http://www.floridatoday.com/!NEWSROOM/sportstoryS1222TURKOGLU.htm
Turkoglu thriving in Orlando
BY JOHN DENTON
FLORIDA TODAY
ORLANDO -- His trailblazing path to the NBA is so storied back in Turkey that when Hedo Turkoglu plays in major metropolitan cities of the United States, Turks flood into the areas by the hundreds.
Orlando Magic guard Hedo Turkoglu of Turkey passes the ball from the floor against the Utah Jazz during the fourth quarter Dec. 8 in Salt Lake City. Image by AP
When he was at Los Angeles' Staples Center earlier this month with the Orlando Magic, some 400 Turkish basketball fans were able to snag some of the toughest tickets in sports. When he played against Mehmet Okur, the only other Turkish player in the NBA, fans from their homeland danced throughout the game and waved flags from the homeland. And then there was the time early in his career when he came out of the tunnel in New Jersey and was shocked by what he saw.
"There had to have been 3,000 Turks up there, filling a whole section," remembered Turkoglu, one of three Turkish players in the NBA. "I remember Jason Kidd and Richard Jefferson telling me that I should come and play with the Nets so they would have some fans at their games."
Turkoglu is the first player to play in the NBA from Turkey, but his popularity also has something to do with the smoothness that he plays the game. At 6-foot-10 and one of the game's best 3-point shooters, Turkoglu is clearly one of the game's most versatile players. In many ways, he is the prototypical small forward -- big enough to post up and score around the basket, agile enough to beat defenders off the dribble, athletic enough to finish high above the rim and skilled enough to bury 3-pointers from all angles.
Still, more than a few eyebrows around the league raised when the Magic gambled $39 million over six seasons that Turkoglu, 25, was about to fulfill his enormous potential. He was signed as insurance in case Grant Hill could not return, but he's been so much more than that for Orlando. He is averaging a career-best 13.1 points off the bench and at times has been the scorer that has carried the Magic. And early in the season Magic general manager John Weisbrod went as far as saying he was the team's early-season MVP.
Turkoglu was available this summer only when San Antonio ran out of money when it decided to sign guard Manu Ginobili. The Spurs reluctantly allowed Turkoglu to leave, even though he had a disastrous playoff series against the Los Angeles Lakers for San Antonio. In the six games against the Lakers, Turkoglu went scoreless three times and hit just 25.5 percent of his shots. And he made just seven of 24 3-pointers after finishing eighth in the league in 3-point shooting.
The Magic (14-10) host the Spurs (20-5) tonight and they are happy that Turkoglu is on their side now.
"I don't know what went into San Antonio's thinking last summer," Magic coach Johnny Davis, "but that slump of his might have worked out to our favor."
Just 25, Turkoglu is still maturing as a player and still battles through bouts of losing his confidence. In San Antonio, he had to share time with Ginobili and head coach Greg Popovich usually had a quick trigger to pull him out of the game when he took an ill-advised shot. That uneasiness played a big role in his playoff collapse once shots stopped falling.
"I should have done better in the playoffs because I had a lot of open shots," Turkoglu said, still seemingly kicking himself. "I was leading the whole NBA in 3-point shots most of the season. I was up and down all season and one of the downs came in the playoffs. It was just bad timing I guess."
Turkoglu has shown no signs of those struggles this season, and has thrived in Davis' up-tempo offense. He's topped 20 points three times and led the Magic in scoring four times. And unlike in San Antonio and Sacramento where he was used primarily as a spot-up shooter, Turkoglu has been given the freedom to attack the basket. He's just as good a finisher with his left hand as his right and he regularly burns foes when they back off of him with his jump shot.
"Turk has been second-fiddle most of his career, but we're asking a lot of him," said Magic assistant coach Morlon Wiley, Turkoglu's one-on-one opponent most days after practice. "He kind of reminds me of (Dallas forward) Dirk (Nowitzki) because he can do so many things. But Dirk's always had that green light to shoot where Turk has had to pick his spots."
Turkoglu takes seriously his role as one of his country's basketball stars. He is usually swarmed by paparazzi when he returns to the four-bedroom house that he built in Istanbul overlooking the Bosporous River. Soccer is still king in Turkey, but basketball is surging in large part to Turkoglu. Even now in his fifth NBA season, fans rise in the early-morning hours to watch his games on NBA broadcasts back in his home country.
And nothing make him feel more at home than the throngs that fill the arenas when he comes to town.
"Yes, I am pretty popular there," said Turkoglu, whose NBA fortunes have allowed his father and mother to retire from their jobs. "Since there are just a very few of us in the NBA, they really show us great support. Seeing that Turkish flag in the stands at games really makes me proud." Contact Denton at jd41898@aol.com.
Turkoglu thriving in Orlando
BY JOHN DENTON
FLORIDA TODAY
ORLANDO -- His trailblazing path to the NBA is so storied back in Turkey that when Hedo Turkoglu plays in major metropolitan cities of the United States, Turks flood into the areas by the hundreds.
Orlando Magic guard Hedo Turkoglu of Turkey passes the ball from the floor against the Utah Jazz during the fourth quarter Dec. 8 in Salt Lake City. Image by AP
When he was at Los Angeles' Staples Center earlier this month with the Orlando Magic, some 400 Turkish basketball fans were able to snag some of the toughest tickets in sports. When he played against Mehmet Okur, the only other Turkish player in the NBA, fans from their homeland danced throughout the game and waved flags from the homeland. And then there was the time early in his career when he came out of the tunnel in New Jersey and was shocked by what he saw.
"There had to have been 3,000 Turks up there, filling a whole section," remembered Turkoglu, one of three Turkish players in the NBA. "I remember Jason Kidd and Richard Jefferson telling me that I should come and play with the Nets so they would have some fans at their games."
Turkoglu is the first player to play in the NBA from Turkey, but his popularity also has something to do with the smoothness that he plays the game. At 6-foot-10 and one of the game's best 3-point shooters, Turkoglu is clearly one of the game's most versatile players. In many ways, he is the prototypical small forward -- big enough to post up and score around the basket, agile enough to beat defenders off the dribble, athletic enough to finish high above the rim and skilled enough to bury 3-pointers from all angles.
Still, more than a few eyebrows around the league raised when the Magic gambled $39 million over six seasons that Turkoglu, 25, was about to fulfill his enormous potential. He was signed as insurance in case Grant Hill could not return, but he's been so much more than that for Orlando. He is averaging a career-best 13.1 points off the bench and at times has been the scorer that has carried the Magic. And early in the season Magic general manager John Weisbrod went as far as saying he was the team's early-season MVP.
Turkoglu was available this summer only when San Antonio ran out of money when it decided to sign guard Manu Ginobili. The Spurs reluctantly allowed Turkoglu to leave, even though he had a disastrous playoff series against the Los Angeles Lakers for San Antonio. In the six games against the Lakers, Turkoglu went scoreless three times and hit just 25.5 percent of his shots. And he made just seven of 24 3-pointers after finishing eighth in the league in 3-point shooting.
The Magic (14-10) host the Spurs (20-5) tonight and they are happy that Turkoglu is on their side now.
"I don't know what went into San Antonio's thinking last summer," Magic coach Johnny Davis, "but that slump of his might have worked out to our favor."
Just 25, Turkoglu is still maturing as a player and still battles through bouts of losing his confidence. In San Antonio, he had to share time with Ginobili and head coach Greg Popovich usually had a quick trigger to pull him out of the game when he took an ill-advised shot. That uneasiness played a big role in his playoff collapse once shots stopped falling.
"I should have done better in the playoffs because I had a lot of open shots," Turkoglu said, still seemingly kicking himself. "I was leading the whole NBA in 3-point shots most of the season. I was up and down all season and one of the downs came in the playoffs. It was just bad timing I guess."
Turkoglu has shown no signs of those struggles this season, and has thrived in Davis' up-tempo offense. He's topped 20 points three times and led the Magic in scoring four times. And unlike in San Antonio and Sacramento where he was used primarily as a spot-up shooter, Turkoglu has been given the freedom to attack the basket. He's just as good a finisher with his left hand as his right and he regularly burns foes when they back off of him with his jump shot.
"Turk has been second-fiddle most of his career, but we're asking a lot of him," said Magic assistant coach Morlon Wiley, Turkoglu's one-on-one opponent most days after practice. "He kind of reminds me of (Dallas forward) Dirk (Nowitzki) because he can do so many things. But Dirk's always had that green light to shoot where Turk has had to pick his spots."
Turkoglu takes seriously his role as one of his country's basketball stars. He is usually swarmed by paparazzi when he returns to the four-bedroom house that he built in Istanbul overlooking the Bosporous River. Soccer is still king in Turkey, but basketball is surging in large part to Turkoglu. Even now in his fifth NBA season, fans rise in the early-morning hours to watch his games on NBA broadcasts back in his home country.
And nothing make him feel more at home than the throngs that fill the arenas when he comes to town.
"Yes, I am pretty popular there," said Turkoglu, whose NBA fortunes have allowed his father and mother to retire from their jobs. "Since there are just a very few of us in the NBA, they really show us great support. Seeing that Turkish flag in the stands at games really makes me proud." Contact Denton at jd41898@aol.com.
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