新賽季還沒開打，岡薩加先折一員后場大將。北京時間7月11日，球隊首發(fā)控衛(wèi)馬里奧·圣蘇佩里正式簽約西班牙俱樂部瓦倫西亞，這意味著斗牛犬隊在2026-27賽季將失去一位已經(jīng)磨合了一整年的后場核心。（原文：Starting point guard Mario Saint-Supéry officially signed with Valencia, a Spanish club in EuroLeague, on Saturday, July 11. The move leaves the Bulldogs without an established point guard next season）

圣蘇佩里上賽季作為大一新生交出了場均8.6分、2.8個籃板和3.8次助攻的成績單，投籃命中率41%，在岡薩加全部35場比賽中首發(fā)出戰(zhàn)17場，入選了WCC聯(lián)盟最佳新人陣容。據(jù)報道，他與瓦倫西亞簽下的是一份四年長約。（原文：The All-WCC freshman team honoree averaged 8.6 points with 2.8 rebounds and 3.8 assists per game last season on 41% shooting as a true freshman, starting 17 of Gonzaga's 35 games. He's reportedly signing a four-year deal with the club.）他在社交媒體上向球迷告別：“Zag Nation，感謝你們的一切。”（原文："Zag nation, thanks for everything," he wrote on Instagram.）

對于岡薩加而言，這已經(jīng)是休賽期第二次遭遇后場人員流失。此前，同樣來自歐洲的后衛(wèi)杰克·凱伊爾在被休斯頓火箭隊于第二輪選中后交易至紐約尼克斯，而凱伊爾原本也是球隊計劃中的一員。（原文：It's the second tough break for the program this offseason, as fellow European guard Jack Kayil was drafted in the second round by the Houston Rockets and subsequently traded to the New York Knicks after initially committing to Gonzaga.）圣蘇佩里此番回歸西班牙并非毫無緣由——加盟瓦倫西亞之前，他曾效力于同屬西甲聯(lián)賽的馬拉加俱樂部，此次簽約算是一次“回家”。（原文：It's unclear why Saint-Supéry is leaving, although it's a return home for the former Liga ACB guard. He previously played for Málaga, a Liga ACB club like Valencia, his new team.）

隨著圣蘇佩里的離開和轉(zhuǎn)會窗口的關(guān)閉，斗牛犬隊在控衛(wèi)位置上將被迫啟用替補球員，后場輪換深度成為問題。好在球隊的前場班底仍有保障：身高6尺10寸的前鋒布雷登·赫夫確定回歸，他上賽季場均貢獻17.8分和5.6個籃板；球隊還從亞利桑那州立大學(xué)引進了備受矚目的轉(zhuǎn)校生馬桑巴·迪奧普，以填補頭號得分手格雷厄姆·艾克離隊后的空缺。（原文：Gonzaga returns 6-foot-10 forward Braden Huff, who averaged 17.8 points with 5.6 rebounds per game this season, and replaced leading scorer Graham Ike with highly touted Arizona State transfer Massamba Diop.）后場的不確定性，將給這支原本被外界視作下賽季全國競爭者的球隊帶來變數(shù)。（原文：It'll have to rely on projected backups in its backcourt, though, which could change the dynamic for a team expected to be in the national conversation next season.）