Imagine you leave your hometown job for college, win a national title, get drafted into the NBA, and then your old job says, "Actually, you still work here." That's what's happening to Oklahoma City Thunder rookie Aday Mara.

Mara, 21 and 7-foot-3, is from Zaragoza, Spain. He left the local club, Basket Zaragoza, in 2023 to play at UCLA, then transferred to Michigan and started for last season's national champions. The Thunder took him 12th overall in June.

Now, according to ESPN's Tim MacMahon, Basket Zaragoza says Mara is still under contract with it for this season. The club says it will formally oppose any transfer request. The Thunder disagree. A team spokesperson said that because Mara played three years of NCAA basketball, "as advised by the NBA, no clearance from the Spanish team is required."

Meanwhile, Mara was excellent in the preseason. He averaged 13.4 points, 7.6 rebounds and 2.4 blocks while shooting 78.8% from the floor. That's what we call making your case.

What's next: The Thunder open Tuesday at San Antonio at 7:30 p.m. MT on NBC and Peacock.