Thomas Heurtel, after facing disappointment from his failed return to Barcelona, admitted that he considered retiring from basketball. However, the French point guard found new motivation with Leyma Coruna in Spain.
French point guard Thomas Heurtel recently spoke candidly about his challenging journey after his failed return to FC Barcelona, a situation that nearly led him to retire from basketball.
Now playing for Leyma Coruna in Spain, Heurtel revealed his emotions and struggles per MARCA radio after the disappointment of the Barcelona debacle and the toll it took on him and his family.
Heurtel has embraced his new role at Leyma Coruna, where he's doing his best to lift the team from the bottom of the standings.
"I’ve embraced the project. We're last right now, and the goal is to give my best. If we stay up, it would feel like winning a title."
After the Barcelona saga, Heurtel had several offers from teams across Spain and Europe. However, he admitted that he wasn’t interested in pursuing those opportunities at the time.
"I had many offers from Spain and Europe, but at that time, I wasn’t interested, and I didn’t want to play there," he shared. "When the Barcelona situation came up, I did want to play again, and Coruna was the best option for me," he explained.
One of the most painful aspects of Heurtel's career came after his failed return to Barcelona. His contract negotiations with the Catalan giants fell apart, leaving Heurtel disappointed and emotionally drained.
"It has been difficult, especially for my family," Heurtel said. "Unfortunately, we couldn’t play there, but we’ve found a good place. It has been hard. We spent 10 or 15 days to recover mentally."
During the toughest moments after the Barcelona disappointment, Heurtel even thought about walking away from the game.
"I really thought about retiring after everything that happened with Barcelona two months ago,” he admitted. "But in the end, I believe I have more to give to basketball. I wanted to play because it makes me happy."
Since joining Leyma Coruna, Heurtel has quickly made an impact on the court. In his second game with the team, he recorded an impressive 18 assists, just one short of the historic record held by Sergio Rodríguez.
This season, Thomas Heurtel in the ACB league averages 9.8 points, 9.3 assists, and 3.3 rebounds per game.
