By Bilal Baran Yardımcı/ info@eurohoops.net
After tallying 9.8 points per game in the 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Regular Season, Tarik Biberovic went up to 15.5 points per game in the Playoffs, including 20 points in Game 2 of a best-of-five series versus Paris.
The 24-year-old forward, stashed in Europe by the Memphis Grizzlies since the 2023 NBA draft, is on a roll. Getting praise from Nigel Hayes-Davis is a huge bonus.
“Tremendously, especially when he plays both sides of the ball. That’s been the challenge. He’s gotten a bigger role offensively. Sometimes, he may fall victim to how well he can perform on offense, and he may give up some things in defense,” the 30-year-old forward of Fener discussed improvements of Biberovic with Eurohoops after a winning effort in Ulker Sports Arena on Thursday, “In this series, he’s been excellent on both ends.”
“As I’ve said all year, one of the top five beautiful jump shot forms in the world. When he shoots the ball with confidence, I think every shot is going in,” Hayes-Davis added on his young teammate, “He’s been doing an absolutely excellent job for us.”
Clarifying a postgame quote from Game 1 of the playoff series, the experienced combo forward displayed his actual approach to basketball Gods.
“What I said was, ‘The basketball Gods punished me for hesitating’. There was a loose ball and I looked and I said, “Should I dive?’. And I waited. Then I dove. That effort and that lack of force immediately is what caused me to foul. Because I waited, the next time the basketball Gods said, “Learn from this, don’t hesitate, because when you hesitate, bad things happen’,” he said.
At 2-0, the team coached by Sarunas Jasikevicius will face Paris in Adidas Arena next week, Tuesday and Thursday.
“The only way to respond is to match their level of desperation and their level of desire to win. No team wants to lose, obviously. No team, even more, wants to be eliminated 3-0,” stressed Hayes-Davis.
“I’m not close to anything,” he continued, focusing on a team effort to win Game 3, rather than Fener being one way away from clinching a berth in the 2025 Final Four, “We have a championship game in Paris. It’s a Final. It’s a do-or-die Game 3. That’s all we have.”
A veteran of 210 appearances in Europe’s premier club competition was mic’d up for Game 2.
“Showing the players, broadcasting the players. Because these fanbases are absolutely incredible. They will short of dying for their clubs and their players. I think that’s the beauty of Europe,” he shared his view on additional focus to the players, “I think that should be marketed is how much these fans love the players.”