The first-year guard is enjoying a breakout season in the EuroCup
Zavier Simpson, Cluj: 'We are finally starting to click'
Intervjui
15 Min čitanja
U-BT Cluj-Napoca rallied from a 0-3 start in Group B to win five of its next six games and climb to 5-4 in the standings. Point guard Zavier Simpson has been at the heart of its resurgence, excelling at both scoring and passing the basketball to help Cluj to a winning record at the midway point of the regular season.
Simpson has averaged 18.1 points on strong shooting (57.7% 2FG, 41.7% 3FG, 82.7% FT), 3.9 rebounds, a league-leading 7.2 assists and a PIR of 21.6. Though he didn't have his best scoring night in Round 9 against Aris Midea Thessaloniki, Simpson recorded his first career double-double with 14 points and 10 assists.
In an extensive interview with Javier Gancedo of EuroCupBasketball.com, Simpson discussed that he believes he can keep excelling at both things and just be a better basketball player as his career continues.
Hello, Zavier. What a comeback! Cluj is 5-4 in the upper part of the standings. What was the key to winning that back-and-forth battle against Aris?
"Thank you. We got some stops late in the game and we just ran the transition, getting easy buckets. I felt like some guys, like Adam [Mokoka] came up pretty big by knocking down shots, making some plays and just being aggressive. Obviously, in the EuroCup, there are some ups and downs and teams are going to make runs. You may go back and forth like we were doing during the game as well, but just executing the game plan from the coaches and playing together is key, especially down the stretch. And I feel like that's what we did. I feel like now we are finally starting to click. I still feel like we have some room for improvement, but now I feel like we finally found continuity. It feels more in rhythm.
"I believe in our last 9-10 games, we are 8-2, including our domestic league. So we just want to keep it rolling. We played against a good team, I liked it better than what the record shows. In the EuroCup, every game is important and now, we are over .500. That's the most we can ask for. We just want to take game by game, get better every single day in practice and just be able to play together."
"For the most part, we are rolling right now, which is all we can hope for."
That was going to be my next question, you started the season with a 0-3 record. Was it bad luck because you played against strong teams right away, or did you guys need time to gel a little bit?
"I almost feel like it was a collaboration with a lot of things. We were unhealthy as a team and had just got DJ [Seeley] back who was here last year. Pat [Richards] was coming slowly off his injury. He wasn't always there. Zach [Hankins] was coming and was almost 100% from his injury. Obviously, the starting point guard myself is getting used to this EuroCup style, the atmospheres, things of that nature. So I'm not going to blame it on injuries because I felt like those games were also winnable, but also at the same time, [Cedevita] are a really good team, really good coaching staff, really good game plan, phenomenal organization. Valencia came from the EuroLeague so that obviously speaks for itself. And Bourg lost last year in the EuroCup Finals, which also again speaks for itself. So we played against two great organizations, two great teams with phenomenal players, and just with that collaboration, us to kind of get our chemistry with guys coming in, guys kind of like almost there health-wise, a new guy coming in, a new point guard... So I feel like it was a bunch of things. But at the same time, we don't want to tip our hat off to those teams that beat us. We don't want to disrespect them in any way, shape or form or try to say it's because of injuries or things of that nature. But they are really good teams and we were glad we were able to face them early so we were able to see where we were at. But yeah, I felt like we lost two tough games to those teams and kind of just felt like we bounced back but still got some improvements to do, still got some winning, some catching up to do. But for the most part, we are rolling right now, which is all we can hope for."
Cluj is your first team in Europe, not just in the EuroCup. How much fun is it to play here in general and in the EuroCup in particular?
"It's really fun. It kind of reminds me of the college basketball atmosphere, as far as just the prep: you have two, three, maybe four days of preparation for the next game. The fans are phenomenal, the energy, the atmosphere is pretty crazy, whether it's a home game or away game. So it's lit, I enjoy it a lot. Obviously, I'm still getting used to it, still adjusting slowly but surely. But for the most part, I'm enjoying myself. Just trying to embrace it every single day."
Patrick Richards has been there for a long time and is the team captain, playing point guard like you. How much of a mentor has he been for you?
"It's phenomenal having someone who has been there, who is a vet not just on the court, but also off the court, who is able to show me the way and help me out with things that I may know or things I may need help on. Being able to have a guy like him, being the captain of the team like I said is great. I'm very appreciative to be able to have that captain, be able to lead and guide me through ways that I'm still learning as I go."
"Trust me, you will definitely see more hook shots as we go."
You were nicknamed "Captain Hook" in college for your ability to hit hook shots, something very rare to see in point guards. Truth is, we haven't seen many of those in the EuroCup. How come you are so good at hook shots?
"It comes from, I believe, my freshman or sophomore year in college. Our college did an open gym and it kind of felt natural, so I began just to work on it, and that's when it kind of developed. Then it became off the same foot, same hand. I became more creative with it as I progressed and got over to my career to make it a more efficient shot. I haven't done it much this year, but I am definitely taking some hook shots this year, for sure. Not as much as I was usually shooting. It's just still trying to get to my spots and pick and choose my spots and different things on the court. But trust me, you will definitely see more hook shots as we go."
Over the years, you broke high school and college records in points and assists. What comes first for you, points, assists or it depends on the game flow?
"I feel like it depends on the game flow, but I feel like naturally, I'm more of a traditional point guard. And over the last year, maybe a year and a half, I kind of developed into a scoring role. I just felt like I've been working on my game so much. I do a lot perfecting my craft and just kind of studying different players to help my game that it just became easier. It's not like I haven't been scoring in past years, but I have always been a pass-first point guard and now, I continue to add more to my game. And on one part, I feel like what was missing from the past 4-5 years of my career was maybe just scoring the ball from different levels and different angles and different shots. And each year you constantly see me adding new things.
"Since my freshman year of college, I am constantly seeing my stats, improving attempts, improving percentages, improving efficiency from each year, so that's kind of what I've been focusing on, just trying to see what I can do to help my game be better. And I feel like scoring has opened up not just for myself, but also for other teammates because guys know I can pass and things of that nature, but which I still can be doing, which I still obviously do, but at the same time just looking to add more towards my game.
"I just want to be able to reach my potential, reach my peak and be the best basketball player that I can be. And if that leads sometimes to the defense forcing me to score the ball or forcing me to shoot or forcing me to do different things, I want to be able to go into those situations comfortable, because obviously if they are going to be games that you may be hot, you may have a phenomenal percentage from the free throw line, the three line, two-point field goal percentage as well. But then there are also going to be games where it just doesn't fall, not because you are incapable of doing it, just because that's just how it works sometimes. I have been shooting really good this year and having been efficient and in the game [against Aris], I didn't have so much of an efficient night for us maybe scoring the ball, but still being able to get in there and have 10 assists and being able to lead my team with defensive stops and having energy and making sure we get the dub, which is much more important. It's just something that you just have to realize with basketball, and just with life in general, that there are gonna be some good days. There are going to be some high days, some low days. Just got to be in there to find a way to stay consistent with your routine and just being able to get through it to the best of your ability."
Let's talk about Cluj, then. We see 10,000 fans in the stands in every game. How cool is it to play in such an atmosphere?
"It's phenomenal. Our fans show up pretty much day in, day out. Just being able to go into an arena like that where you know your fans are going to be very supportive, they are going to be going crazy for you in the crowd and just cheering you on, it's always phenomenal. So I am very appreciative of our fans, shout out to the Cluj fans and hopefully they can continue to show up. Well, hopefully we can continue to win, continue to keep giving them a reason to come and support us. But for the most part, it's been phenomenal having a crowd, a fan base that we have."
You have always been around basketball ever since you were a kid. How was your life growing up in Lima, Ohio?
"Basketball was very important. That's all I pretty much knew was basketball. My dad was a high school coach, freshman high school coach, JV coach, ABA coach, college coach at a small college in the area, varsity coach. My coach! He was my coach growing up since maybe fourth grade. So I was around it pretty much my whole life and kind of knew that the steps I'm taking now was going to be a part of my journey, and I'm just looking to continue to progress forward in the best way I can."
Now you will play the next three teams against those teams that beat you in the beginning of the season: Cedevita, Bourg and Valencia. How much are you looking forward to it now that the team is ready and playing much better than before?
"I'm looking forward to it. Those are really good teams, but we want to just take it one game at a time. So we got Cedevita on Tuesday and we want to be able to just go into practice over the few days before we play them, making sure we are sharp, make sure we are going to the arena knowing that they beat us, but also knowing that we want to continue to build a consistent habits amongst our team, amongst ourselves so we are able to use those habits when it's time. But for the most part, just taking one day at a time, not getting too overly hyped up, excited or things of that nature and just being able to execute the game plan from the coaches and go out there and play hard, play smart, play together and hopefully that can lead to a win."
Still, there must be some bigger goals. Is that going to the playoffs and being more ambitious than before?
"That's definitely the goal. Anything I do, my goal is to be the last person standing, the last team on top, but obviously, it's going to come with some roadblocks and things of that nature in between. I definitely don't want to get ahead of myself and have high expectations, not just for myself, but also for the team this year. But at the same time, I don't want to get too ahead of myself. I want to continue to respect the game, respect the organization and players and coaches who have been here before me, and I'm just really trying to get some wins to put ourselves in the best position. And obviously when that time comes, hopefully we can be in the playoffs. And obviously, when you are in the playoffs, no team is going in there looking to not win the playoffs. So I guess we can just leave it at that."