focused on training in the US. And who knows, I could have done better in the draft. But it was a call from Spain, to play in the Games. That shows the interest and respect that I have for the team. Representing my country is very important. I have always been loyal to the national team and, if nothing strange happens, I will always remain so. Did it hurt a lot not to even play in the quarterfinals of the World Cup? It didn't go the way we wanted, not at all. The elimination really screwed us up. But this is sport, all that remains is to fight for the next one. There is a desire to compete in the Pre-Olympic.