By George Bakolas
Richard Allen Rellford (51, 2m.00) left an indelible mark in the history of the Greek A1 championship. In all 4 teams for which he played (AEK, Dafni, Pagrati, Irakleio) he distinguished himself by overflowing the opposing baskets with a lot of points. His last game in Greece was the one against Olympiacos on the 3rd of April 1996, where he got 19 points and… exactly 19 years later, it’s time to go back in time!
Eurohoops tracked down the great American in West Palm Beach in Florida where he now lives and works (he’s currently occupied with his management business) and invited him to a game of ask-and-tell, which he happily accepted!
To begin with, asking him about the first thing that comes to mind when he thinks of Greece, the response comes… in a flash: “Beautiful! I think about how beautiful Greece is! It was and will continue to be my No1 holiday destination. I honestly can’t wait to be back there first chance I get!”
What is it that he misses most about our country? “Everything! I miss all the people I met in Greece, my teammates, but also the cities in which I lived.”
As to whether he has kept in touch with any Greeks? “Yes, certainly. Achilleas Demenagas (veteran playmaker who was his teammate in Dafni), for instance, remains a very good friend of mine.”
Richard’s interest in the Greek championship is a given: “I get updates for everything that happens in the A1 from my close friend George Andrews (one of the greatest agents and lawyers who represented, among others, people like Magic Johnson, Isaiah Thomas and Reggie Theus). From what I learn, Olympiacos and Panathinaikos remain on a very high competitive level like they were when I was playing. Both were very good teams then.”
Who was the player that gave him the most trouble when he tried to make his way to the opponent’s basket? “I don’t have to think too long for that one. Fanis (Christodoulou) was the best defensive player. He gave me more of a hard time than anyone else and so I had to constantly come up with new ways to get past him. He was tough, that’s true!”
As to which moment will remain forever unforgettable from his time in Greece? “The victory against Olympiacos, who won the championship that year, was sensational! A very big game, the crowd… went crazy when it was over! (He’s referring to Dafni’s win with 105-103 over the red-and-whites after overtime in the championship’s opening game in the 1992-93 season. For Olympiacos Zarko Paspalj was the top scorer with 54 points, but the difference was made by Rellford who, with 30 points, 10/16 free throws, 10/16 two-point field goals and 8 rebounds, led his team to victory).
An other event that Richard Rellford will always remember is the phone call that he got from Nikos Galis the year the American emerged as the A1’s top scorer wearing Dafni’s colors (1992-93), gathering 726 points in total with the impressive 57% in two-point field goals.
“I always enjoyed playing against Nick! It was a real joy to watch him on the court. I remember being impressed when he called me to congratulate me when I won the A1’s top scorer title! He said, “Well done, good work!”
Okay. So he was in time for Galis as an opponent, when he was still in top form too. But what view does he hold about Diamantidis and Spanoulis? “Hm… Absolutely none my friend! I’m sorry but I don’t know anything about them, but since you brought them up I’ll make sure to find out more!”
If anything, Richard is honest, and in response to our next question about Giannis Antetokounmpo he said: “What advice I would offer him if I met him? I’d tell him to keep working hard and to leave any distractions outside the court. To stay focused in what he’s doing.”
Talking about the NBA our conversation could not but lead to the… typical question: which team is going to conquer the title this year? “The Cleveland Cavaliers but it’s not going to be easy,” believes Rellford, for whom USA’s defeat from the Greek national team in the now legendary World Cup semifinal in 2006 was anything but a surprise: “Surprise? I really don’t think so! Besides, the Greek players have a tremendous quality in their game and some of them are among the best in Europe. Personally, I wasn’t amazed at USA’s defeat.”
The conversation veers to the tragic and untimely loss of Roy Tarpley, Richard’s roommate at the University of Michigan, where he studied for four years. Rellford’s last year (1985-86) was his best (11.8-point average and 4.7 rebounds in less than 24 minutes of playing time) and led him to the 95 seed of the ill-fated 1986 draft (second pick of the 5th round) with a selection by the Indiana Pacers.
“Roy was one of the greatest people that I had the honor and pleasure of knowing. We had a really good time in college together and I can say that he was an excellent roommate since we lived in the same room. In my opinion he was capable of becoming one of the top 50 players of all time. I’ll never forget him. He was like my brother…”
To lighten the mood a bit we jumped on a subject that the American has a soft spot for and has never kept secret: food! So: burger or souvlaki? The answer was clear for the… philhellene Richard: “Souvlaki, my friend! Souvlaki!” But in music too, the word “bouzoukia” was not unknown too him at all: “Wow! I really liked going to the “bouzoukia”! Especially when I was playing in AEK I remember it being a unique experience!”
EXTRA FACTS
- Richard Rellford was born on 16/2/1964, in Riviera Beach, Florida.
- When he got out of college he stayed in the USA for two seasons, trying to get a spot on the NBA. He played in the CBA with Rapid City Thrillers and the Rockford Lightning, while in the 1987-88 season he played in only 4 games with the San Antonio Spurs (averaging 4.0 points and 11 minutes in 11 minutes).
- In the summer of 1988 he came to Europe for the first time and in specific, to Israel where he played for Maccabi Rishon for two years.
- Kresimir Cosic’s AEK was his first stop in Greece in the fall of 1990. He stayed for just 8 games, with an average of 23.1 points, 10.1 rebounds and 1.5 blocks, and in December of the same year he left to join the Spanish Girona.
- The 1991-92 season finds him back in the USA with Sioux Falls in the CBA but also with the Spanish Canarias.
In 1992-93 he not only became the A1’s top scorer, he also made history as the first American to win this particular honor. - Next year finds him in Israel and Hapoel Holon, while in 1995-95 he returns to our country to play for Pagrati where in 21 games he averaged 23.7 points, 9.7 rebounds and 1.2 steals.
- Irakleio was his last stop in Greece and in 1995-96 in 26 games with the Cretan team he averaged 24.8 points (with the amazing 58% in two-point field goals) and 6.4 rebounds.
- Overall, during his career in Greece he averaged 25.6 points and 8.6 rebounds, but also experienced two relegations with Pagrati and Irakleio. His best scoring performance was 45 points that he got on the 1st of March in 1995 as a player for Pagrati against Apollon Patras. The rossoneri prevailed with 75-64 and Rellford had 7/8 free throws, 7/11 two-point field goals, 8/9 three-point field goals and 9 rebounds in 38 minutes.
- He played for two years (1997-1999) in Cyprus with AEL Limassol and Omonia, while the millennium found him in Argentina where he closed his career playing for Penarol.