Ataman on Erdem Can kissing Zeljko Obradovic's hand: 'It offended me' / News - Basketnews.com

Atamans felt offended after Erdem Can kissed Zeljko Obradovic's hand before a friendly game. The Turkish specialist says that his assistant, Yakup Sekizkok, should have gotten a chance to be the head coach of Efes.

Credit: Vangelis Stolis Credit Vangelis Stolis

In his six-year tenure with the club, Ergin Ataman won two EuroLeague titles with Anadolu Efes Istanbul. He's now with Panathinaikos Athens, while Erdem Can replaced him in the Turkish organization.

2-pointers this season

50%21,0Points made:21,0Accuracy:50,0%Place in standings:7Record max:22Record min:20Most made 2FGs:Ante ZizicTeamEuroLeagueStatisticsSchedule

Immediately upon arrival, Can got compared with Ataman, so much so that after a friendly game, he purposefully mentioned that he was not him and should be judged separately.

"We coaches have this misfortune. We get caught when we say something we don't mean," Ataman said in an interview with NTV Spor. "He called me later and said that he was misunderstood. I told him, 'Don't worry about it, mind your business.' I said, 'Be aware that you are in one of the biggest clubs in Europe, and be yourself.'"

Can also got into public discourse when he kissed the hand of Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade's head coach, Zeljko Obradovic, during a friendly tournament in Athens. Ataman didn't like it.

"It wasn't that sentence he said about me that upset me. As an Efes fan, Erdem Can publicly kissed the hand of a coach who was a rival of Anadolu Efes, which offended me a little," he said. "Yes, there really should be some respect. For example, I have great respect for Aydın Ors, but I would not kiss coach Aydın's hand in public."

Ataman believes that Can is a tremendous specialist but thinks that one of his assistants should have gotten a chance to coach Efes.

"I have great respect for Erdem Can, but I wish Yakup Sekizkok had been given a chance at Anadolu Efes. In my opinion, coach Yakup deserved this chance. We have experienced success due to the Anadolu Efes culture, and he has a significant share in these championships," Ataman explained. "Of course, clubs make their own decisions, and of course, they also have an evaluation process."

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