Mario Hezonja: I never liked how I left the NBA

– I never liked the way I left the NBA, but the past five years were exactly what I wanted and needed. I am overjoyed to start a new chapter of my career with the Cavaliers, a team and an organization that I have always admired and respected immensely, Hezonja said via social media.

From 2015 to 2020, he played 330 games for the Orlando Magic, New York Knicks and Portland Trail Blazers. He averaged 6.9 points and 3.1 rebounds per game, and spent 18 minutes on the court. When he returned to Europe, where he first played for Panathinaikos and then the Russian UNICS Kazan, he said that he was not appreciated in the NBA league.

From the summer of 2022, he wore the jersey of Real Madrid, with which he played three times in the final of the Euroleague, and which he did not mention in public communication via social networks. With Real, he won six international titles, including one Euroleague cup and two Spanish championships.