By John Rammas/ irammas@eurohoops.net
After leaving Anadolu Efes for Panathinaikos, Ergin Ataman explained in an interview with beIN Sports Turkiye how the Turkish team went from successive Euroleague trophy wins to not even qualifying for the playoffs. In the midst of it all, he mentioned that “there was a strong team dynamic after most of them had been together for five years.” However, “when another dominant player joined the team, that dynamic was disrupted.”
The statement painted Will Clyburn as the cause of the disruption, and he quickly responded via Twitter.
After all, Ataman and Clyburn recently met again during the final of the Pavlos Giannakopoulos tournament, and the US forward talked about the mentioned situation.
“The media likes to highlight bad news, but we immediately discussed it with each other, and the misunderstanding was resolved. He told me exactly what he meant, and I completely understood. Lost in… translation. He explained it to me right away. He texted me as soon as the interview aired because he didn’t like the way the statement sounded. I respect him, and he respects me, and I know he didn’t mean it that way,” Clyburn said.
He insists not much has changed in Anadolu Efes since Ataman left, even though Erdem Can took over the team and eight new players arrived, while many others left…
“Basketball is basketball, training is training, rest is rest, and everything is going as usual. Honestly, I can’t say that things are very different. We are still in the preparation period. I can’t say otherwise.”
Ataman left Anadolu Efes for Panathinaikos, where he’s starting a new ambitious project, highlighted by many attractive signings during the summer, such as Kostas Sloukas‘.
“It has to do with the players, the coach, the system, and if everyone is on the same page. But yes, they have a chance to succeed. After all, it’s five players from one side and another five from the other, and those who get along best with each other will win,” Will Clyburn diplomatically explained.