Starting point
Real Madrid enter the 2026/27 season with a reshaped frontcourt and continuity in the core that carried the project in the EuroLeague and Liga Endesa. The club is confirmed in both competitions and faces a schedule that starts in Europe's top tier before the domestic league opener.
Preseason results have been mixed: a convincing win against Baskonia (121-80) at the Memorial Urbano González Escapa and a loss to Río Breogán (110-102) in Pontevedra. These games carry no official weight, but they show a team already playing at high pace with deep rotations.
Roster changes
Madrid close the summer with 17 registered players. The most relevant departures include Mario Hezonja, Trey Lyles, Bruno Fernando — moved to Anadolu Efes —, David Kramer — to Crvena Zvezda —, Alex Len, Izan Almansa and other contract exits. Rebuilding the interior rotation was the market priority.
Key additions are Damian Jones, Eli John Ndiaye, Olivier Sarr, Jaime Pradilla, Timothé Luwawu-Cabarrot and Mikael Olli Axel Jantunen. Jones and Ndiaye arrived in August on deals through 2027; the former strengthens the frontcourt and the latter adds young upside inside. Pradilla returns after his stint at Valencia; Luwawu-Cabarrot and Jantunen bring perimeter versatility and interior physicality.
Mainstays include Walter Tavares, Sergio Llull, Facundo Campazzo, Gabriel Deck, Usman Garuba, Théo Maledon and Andrés Feliz, among others. The roster blends European experience with signings aimed at balancing minutes across EuroLeague and ACB.
Identity and strengths
Madrid's profile still rests on transition, defensive intensity and bench depth. Tavares remains the interior anchor through rim protection and presence, while playmaking is shared among experienced international guards.
Facundo Campazzo finished the 2025-26 EuroLeague averaging 12.0 points and 5.1 assists in 44 games. He is the offensive thermometer in pick-and-roll and uptempo sequences. His continuity brings stability after a summer of frontcourt movement.
Damian Jones arrives to take meaningful interior minutes after Bruno Fernando's exit and other rotation departures. His experience in demanding leagues fits Madrid's need for a mobile big who can defend the pick-and-roll and finish at the rim.
Eli John Ndiaye, under contract through 2027, represents a long-term bet in the paint. His signing strengthens the young core without lowering the immediate EuroLeague standard.
On the perimeter, Deck, Procida, Abalde, Maledon, Feliz and the new arrivals offer shooting, defense and creation. The challenge is turning that depth into quality minutes when the EuroLeague and Liga Endesa calendars overlap.
Risks
The main question is integrating several new bigs at once. Sarr, Jones, Ndiaye, Garuba, Okeke and Pradilla compete for minutes in a role where Tavares remains essential in key games. Balancing development and immediate production will be decisive.
Hezonja and Lyles leave proven outside shooting. Luwawu-Cabarrot and existing options must replace that volume without losing defensive solidity. The demanding opening — road games at Dubai, Istanbul and Tel Aviv in early EuroLeague rounds — leaves little room for a slow start.
Previous-season consolidated data is unavailable in the project record, limiting direct statistical comparisons. This analysis relies on roster moves, preseason and schedule.
Expectations and reasoned outlook
Editorially, Real Madrid remain natural title contenders in the ACB and among the teams capable of reaching the Final Four in the EuroLeague. Club standards allow no lower target, but the frontcourt overhaul introduces an adjustment phase that may cost games early on.
Our reasoned outlook places Madrid in the Liga Endesa title race and in the EuroLeague's upper tier, with Final Four potential if the frontcourt responds from September. Roster depth is a major asset; interior cohesion is the decisive variable.
First games
The EuroLeague schedule opens on 24 September at Dubai Basketball. Four days later, on the 27th, Madrid debut in Liga Endesa at home against Unicaja at the WiZink Center. In the EuroLeague they visit Anadolu Efes on the 29th and Hapoel Tel Aviv on 1 October, before closing the first October stretch with Partizan at home, Obradoiro away in the ACB and Milan away in Europe.
It is a start mixing tough travel and a home league debut. Early results will say a lot about how quickly Jones, Ndiaye and the other newcomers settle in.
