By Vangelis Papadimitriou / info@eurohoops.net
Kendrick Perry is one of the many new faces on Panathinaikos‘ roster for the 2021-22 season and he has already stood out with his presence in the preseason.
Eurohoops caught up with the American guard during Panathinaikos‘ EuroLeague media day, and he talked, among other things about the feelings of being a EuroLeague rookie.
“Now it’s the right time to play. Once I really started to understand European basketball and just how the competitions were year and year. It was a goal of mine, it’s the best of the best over here, it’s something I’ve always wanted to work towards so now that I’m here I’m extremely excited to get to work.”, Perry explained
“Of course, I would love to play EuroLeague earlier but you know everything happens for a reason, injuries or just you know missed opportunities, everything is led me to this point right here. I don’t really have any regrets I don’t have that ‘I wish I would have did this differently’ because who knows? Maybe I wouldn’t have been ready now that the opportunity is here I’ve got to make the most out of it”.
Perry further talked about being friends with Scottie Wilbekin and Josh Childress, both experienced players on European territory.
“Scottie and I, we go way back. We’ve known each other since we were probably about 10-11 years old, both being from Florida, both playing basketball so of course, you know, I kind of picked his brain about the different cities and EuroLeague as a whole, how it operates. With Childress, we were teammates together in Australia in my first year. I can always reach out to him whenever I may have questions about how to navigate life on and off the court”, tells Perry.
He also discussed racism and how he has dealt with it, both in Europe and the United States.
“I think it’s a little more prevalent in the States unfortunately just because of how the social climate is, but you know, racism happens everywhere. My biggest thing is just to try to treat everyone with respect, and then hopefully you get that same respect back. […] Being a black man not just in America but in the world, you might be labeled a different way when a lot of times this might not be the case. It comes with a territory and you got to educate yourself on how to go about it, how to carry yourself so you don’t put yourself in some of these unfortunate situations”.
Check out the entire portion of the interview below: