By Bugra Uzar/ info@eurohoops.net
While Turkey fell short against Greece in the second consecutive prep game between the two squads, Giannis Antetokounmpo, had the best things to say for the fight his opponents gave him and his teammates in Istanbul.
“Turkey is a great national team”, Giannis told Eurohoops after the match. “I like the fact that they have a lot of young players like Cedi Osman and Furkan Korkmaz. And then they have some strong veterans that makes for a strong mix.”.
The star of the Milwaukee Bucks finished the game with 17 points and 6 assists, being once again the top performer for the Greek national team. Yet he admitted that things weren’t as comfortable for his team, as they were in Athens. “Our first game against Turkey in Athens was an easy win for us. But the second was a lot tougher. They played better and put more energy on court. They made us turned the ball over a lot, they hit some big threes. Overall, we played some great friendly games with them and I am sure these games were pretty good for the Turkish team as well”.
When asked about his opinion of Cedi Osman who scored 15 points and grabbed 5 rebounds against Greece, Giannis had only the best things to say. “Great player. I like him a lot. He is going to be really good and one day he is going to play in the NBA too. Maybe soon. When it comes to Europe…. oh my god! He is going to be a killer in Europe. A problem for many defenses, as long as he keeps working a lot.”
But Osman is not the only NBA prospect of the Turkish national team. Some days ago, Furkan Korkmaz was also selected in the Draft by the Philadelphia 76ers. “26th pick right?”. Giannis was well informed. “Korkmaz is a young player with lots of potential. He just needs to keep working. That’s all you need to do: Keeping your head down and working a lot. Then things will come easy”.