Juancho Hernangómez’s talent isn’t just on the court. The 26-year-old basketball player proves he’s got major acting chops in the new Adam Sandler film Hustle. The Netflix movie premieres on June 8.
If you’re not a big NBA fan, you might not be aware of Juancho’s career thus far. From how he got his role in Hustle to his family’s history with basketball, HollywoodLife has rounded up 5 key things you need to know about Juancho.
1. ‘Hustle’ is Juancho’s first acting role.
The 6’9″ basketball star, whose full name is Juan Alberto “Juancho” Hernangómez Geuer, makes his acting debut in Hustle. He plays Bo Cruz, a Spanish basketball player Adam’s character discovers while scouting for new players for the Philadelphia 76ers. Juancho revealed in an interview that he turned down calls to audition for the role several times before he changed his mind.
“I never dreamed about it. So I told them no for five or six months, and then Covid hits. I wasn’t on a team. I was doing quarantine with my brother and my sister, and we were so bored that my sister knew about the casting, and she was like, ‘Why don’t we play like [we’re] doing a movie?’ and we just did the audition. I don’t know why or how they saw any talent, but they just liked me, and we just kept going to castings, and we made a movie,” Juancho told Slash Film. Adam calls Juancho a “natural” at acting.
2. Juancho plays for the Utah Jazz.
Juancho is currently a forward for the Utah Jazz. After playing in Spain, Juancho entered the NBA Draft in 2016. The Denver Nuggets selected the basketball player in the 15th overall pick.
3. Juancho is from Spain.
The NBA player hails from Madrid, Spain. He started playing basketball at an early age. He played on several youth teams, including Real Madrid. Juancho has also been a member of Team Spain and won a gold medal at the 2019 FIBA World Cup.
4. Juancho comes from a family of basketball players.
Juancho’s mother, Margarita Geuer Draeger, was a professional basketball player in Spain. She won a gold medal at the 1993 European Championship. His father, Guillermo, also played professionally in Spain. His brother, Willy, was a second-round pick of the 76ers and now plays for the New Orleans Pelicans.
5. Juancho recently said he wasn’t ‘happy’ playing for the Celtics.
Juancho was traded to the Boston Celtics in September 2021. He was on the Celtics roster until January 2022. “I wasn’t happy there, it was very hard,” Juancho told El País’ Daniel Arribas in Spanish, as translated by Yahoo Sports. “There was no communication, I didn’t know what was expected of me. There were many super selfish players, no team building. I lost my love for basketball a bit.”