Amedeo Della Valle skips a couple more

Amedeo Della Valle could return on October 10 for the league game against Trieste, which is part of the third round of the regular season. According to La Prealpina, Openjobmetis Varese—which began the season with a home loss to Virtus Bologna—continues to assess on a day-to-day basis the condition of the former Olimpia Milano and Germani Brescia player, who is dealing with a right knee injury. The plan is reportedly not to risk the young player—who follows in his father’s footsteps—against either Scafati or in the first Basketball Champions League game on the road against Murcia, Spain, in order to facilitate his full recovery and begin giving him playing time against the Giuliani.

The opening-game loss to Virtus Bologna—which won 90–69 at the PalaWhirlpool—has already cost the red-and-white club a disciplinary sanction: the Sports Judge has fined Openjobmetis 800 euros for collective and sporadic insults directed at a specifically identified player. It has thus been a complicated start to the season, making Della Valle’s return all the more eagerly anticipated, as he is considered one of the main strengths of the technical project built around coach Ioannis Kastritis.

The player’s absence is particularly noticeable because the signs during the preseason had been encouraging in terms of his adjustment to the team. During the official roster presentation at the Teatro Santuccio, Della Valle himself had expressed great enthusiasm for this new adventure: “I’m really enjoying my time in Varese: from day one, everyone has been doing everything they can to help me settle in and make me feel like part of the team.” The player had also highlighted the warmth he felt from the local community: “I feel a lot of warmth in the city too; many fans stop me on the street, and you can feel this enthusiasm everywhere.”

Della Valle’s arrival in Varese was anything but a foregone conclusion. Born in 1993, he averaged 16.8 points last season with Germani Brescia and was named the LBA’s Best Italian Player for the third time; he found himself on the market after choosing not to follow the Lombardy club’s transfer of its sports franchise to Maxima Roma. That decision sparked a bidding war involving several Italian and foreign suitors, before Openjobmetis managed to outbid the competition by securing his services with a multi-year contract.