Ex-Boston Celtics forward almost signed with recent NBA champions

After Guerschon Yabusele bet on himself as part of an NBA comeback, it paid off as he signed a two-year deal with the Knicks. But, turns out, he actually almost signed with the 2023 champs in the Nuggets. In a chat with BeBasket, Yabusele revealed in French part of his thought process when it came to signing with the Knicks instead of the Nuggets.

“It was super fast,” Yabusele told BeBasket, via Google Translate. “As soon as I received it, I had to give a response within two hours. On the other hand, we also had the one from Denver. We had to be quick to not miss the opportunity that New York represents, in a great living environment!”

It was reported before that Yabusele was down to the Nuggets or Knicks before ending up in New York. Yabusele, 29, enjoyed a successful season back stateside with the 76ers where he was a bright spot. He averaged 11.0 points, 5.6 rebounds and 2.1 assists in 70 games (43 starts) for the Sixers last season. But Philadelphia couldn’t retain Yabusele as the Sixers prioritized other parts of their offseason.

Yabusele was going to garner some free-agency interest considering he’s a big forward at 6-foot-8 who can also stretch the floor. He shot 38.0% on 3.9 3-pointers per game last season as his 3-and-D style should fit well with any team. That’ll be the Knicks next season as he should be another physical option off the bench.

Yabusele spent time with the Celtics from 2017-19 after getting drafted 16th overall in 2016. But he couldn’t stick in the NBA initially as he was forced to go the overseas route. Yabusele landed on Real Madrid, and after his breakout performance in the Paris Olympics for France, he was able to land back in the states. He’ll again be on a Celtics rival in the Knicks, who are fresh off their first East Finals appearance in 25 years.