New Iowa Hawkeyes Forward Alvaro Folgueiras Gets Major Opportunity

Fans of the Iowa Hawkeyes' basketball program haven't even seen Alvaro Folgueiras play basketball for their team yet, but they'll get a preview of him this summer if they're able to tune in or catch some highlights.

That's because Folgueiras is going to get some major international opportunities this summer. The athletic department announced on Wednesday that the junior forward from Málaga, Spain is going to compete with the U20 Spanish National Team in July.

He'll be a part of the Spanish National team playing at the FIBA U20 EuroBasket Championships in Keraklion, Greece starting on July 12. He'll then train with the Spanish Men's National Team and take part in two friendlies with the team against Portugal and Czech Republic.

This is some major international exposure for Folgueiras and it will only serve him once he gets back to Iowa City to start preparing for the 2025 season. There are high expectations for him after he transferred to play for new head coach Ben McCollum earlier this offseason.

Folgueiras spent his first two college seasons at Robert Morris, where he was a star for the Colonials.

He was the Horizon League Player of the Year last season after averaging 14.1 points, 9.1 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 1.4 steals per game for RMU.

Folgueiras is a 6-foot-9, 215 pound forward who will have two years of eligibility remaining in Iowa City. Realistically, if he's able to translate his game to the level of Big Ten play, he could end up being one of the more important players on the team in 2025.

Getting this added international experience against a higher level of competition will be invaluable for both him and Iowa.