Wolves Vilnius snapped a six-game losing streak last week by rallying to beat Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana 91-89 in epic fashion. That win lifted Wolves' record to 5-9 and kept its playoff hopes alive. Swingman Jeffery Taylor, by far the most experienced player on the team, had a strong all-around performance in that game with 13 points, 6 rebounds, 6 assists and 2 steals. Taylor joined Wolves upon the club's creation in 2022 after seven seasons with Real Madrid, which he helped win the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague in 2018.
Jeffery Taylor, Wolves: 'It feels really good to be back'
Interviews
7 Mins read
Taylor has a very different role with Wolves as one its main pillars on offense and defense as well as a mentor for younger players who can profit from his great experience. Jeffery Taylor had good teachers in the Spanish capital and the time has come for him to share his wisdom, as he told Javier Gancedo of the official EuroCup website in this interview. "It's a different position for me, but being in Madrid for all those years, I was able to learn and to watch other great leaders like Felipe Reyes, Sergio Llull, "Chapu" [Andres Nocioni] and "Chacho" [Sergio Rodriguez]," Taylor said. "Those guys always treated me with patience and with respect, and they always try to show you the right way to do things or point out things to you along the way. So learning from them, I just try to do the same way."
Congratulations on beating Cedevita. What allowed you to come back and win this game?
"Thanks. We got some defensive stops and then we were able to get some layups and just trying to keep fighting, keep playing until the last whistle."
You missed most of the season until now due to injury. How does it feel to be back and ready to lead the Wolves?
"That feels good. It feels really good to be back. It feels good to see that the body is feeling normal and then recovering after that surgery, so it's great. And hopefully, I can help us get some wins here in the last part of the regular season and then see if we can get lucky and get into these playoffs."
"It's been fun to be here from the start and be able to help it from the ground up."
This is your second season with the team, a new project managed by former players. What's the best thing about Wolves Vilnius and how comfortable are you on this team?
"It's a great place. Like you said, it's a new project, so they have goals and places where they want to end up and it's great to be able to be here and help them along the way and try to get us there. Like I said, they have a lot of ambition, so it's fun to be around. It's been fun to be here from the start and be able to help it from the ground up. I think it's going to be a team to look for in the coming years."
After seven years in the EuroLeague with Real Madrid, this is your EuroCup debut. How challenging do you find this competition and in what ways is it similar to the EuroLeague?
"I think it's a fun competition. There's a lot of good teams, and there's been high-quality competition. Like you said, I've never been in the EuroCup before, so it's been a fun challenge. Sadly, I missed a large part of the regular season, so it would have been fun to be in there competing from the beginning. But it's a fun concept. It's a little different with the group play and everything from the EuroLeague, so it's been fun to watch and to be a part of."
Speaking of Real, are you following their amazing run in the competition? Are you in touch with your former teammates and the people at the club?
"I talk to a bunch of guys on the team that I played with for those seven years, so I have great contact with them. I also talk to the physios, we write back and forth every now and again. So there's a bunch of people in the club that I still talk to if not daily, then we'll just check back with each other every once in a while. But that's family, it's always going to be that contact. And the communication with those guys over there in Madrid is always going to be there, for sure. The team has been unbelievable this season. They have such a deep, talented team. It's unreal, they always play together and find ways to win. It's incredible, honestly."
President Rimas Kaukenas, ambassador Darjus Lavrinovic and you played for Real in the past and are with Wolves now. Do you often talk about the good old days with Los Blancos?
"Yes, we have discussed it before. It's always fun to have that connection and have other people around you that know what it's like to represent Madrid, so it's a cool thing to share with those guys, for sure."
Vilnius is an important city in EuroCup history. How great is it to bring the EuroCup back to Vilnius and how are people responding to that?
"It's been fun. Obviously, Rytas have deep roots here in Vilnius so for us, as a new team, I think it's been fun to to bring the EuroCup back as Rytas is now in the BCL. So I think it's fun to have more basketball competition, more high level basketball in Vilnius. I bet that's got to be something nice for people."
We interviewed Kristupas Zemaitis earlier this season and said he was surprised about how humble and patient you are with younger players. How do you like to have this role, both as a leader and a mentor, on this team?
"It's a different position for me, but being in Madrid for all those years, I was able to learn and to watch other great leaders like Felipe Reyes, Sergio Llull, "Chapu" [Andres Nocioni] and "Chacho" [Sergio Rodriguez]. Those guys always treated me with patience and with respect, and they always try to show you the right way to do things or point out things to you along the way. So learning from them, I just try to do the same way. If I see something, I'll try to point it out or maybe suggest something different or whatever. But I just try to help in every way and bring a little bit of that experience and just pass it along."
"The goal all season has been to make the playoffs."
Your next game is in Riga against Prometey, the team ahead of you in the standings. Then you go play against Reyer in Venice. From your experience, how do you approach these critical games in which a playoff berth is on the line?
"I think we just have to take it day by day... It's good to think about the big picture, but when you focus in and take it day by day, it makes it easier to really focus on what you have in front of you."
How great would it be for this new, ambitious project to reach the EuroCup Playoffs and keep fighting for EuroCup glory?
"That would be great. I mean, it would be a great success. And that's definitely the goal for us. The goal all season has been to make the playoffs. Obviously, we have had some bad luck with injuries and stuff like that, but we are still here. And as of right now, we still have a chance to make it. So we are going to make every push and use all the energy that we have, we are going to go towards that trying to complete that milestone, for sure."