Ángel Delgado is heading to Eastern Europe. UNICS Kazan has officially announced the signing of the Dominican center on a one-year contract, acquiring one of the continent's most proven rebounding specialists.
The 31-year-old interior, standing 2.08 meters tall, arrives from Turkish side Trabzonspor, where he averaged 9.7 points, 5.6 rebounds and one assist in 21.8 minutes over 25 games last season. He will not join immediately: first he must fulfill his commitments with the Dominican national team in the 2027 World Cup qualifiers, with games against Brazil on August 28 and Chile on September 1.
The legacy he left in the Liga Endesa
For Spanish basketball fans, Delgado is a familiar name. He landed at Movistar Estudiantes in 2020 from Hapoel Holon and had a season of steady improvement there, averaging 8.5 points and 7.9 rebounds. The following year he made the jump to Bilbao Basket and truly exploded: 11.3 points and 8.5 rebounds per game that made him the leading rebounder in the Liga Endesa in 2022.
That impressive performance opened the doors to the Turkish market, where he has now completed four seasons: Pinar Karsiyaka, with whom he reached the league finals; Besiktas; Galatasaray; and most recently Trabzonspor.
A record that still stands
His career began at Seton Hall and continued in the NBA, where he signed with the Los Angeles Clippers in 2018, though he spent most of his time in the G League with the Agua Caliente Clippers. There he left a mark that is difficult to match: in January 2019 he grabbed 31 rebounds in a single game, an all-time G League record. A month later came his NBA debut.
With the Dominican national team he has an extensive resume: bronze medal at the 2016 FIBA Centrobasket with 12.5 points and 7.5 rebounds per game, and 8.7 points and 8.3 rebounds at the 2017 AmeriCup.
UNICS fans already know what's coming. In September 2023, during the VTB Supercup, Delgado posted a double-double of 16 points and 14 rebounds against Kazan itself while wearing a Besiktas jersey.