By Bugra Uzar and Semih Tuna/ info@eurohoops.net
Bobby Dixon goes by many names. He is called “Muhammad Ali” after becoming a Turkish citizen, he is also a champ after winning the Turkish league title with underdog Karsiyaka and for sure he is the closest thing in Europe to his childhood basketball idol, Tim Hardaway!
Eurohoops had the pleasure to spend some time with him, he was kind enough to answer to some of our questions and the end result is pure delight, Turkish if you like, and Fenerbahce‘s for sure!
On how he started to play basketball:
When I was a kid I started by playing American football. Then I started playing both football and basketball. When I decided that I was too small for American football, I started to become more concentrated to basketball. I had an inherent talent for this sport and I also applied what I learned from football.
The fact that he is shorter than most basketball players and how it affected his motivation:
Of course, I was always the shortest player when I was playing. But I do not think that this is important to me or anyone else, because i have a great heart.
On playing for Pinar Karsiyaka:
I have so many wonderful memories from Karsiyaka. First of all, it was the first time that I actually found a system that it suited my game so well. Having the ball in my hands, being able to make decisions and be around good players. Of course, the coaches helped me a lot. They believed in me and gave me confidence. For a player, having the coach give you confidence is one of the most important things. That happens in Fenerbahce as well.
Of course, we achieved many things and we had success with Karsiyaka. Noone can forget how we won the championship last year. We defeated two quite strong teams, Fenerbahce, and Anadolu Efes. I won’t forget that I was a part of that, relatively small, compared to the other two, team that managed to have such a major success against them.
On leaving for Fenerbahce:
Fenerbahce is the greatest team in Turkey. And every player wants to play for the best coach, Zeljiko Obradovic, who is here in Fener. I wanted to go to the next level as a player and have an opportunity to perhaps win the Euroleague. It was an easy choice to pick Fenerbahce as my next destination since every player wants to play for the best coach and the best team. Also it is an economically strong club. I received many offers apart from Fenerbahce. Galatasaray…. China. But you know my choice.
On playing for Fenerbahce:
Everything is great here. It is a perfect envirnoment for me. I love our team. Obviously I do not feel too much pressure, compared with Karsiyaka, since it is distributed equally among the rest of the players. Everyone helps each other so we manage to overcome any difficulties. This is an ambitious team, highly concetrated and everyone wants to win the Euroleague.
On Zelico Obradovic:
He is an incredibly passionate person and i am very passionate. I’d like to think that my efforts and defense make him proyd of me. I play more defense than ever here. I play defense all the time (laughs). It was difficult to do that in Karsiyaka, because I stayed on court for 40 minutes. Not easy to have an equally high performance on both ends for so long! So now I think I’m very good when I can concentrated on defense.
On Jan Vesely:
I’ve never seen a player like him. He is an incredible athlete and he jumps so high! He does everything on court, he fights for every ball, every rebound and makes our job easier. A great player.
On Kostas Sloukas:
First of all he is a very good person. He has consistently won trophies and that is very challenging. We have a pretty good relationship and we often exchange ideas.
On playing for the Turkish national team:
I had a great experience with the national team of Turkey. We fought against some of the best players in Europe and perhaps the whole world. I think we did a good job. We managed to advance from a very tough group… and then we were put against a strong team like France. They had players from the NBA, they played at home. It was difficult to play in a situation like that. But we did our best. If I’m going to do it again? I will gladly accept the invitiation to wear the Turkish jersey again.
On choosing the name “Muhammad Ali”
Many people in my family call me with a difference name. “Bobby” or “Ali”. Sometimes… “Ra Ra”. Most of my friends call me Bobby.
On his idols:
My favorite player when I was a kid was Tim Hardaway. He is from Chicago, I’m from Chicago and I also loved his game. I tried to add some of it to my own style. I also love Allen Iverson and I have great respect for Kobe Bryant.
On Fenerbahce fans:
I am grateful for the love they show me. I will continue to work hard to make them happy. I hope we can win titles for them.
And the best saved for last! Just enjoy the video!