by Semih Tuna / [email protected]
Galatasaray NEF, one of our representatives in the Basketball Champions League, found its new guard after the star point guard of the team, Dee Bost, was transferred to ASVEL.
Galatasaray NEF added Daron “Fatts” Russell, who created wonders in the 2022-23 season with the Mornar Bar jersey in the Adriatic League.
???????? Fatts Russell opens with a three-pointer with Galatasaray jersey!#BasketballCL | @GSBasketbol pic.twitter.com/2rYWpO3FR0
— Eurohoops Türkiye (@EurohoopsTR) January 24, 2023
Russell, too, met the expectations for himself in his first Basketball Champions League match with our representative. Standing out with his scorer game, Russell made his debut in Galatasaray’s Round of 16 with an impressive 100-73 victory against Limoges with 20 points – 6 assists.
In an exclusive interview with Eurohoops after the game, we asked Russell about his amazing start in his first game:
“I’m still trying to adapt to what’s on the field, to our style of play. I made a few mistakes in defense that I wouldn’t normally make, but I’m still learning. The Basketball Champions League is a high level tournament. I can be better. As a team, we will get better every day. I hope we can continue like this.”
The president of the Mornar club said that 8 different offers came from different continents for Russell during the season. Considering that he averaged 27.6 points, 3.9 rebounds and 7.6 assists in 14 games for Mornar Bar, this seems very normal. But why did Russell choose Galatasaray? He explains:
“At that moment, Mornar wasn’t ready to let me go. I get it, they wanted to stay in the league, so I was fighting to win games for the team. But at that point, Galatasaray came to the fore because the fan base is incredible. Basketball in Turkey is also one of the best in Europe. I am very happy that I made the decision to come here.”
Russell was the team’s clear lead player and star of unlimited freedom at Mornar. But the yellow-red team already includes guards like Dylan Ennis and Tyrus McGee. The star player believes that this situation will create more advantage than disadvantage:
“I don’t think this will affect my game. It will take more of the pressure off me. There was a lot of responsibility on me in Mornar: guiding the ball, making decisions in many positions… Having names like this (Ennis, McGee) around makes your job easier and gives you free shots.”
Russell joined the Yellow-Reds after a player like Dee Bost, who had become one with the fans for the remainder of the season. Expectations are also high. Does he feel ready for such a challenge?
“Yes I am ready. I know Dee Bost is a great actress. I wish him the best where he is right now. I’m not Dee Bost, I’m a different player. I hope the fans like my style too (laughs).”
It hasn’t even been a week since the American player joined the team. What is his adaptation level in such a short time, were there any players in the team that he knew before? Let’s hear from him:
“Yes, I knew Jehyve Floyd. We played against each other a few times in college. Dylan Ennis is our family friend. I came here and felt comfortable directly because they made me feel very welcome.”
???????? Fatts Russell had a great start to his Galatasaray adventure. First 3 quarters, 17 points!#BasketballCL | @GSBasketbol pic.twitter.com/GpFbaCqj6e
— Eurohoops Türkiye (@EurohoopsTR) January 24, 2023
Russell had a scoring explosion in the Adriatic League, as evidenced by his stats. The American player, who has a five-year college career, describes the difficulties of scoring in Europe as follows:
“There are so many good players around us today that the opposing defense can’t focus entirely on me. I was the whole focus of the opposing defenses in Mornar, I was getting things like too much double compression. It was very difficult to score. I had a lot of freedom. I was free to be creative. I enjoy and learn new things every day.”
Russell began playing college basketball in the NCAA with the Rhode Island Rams in 2017-18 and spent four seasons with the Rams. The guard, who then played in the NCAA with the Maryland Terrapins for one season, ended his five-year college career by coming to Mornar Bar in 2022-23. The star player conveyed his adaptation process to European basketball:
“It was hard. In Europe the game is much more physical. There are so many details and so many responsibilities, you need to pay attention especially to the places where you need to be defensive. That was the biggest difference for me. I am still adapting and getting better every day.”
It is a fact that American score shorts have made a huge impact in Europe in recent years. There is no need to go far, our representative, Anadolu Efes star Shane Larkin, left his mark on the continent individually while the blue-whites dominated Europe. This season, Markus Howard stands out with the Baskonia jersey. What about Russell’s individual goal in Europe? On this he gives a surprising answer:
“Actually, I don’t have individual goals. Of course, eventually you want to play at the highest level, but when I find a team that accepts me in the right way, invests in me in the right way, I will honestly agree to spend the rest of my career with that team.”
Jared Terrell and Russell, who played in Türk Telekom last season, were teammates in the Rhode Island Rams in the 2017-18 season. The star player talked about the phone conversation he had with Terrell before coming to the yellow-red team:
“He called me and said that the Turkish League is a very physical league. He told me how good the league was. What he said made me understand what to expect when I come here. He gave me clues.”
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