By Aris Barkas-Semih Tuna/ info@eurohoops.net
Life is full of circles and Gary Neal started his professional career in Turkey as a member of Karsiyaka. More than a decade later, he is back in the country, after playing for European powerhouses like FC Barcelona, Benetton Treviso, Unicaja Malaga and for the San Antonio Spurs, the Milwaukee Bucks, Charlotte, Minessota and Washington in the NBA.
The new star of Banvit and last season’s Liga Endesa scoring champion is leading Banvit to the second phase of the Basketball Champions League and the Turkish club is now a force to be reckoned with for other contenders.
Having a 7-4 record in Group A is a step towards the right direction and Neal who is already averaging 14,7 ppg in his three first BCL games with his new team knows that he should not expect a walk in the part. ” The competition is pretty good since I arrived at Banvit we are 2-1 with losing one road game in Le Mans and only winning by 3 points in Russia so it is pretty competitive”, Neal said to Eurohoops while his team is preparing for the second place showdown with Sidigas Avellino.
Both opponents are tied at seven wins and this will not be the case after this round.
However, Neal’s arrival is giving to Banvit a much bigger goal. The runners up of the 2017 season have high ambitions, even if Neal knows that you have to be focused on the present.
“Just taking it one game at a time”, he explains. “We have qualified, so our next goal is to try and get the highest seed possible so we can have home court advantage in the round of 16”.
This is not just a display of modesty. In order to aim high, you have to get the job done in any given night and Neal wants his team to have this kind of mentality.
“When you play in a competition like BCL you can’t think to far ahead”, he adds. “So as a team that’s what we are focused on. Taking it one game at a time. The most important game is the next game and that’s our mentality”.
Neal’s achievements speak themselves for his quality on the court. The top scorer in Turkey (2008), Italy (2010) and Spain (2018) sets the bar high and the first step in order to get better is to lead for the first time this season Banvit to a third straight BCL win.
Agaist Nizhny Novgorod he scored 21 points and he is just getting warmed up. And while there are many contenders in the BCL, if you want to pick a dark horse which can make it to the Final Four, Banvit and Neal’s hot hand are a more than intriguing choice.
Photo credit: Basketball Champions League