SAN ANTONIO — Maybe the newest member of the Spurs simply thought of joining San Antonio into existence because it sure seems that way.
In an interview with ESPN, rookie center Jock Landale spoke about finding out he will be making the jump to the NBA and reveals the Spurs are the team he always idolized.
"Me and India got on a call and he said, 'I'm not calling you to talk about how it's going to go, I'm calling you to tell you that you'll be in the NBA next year, you've got an offer from San Antonio.'
"For him to spring that on me was a dream come true. I've always idolised San Antonio as an organisation, it was out of the blue and I'm really happy it's happened now. First deal, I wanted to sign, and it just ended up being one of the teams I've always wanted to play for."
Interestingly enough, Landale says fellow Australian and ex-Spur Patty Mills initially did not have anything to say about playing for the Spurs citing the Nets guard’s focus on the Olympics.
"Everyone kind of read the tweet that I'd agreed to terms and every single person in Basketball Australia reached out except for Patty and I thought this guy must seriously be locked in right now beyond belief," Landale laughed.
However, Mills eventually did bring up the good news.
"After we won bronze, we got onto the bus and he was like 'yo, we sit next to each other on the bus and you're not going to say a single thing to me or ask a single thing about San Antonio?'
Speaking with the Spurs following his official signing, Landale says he is ready to get to work next season and do the dirty work.
And he is already calling San Antonio home.
Landale will be competing for minutes at the center spot with the Spurs along with Jakob Poeltl and Drew Eubanks. He has a good shooting range and toughness the Spurs can utilize next season but he’ll have to prove himself come training camp and the preseason.
He may likely see his rookie season spent in Austin with the team’s G League team but he’s already a fan-favorite.
Stay right here at KENS5 for all the latest Spurs news.
Twitter: @JeffGSpursKENS5