Tyrese Rice has been presented as a new member of the Barça Lassa basketball roster at a press conference on Wednesday at the Palau Blaugrana. The Boston College graduate, who is joining on a two-year contract and will wear number two on his back, told the media that coach Georgios Bartzokas has not asked anything special of him, other than to “be a leader, be myself."
The director responsible for the basketball section, Joan Bladé, added that Rice “is one of the best point guards in Europe and we’re grateful to the player for making such an effort to come to Barça Lassa.” The deal has finally been signed after two years of talks.
Sports manager Rodrigo de la Fuente was also there to discuss the new arrival from Russian outfit Khimki. “Rice is a winner” he said. “He’s a born leader and someone who’ll fit in well with our plans.”
The player himself then fielded questions from the pressmen gathered in the venue, and explained how easy he has found adaptation in his first two weeks at the club. He described how he intends to contribute “energy, muscle and team unity.”
Finally, on the many changes to the basketball team this summer, the 29-year-old Virginian commented that “we have loads of players that have come from other teams. We have to bond. We have to get a team together as quickly as possible.”
