Carmelo sees a lot of Marc Gasol in teammate Hernangomez

Guillermo "Willy" Hernangomez is leaving a positive first impression on New York Knicks teammate Carmelo Anthony as he begins his tenure in the Big Apple.

Hernangomez recorded the first double-double of his NBA career on Saturday night, scoring 12 points on 6-of-12 shooting and grabbing 12 rebounds in 254 minutes of action in a 119-107 loss to the Boston Celtics.

Even in defeat, Anthony was impressed by what he saw out of the 6-foot-11 center, going as far as comparing him to one of the league's premier big men afterwards.

"I like the Big Baby," Anthony said, according to ESPN's Ian Begley. "I try to not make comparisons but I see a lot of Marc Gasol in him."

Both Hernangomez and Gasol are of Spanish descent, having represented the Spanish National team on different occasions at the Olympic games. Hernangomez won a bronze medal in Rio de Janiero, a tournament which Gasol was unable to compete in as he continued his recovery from right foot surgery.

Hernangomez was selected 35th overall by the Philadelphia 76ers in the 2015 NBA Draft, with his rights traded later that night to the Knicks. He signed with the franchise over the summer to a multi-year deal.

The 22-year-old averaged 4.3 points and 3.4 rebounds for Real Madrid in the Euroleague last season.

He's currently the favorite to emerge as the primary backup center to Joakim Noah in new head coach Jeff Hornacek's rotation for the 2016-17 campaign.