Big man Wenyen Gabriel has signed with Puerto Rico’s Vaqueros de Bayamon, the team announced (Twitter link; hat tip to Alberto De Roa of HoopsHype).
The timing of the announcement is curious, since Gabriel just inked a 10-day hardship contract with the Grizzlies on Friday. The press release from Bayamon didn’t indicate when Gabriel would join the team, but it would make the most sense to occur once his deal with Memphis expires on March 17.
Gabriel, 26, had been an NBA free agent for most of the 2023/24 campaign until signing his 10-day deal with the Grizzlies. He has averaged 4.0 PPG, 4.5 RPG and 1.0 SPG in 17.0 MPG in two appearances with Memphis. The veteran forward/center signed a non-guaranteed Exhibit 9 contract with Boston last fall, but he was released before ’23/24 began, having spent most of the season with the G League’s Wisconsin Herd.
In total, Gabriel has appeared 147 career regular season games with the Kings, Trail Blazers, Pelicans, Nets, Clippers, Lakers and Grizzlies over the past five seasons. His most consistent role came last season with the Lakers, when he averaged 5.5 PPG and 4.2 RPG in 68 games (15.1 MPG).
Last summer at the World Cup, Gabriel helped South Sudan secure its first-ever appearance in men’s basketball at the 2024 Olympics in Paris.
This guys game is good enough to make a roster. Makes me wonder about his work ethic and attitude.
Yeah i agree. I liked his hustle, rebounding, and D in LA.
Great work ethic and attitude, probably his best attributes
His problem is he’s a classic tweener who cant shoot- He would be on a roster and probably even coveted if it were 2005
* Nobody worked harder pre-game than Wenyen last year as I always try to get to the arena at least an hr early- First one out last one in, always with a coach heeding advice- Probably put up 100 more shots than the next closest guy
So what’s the issue then? His game says nba roster for sure
He can’t shoot, so no, his game doesn’t say NBA roster.
Yeah, he’s just too small to play Center for consistent minutes and can’t shoot well enough to handle either of the forward spots except in spot minutes. Great guy, good defender and endless hustle. Just can’t figure out the jumper.
If he were twenty-to-thirty pounds heavier, he’d have teams knocking down his door to play him as a small-ball 5. He has the height and length for it, and his hustle isn’t in question. But he can’t handle opposing bigs consistently because he can get pushed around. He’s a wing who can’t shoot.
Betting against himself
Since the Puerto Rican league starts until next month, he’ll most likely go back to the G League after his Grizzlies contract expires and then join Bayamón
All he had to do was expand his game. But these dudes get complacent and lazy.