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FORT MYERS — In a recent photo shared on his Twitter page, a bearded Chase Fieler is holding a large golden trophy, sporting a bit of an awkward grin and a blue Florida Gulf Coast University T-shirt.

The longest-tenured mayor of Dunk City who’s giving pro ball a shot in Spain is still unsure what the trophy specifically represents.

“Not sure what exactly it means, but it’s good,” Fieler said, laughing.

Such is life as a rookie for Ourense Termal, a Spanish LEB Gold team (second level) that tips its season against something called Cocinas.com on Friday. A Parkersburg, West Virginia, native with a touch of Southern drawl, the 6-foot-8, 225-pound Fieler doesn’t understand a whole lot of what happens around him.

But so far, so good for FGCU’s all-time leading rebounder, shot-blocker and field-goal maker.

“He’s playing well,” said Fieler’s agent, Dave Saltzman. “He’s in a good league. The club really likes him, and I’m happy for him.”

Fieler started throughout the preseason (stats were not available) and is expected to start Friday, despite barely being able to understand coach Garcia Gonzalo or most of the people in the 117,000 population capital of the province of Galicia in the northwest corner of Spain. He’s one of approximately 6,000 foreigners in the city famous for hot springs used by the ancient Romans.

Fieler, 22, took two years of Spanish at South Parkersburg High, but it hasn’t helped much. Ditto that almost as many natives speak Galician as Spanish. Fieler’s teammates try to help him. But, frankly, he’s still lost in a place where GPS and iPhone directional guides are no help. So treks to the team’s multicolored gym, visits to not-far restaurants, the hot springs, and a nearby mall are about as far as Fieler will go.

“Definitely an everyday situation,” Fieler said. “Because of the lack of communication I have, I don’t want to go out and get lost and not understand directions to get my way back.”

That transitions to the floor.

Fieler said Gonzalo barely understands English, so they try and help each other with their native languages. But even simple in-game barks by Gonzalo and run-by answers or questions from Fieler are almost indecipherable.

And it’s not like the instruction is always basic. One of the biggest differences for Fieler — a rim-rattler who helped lead FGCU to the 2013 Sweet 16 and to last season’s first-ever Atlantic Sun regular-season title — are the intellectual expectations.

“In college you ran this play, and it’s always this — I go here, I get the ball, pass the ball to here and go here,” Fieler said. “This is — if it’s this player, I go here, if I’m playing with this player, I do this, if they guard this way, we change our play this way. A lot more reactional plays.”

There’s another big difference in the pro play in Spain. But because of senior FGCU all-conference point guard Brett Comer, a flash-passing wizard, Fieler had a leg up on that.

“I’m lucky I played with Brett,” Fieler said. “They pass a lot like the way he does. Out of nowhere they just throw one hand behind their head. Bounce pass. No-look. The guards here are just phenomenal passers.”

THE LIFE

Although he doesn’t understand a lot, Fieler said he loves the area.

“It’s beautiful, especially right now,” Fieler said. “The weather’s nice and warm. Right now you can sit by the hot springs. Those are nice. I try to get there every weekend or any off-day we have during the week.”

Fieler has a car at his disposal, but again, doesn’t go far. He shares a two-bedroom, one-bath apartment with 6-9 Brit Ben Allison, who played for Davidson. Theirs is right next door to guard Tyler Brown of Illinois State. They hang together.

One of the biggest changes for Fieler is being able to focus solely on basketball. That and his lack of confidence to go far, tripled with the siesta custom, have him a little stir crazy. Like the rest of the country, the sleepy city basically shuts down for 2-2 1/2 hours per day.

Food has been no problem, much to Fieler’s relief. There are plenty of lasagna, pizza, cordon bleu and steak dinners.

And a big recent discovery — a Chinese restaurant.

Long distance communication, though, has been rough. Spain is six hours ahead of Eastern Standard Time. Fieler relies on Facetime audio for phone talks, and he’s able to text and use Skype. Keeping up with his family hasn’t been too tough. But that’s not the case with longtime girlfriend Whitney Masters, a third-year starting senior libero/defensive specialist for FGCU. She also is in the demanding nursing program.

Fieler has been able to watch some of Masters’ volleyball games on the Internet, and otherwise keeps up via live scoring. He has yet to catch a game of his brother Jake, a freshman offensive tackle at Virginia, but there are a couple coming up on ESPN3. There is no Netflix in Spain, and the only two English channels are Disney and Discovery Max.

“It’s just something I’m going to have to get used to,” Fieler said.

BACK TO SMALL

When Joe Dooley took over at FGCU prior to last season, the Eagles were weak inside. Dooley needed Fieler to play more power forward and a lot more often with his back to the basket. Rebounding and half-hooks largely displaced his perimeter game.

In Spain, his role is reversed. He’s back at small forward, attacking off the dribble, shooting more 3-pointers and playing face-to-rim.

“It’s almost completely transformed back into that same style,” Fieler said. “It’s fun. Now it’s crazy because last year it was all inside, and at the beginning (of his Spanish journey) I had to readjust.”

It’s been tough at times. In the first preseason scrimmage, Fieler netted four stitches — after seeing a photo, Masters thought it should’ve been six — on his scalp from a wayward tooth. He’s struggled a bit with his shooting, and with the caliber of those he plays with and against.

He’s mightily impressed with his teammates.

“Really talented,” Fieler said. “Some have played 8, 9, 10, 11 years professionally. We’ve competed with some of the teams that finished in the top four last year. We beat one of them and lost by two points to another. So we’re competing I would guess at a higher rate than they did last year. So I’m excited about that.”

The home gym, which seats 5,000-6,000, has a window that loops around the top of the stands. Fieler has had to grow used to light poking in his eyes during the two-hour light morning practices. The team also practices two hours at night. Those, Fieler said, are a lot like college practices.

Fieler said he’s in great shape, largely because of working out with FGCU coaches in the offseason. Mostly, he is just keeping his head down and working as hard as he can. Sure, he’d love a legitimate shot at the NBA. But he’s realistic.

“I know I need to make small steps,” Fieler said. “The first step, I just want to have a good year and good base and try to make it to one league higher — the ACB. I really enjoy just focusing on basketball. Being away from family is tough, but it’s something I got used to in college. I plan on playing as long as I can.”

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