Chris Singleton explains Ataman's tricks, reveals background of his Barcelona days / News - Basketnews.com

Chris Singleton talks to BasketNews about how Anadolu Efes can win a third straight EuroLeague title, comments on Ergin Ataman's mind games, and explains why he didn't get to stay in Barcelona.

Credit: Kaan Baytur - Depo Photos/Depo Photos via ZUMA Wire Credit Kaan Baytur - Depo Photos/Depo Photos via ZUMA Wire

WhenAnadolu Efes Istanbul re-signed Chris Singletontwo months ago, coach Ergin Ataman gave an updateon his player's level of readiness.

Chris Singleton

MIN:15.83PTS:3.14 (46.15%)REB:2As:0.86ST:0.43BL:0TO:0.29GM:7ProfileEuroLeague2022/2023

"Chris did not practice 5-on-5 basketball but stated that he is in good physical condition. He is a player who knows the system and the team. We don't have time, but I expect him to adapt quickly," the Turkish specialist said.

Ataman was partly right, partly wrong. Even though Singleton gradually developed into a role player for Efes after his second season with the team, his offensive production in the first seven EuroLeague games he's played thus far has been very low.

Only 3.1 points and 2.0 rebounds in less than 16 minutes suffice to summarize his contribution. On the other hand, even though he might never be able to replicate his numbers before 2020, he has always been a player who gears up in the final stretch when titles are at stake.

"I think I'm almost there. I'm still working on my explosiveness, but everything else is getting back into the swing of things," he told BasketNews while in Istanbul, his second home since 2019.

The earthquake that shattered Turkey on February 6 has taken the lives of at least 45,000 people, while a lot more live under harsh conditions near the rubble.

For the Turkish teams, the government's decision to suspend all games held in the country made things hard for Fenerbahce Beko and Anadolu Efes to stay in shape. The two powerhouses, as well as the rest Turkish clubs, had to wait for a month to play a domestic game.

However, both managed to bounce back and score a perfect 4-0 in their EuroLeague contests over the past couple of weeks.

Chris Singleton

Team:Anadolu Efes IstanbulPosition:PFAge:33Height:206 cmWeight:104 kgBirth place:Georgia, United States of AmericaProfileNewsStatistics

"Obviously, it's a difficult time. Thoughts and prayers go out to everybody who were affected by the earthquakes," Singleton points out.

I'm happy that we were able to go out there, play sports and try to help people get through the situation with the love for their team. Hopefully, we'll keep embracing their support."

The American forward confirms that Istanbul "thankfully wasn't affected" because "it would have been more catastrophic if it was."

"That shows what needs to be done to improve the infrastructure. People see what needs to be done to improve everyone's safety," he continues.

Credit Tolga Adanali/Euroleague Basketball via Getty Images

Singleton, 33, has only been with Efes for a couple of months this season, but still, he knows the team very well. Shane Larkin lost a few games with injury, and recently, there was some worrisome news on Vasilije Micic, who will probably come back sooner rather than later.

With a delicate 13-12 balance, the reigning EuroLeague champions have faced many problems, but they're still in playoff contention, and - most importantly- they play six of their last nine games at home.

Not having a complete roster has hurt Ataman's squad, but Singleton stresses that now, players feel an urgency to win that they hadn't shown until now, especially in road games.

"We still think we have a good shot with everybody else, being competitive. The rankings are so close. We just need to go game by game," he comments.

"I'm a big dreamer, and I think we always aim at the top," the Georgia-born athlete maintains.

"We have the motivation, but we have to get through the difficulties and show consistency and toughness. That's stuff we can change, digging down deep and going out there and fighting."

In both of Efes' back-to-back titles, the team stepped up for good when the Final Four or the trophy was at stake. Singleton was part of the Barcelona team that Efes eliminated in the 2019 playoffs before joining the Turkish side some months later.

We have grown to think of Efes as the dominant, title-winning team. However, that was not the case 4-5 years ago.

Even when Vasilije Micic and Shane Larkin, the two game-changing players, showed up, there was hardly anything indicating that Efes would grow to become one of the all-time great teams in European basketball history.

Singleton stresses that many pieces have changed this year, but everything was the same before then. That's why a transition period was needed for the team to find a balance.

"We still brought back 6-7 guys, but that core hasn't played together this season," he says. "Then we added Will [Clyburn] and Ante Zizic. So, we have to figure out the little things on the fly, go with the strings and play together."

There's one important factor that can help Efes in the long run: the experience is there.

"That's what it comes down to in the games - get the best out of mismatches and be able to score easy buckets. There's been a lot of close games that haven't gone Efes' way. Hopefully, that will change with how we play," Singleton hopes.

The former Washington Wizards player calls Efes the most experienced team he's been on and explains the reasons why.

"Will has been Final Four MVP and a EuroLeague star. Adding him to the two other stars [Vasilije Micic, Shane Larkin] creates a three-headed horse or the Big 3, which I think they had high hopes for, but it hasn't blossomed the way it was supposed to," he admits.

But he also adds that the fight and the hunger are there for Efes to go for three trophies in a row.

"We're giving Will a hard time by joining us, but he's embracing it. The culture's going back up."

Talking about the club's culture, Ergin Ataman has become part and parcel of it. The Turkish coach perfectly embodies what the Istanbul-based team stands for. At the same time, he's one of the few coaches in Europe who calls out his players in public whenever he feels like they're underperforming.

For instance, after the loss to Olympiacos in Piraeus, he said: "Everyone's talking about us having very good players, star players, but we need them to play in this kind of games- not in Turkish league games against weak teams." And then, he went on to specify he was referring to Will Clyburn and Vasilije Micic.

This approach has worked so far, but the situation can easily go out of control on a star-studded team. Singleton, for one, has been accustomed to Ataman's mechanics.

"When you're a good team, you need this type of coach," he thinks.

"He wants to win and he wants the best for his players. He knows he can't be out there participating. I think it's more of a motivation thing."

The EuroLeague veteran believes Ataman is trying to get his stars to understand that EuroLeague games against the likes of Olympiacos or Barcelona are some of the season's biggest contests where top teams are involved.

According to Singleton, Ataman asks his players to live up to the game's requirements and be as hyped up as he is.

"He does it every year. You just got to know who you're playing for," he says.

Contrary to what he was used to, this season, Ergin Ataman has tried to stay away from expressions of over-confidence, like showing three fingers- at least, that's what he's promised to do. The last time he made his signature gesture - by raising his fists like saying 'I won the cup' - was after Efes' win in Barcelona.

The two teams have built a rich history of memorable games, starting from the 2019 playoffs. Singleton has figured things out and points out that those clashes owe a lot to the coaches (Ataman and Sarunas Jasikevicius) pulling the strings.

"I think Barcelona is a rivalry game for us," he says.

"We'd think it's the biggest game we have outside of Turkey. It's just how expressive the coaches are. They both want their moment.

Our coach is the best coach in Turkey, for sure, and has that pride in him. But now he's fighting for being the best coach of all time if he keeps winning. But both still have a way to go to catch up with Zeljko Obradovic.

They both have confidence and their way of doing things. When you get big players, you want to win, hold yourself accountable and ride the wave with it. But you love it because it takes some pressure off the guys and puts it on the coach," Singleton argues.

In an interview with BasketNews a month ago, the experienced forward touched on his choice of Efes as his destination back in 2019.

"When I first signed with Efes, I wanted to go somewhere and stay for a while. I wanted to do that at Barca, but they had other plans - and so did I," Singleton said.

Looking back at the situation, he gives a general outline of those plans at the time and how they were communicated to him.

It was the summer when coach Svetislav Pesic stayed, but Barca made several big signings in Nikola Mirotic, Alex Abrines, and Malcolm Delaney. They were projected as the favorite to win the trophy, although that hadn't been the case over the past few years.

Credit AFP7 via ZUMA Wire

"When I signed with Barca, I told my agent at the time that I wanted to make sure that we were here to win," Singleton recalls.

"They haven't had the best track record in the past couple of years before that. They've been towards the bottom of the league for two years in a row. A lot of guys weren't proven at the time. So, they were going out there just revamping the roster.

I told them, 'I came here to win.' The Barca jersey is more global than some other EuroLeague teams. So, you feel pride when you're wearing it," he points out.

Singleton says promises were made that the Catalan powerhouse was trying to improve the roster. However, the 2018-19 lineup was lacking one particular piece which he thinks could have changed its fate.

"We didn't have a breakdown 2-guard that can create their own shot," he reflects. "That's what it comes down to at the end of the games. I think you need a 2-guard on any team or a point guard that can make and create their shots. That was one piece we were missing."

Singleton remembers that when Barcelona started collecting wins, things about what the team needed were clear.

"I think they didn't do enough to capitalize on us being the 5-seed," he continues.

"We were literally one piece away from going to the Final Four. We all had discussions on what we need."

In addition, Singleton says, the club had started making some very ambitious (and expensive) plans before the season ended.

"To see how they went from the budget of the 2018-19 season to the year after, I thought that was funny because it wouldn't have been that much to help the team out to improve," he underlines. "But that's what they chose."

Singleton underlines that upon joining Barcelona on a lucrative $2.05M deal, he set his own terms.

"I had a chance to sign a two-year deal. I came in there with a one-year contract. I told them, 'If you're not committed to winning, I don't want to be here.'

We never discussed my contract. I wasn't pressing for money. I just tried to play to the best of my ability. I know I did what I had to do for my standards and help turn around the way things were.

Energy got back into Barca, and we overachieved in all people's eyes. We won the Spanish Cup, and we had the chance to win the ACB and go to the Final Four," the Efes forward recounts.

Singleton hoped that things would change and he could have stayed in Barcelona for a while, but it allplayed out in a different way.

"They never approached me, they didn't do their due diligence," he stresses.

Eventually, everything turned out for the best.

"I had offers from all around Europe, and everything worked out for me by going to Efes. I think the key part was Barca didn't win the title. Had they won it, I wouldn't have gone to Efes. I can't complain," Singleton concedes.

One significant takeaway from his Barca days was being able to work under coach Svetislav Pesic.

The Serbian play-caller hasn't had the best relationship with many American players, but Singleton has said the two worked on certain areas, and Pesic's presence helped him shape into the player he is now.

"He wanted me to keep expanding my game," Singleton remembers.

"He told me that I was one of the players who can create their own shot. He wanted me to be more aggressive than I was, and tried to push me to become a scorer, where I'm actually at. He'd tell me to shoot these turnaround jump shots because I worked on them every day."

Credit Aykut Akici/Euroleague Basketball via Getty Images

For many undersized big men in Europe, one of the main problems is defensive rebounding and, generally, the perception of space. On the other hand, they're usually terrific offensive rebounders. Singleton has certainly reserved the right to be called an exception to that rule.

One need only recall his crucial offensive rebound after Shane Larkin's missed 3-point shot in last year's EuroLeague final game against Real Madrid.

"With offensive rebounding, you have to know your teammates and how they miss. I know what's the usual way I miss. You got to know their timing," he says.

But that's only half of the job.

"On the defensive side, you have to do the little stuff early and then use your athleticism. Sometimes, the ball doesn't bounce your way. If you put yourself in the right position, you can get a lot of rebounds."

Singleton thinks that at Efes, offensive rebounding is harder because it's more difficult to be in the right position. That's mainly Ataman's doing.

"With the freedom that we have on offense, you can do anything, anytime. That's the confidence that coach gives."

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