Didi Louzada is NBA bound

The Brydens Lawyers Sydney Kings have granted permission for Didi Louzada to travel to the United States as he prepares to join the New Orleans Pelicans of the NBA.

Louzada was drafted with the 35^th pick in the 2019 NBA Draft by the Atlanta Hawks, before his rights were traded to the New Orleans Pelicans. Subsequently, he signed into the NBL’s Next Stars program and with the Brydens Lawyers Sydney Kings where he spent one and a half seasons with the Club.

The Brazilian native played a key role in helping the Kings to a Minor Premiership and their first Grand Final appearance since 2008 during the NBL20 season. In his 45 games in the purple and gold, Louzada averaged 9.36 points and 3.33 rebounds in 23 minutes per game.

Brydens Lawyers Sydney Kings CEO Chris Pongrass was honoured that the Kings had played a part in Didi’s journey to the NBA, “We are thrilled for Didi; this will be lifechanging for him and his family. Whilst it is bittersweet for him to be leaving us, we promised to help him achieve his dream of playing in the NBA and we couldn’t be happier that he will soon be realising this goal.”

“We have been in constant communication with the Pelicans throughout this process and thank them in the trust placed in us to develop their young talent. We were not expecting to have Didi back with us for a second season, so in my mind we have always been operating on borrowed time. We were lucky to have Didi part of this group - he has played a fundamental role in our success the past two seasons.”

Pongrass praised Louzada for his contribution to the Club, “Didi was a fan favourite in Sydney, beloved by coaches, players, staff and the entire Kings and NBL fanbase. I am certain he will have a long and successful NBA career, and we are thankful for the time he spent with us here in Sydney. We wish Didi the best of luck, he will always be a King.”

Having arrived in Australia not able to speak a word of English, the now confident Louzada had nothing but praise for his time with the Kings.

“I’m thankful to everyone who has helped me here in Sydney since I arrived last year - the players, the staff, the organisation, everyone. I’m happy but I’m a little bit emotional, I’m proud of what I’ve been able to achieve here, and I’m proud of this team.”

“I can’t thank the Sydney Kings enough for having me over the last two seasons. I think I made the best choice of my life choosing to come and play here, and I hope everyone will tune it to watch some Pelicans games in the future” Louzada shared.

When asked on what advice he might give to the next young player thinking about coming over to the play for Sydney in the NBL, his response was simple.

“There are so many things I loved about my time in Sydney, too many to mention. It’s a good city and a good league, they’re continuing to grow a lot here and it’s very comparable to the NBA. The game is fast, and strong, so I think here is the best place for young guys to come and play and develop.”

Louzada becomes the fourth Sydney Kings player in the past three seasons that have joined the NBA ranks, with Didi joining Jae’Sean Tate (Houston Rockets), Andrew Bogut (Golden State Warriors) and Brian Bowen (Indiana Pacers). Former Kings Head Coach Will Weaver also joined the Houston Rockets earlier this year.

Kings management have been vetting potential Next Star candidates for the 2021-22 NBL season for some time and look forward to developing another NBA level talent.

Following two big wins at home in Round 14, the Kings will next hit the court on Thursday night when they face South East Melbourne Phoenix at John Cain Arena in Melbourne.