Bo McCalebb, Partizan
One of the mains reasons that Partizan Belgrade has made it to the Final Four for the first time since 1998 is point guard Bo McCalebb, who has gone from virtual unknown to All-Euroleague candidate in a question of months. McCalebb, a local legend in his homeown New Orleans, came to Partizan from Mersin Buyuksehir in Turkey and soon won thousands of new fans, the diehard denizens of Pionir Hall in Belgrade, with his ballhandling, driving skills and court sense. McCalebb has already helped lead Partizan to the Serbian Cup and the Adriatic League titles so far this season, as the team gets ready for the ultimate challenge - lifting the Euroleague trophy. Alghough he arrived just days before the Euroleague started, McCalebb started all 20 Partizan games in the competition, leading his team in assists and steals while finishing second in scoring with 13.1 points per game. Going to Paris, McCalebb is sure that the fans who have accepted him as one of their own this season will continue inspiring Partizan to greatness. "The first game I played was a Euroleague game at home, and right away, I could say that I had never been part of something like that before in my whole life," McCalebb told Euroleague.net. "Everything between me and this team has clicked and things are going good. I hope they keep going that way."
Hello Bo, congratulations on a great first Euroleague season. How excited are you about what you and Partizan have accomplished so far?
"It's real exciting. Last year in Turkey, I was on a small team, but I always watched the Euroleague teams on TV. My teammates said to me, 'That should be your goal, the Euroleague'. It's the next season, and I'm here, going to the Final Four, so what can I say? Everything between me and this team has clicked and things are going good. I hope they keep going that way."
How much did you know about Partizan before joining the team just before the season?
"I didn't really know too much about them. My agent told me that Partizan had a big tradition, great coaching and great fans. When I came here, the first game I played was a Euroleague game at home, and right away, I could say that I had never been part of something like that before in my whole life. The first night I knew that."
And you guys lost that game. Partizan fans are even more unique after the team loses a home game, aren't they?
"In our home game against Panathinaikos in the Top 16, we lost by 20. After the game, we sung with the fans as usual, then went to the locker room. They kept on singing. Our coach told us to go out and see them again. They stayed an hour, I think, singing the whole time. They are not the type of fans who only cheer when thins are going good. When we lose, they support us even more."
At what point did you realize how good of a team this could be?
"I remember when we signed Lawrence Roberts early in the season, I thought things would pick up. We had lost the first couple of Euroleague games, and nobody thought we would start winning again too quickly. We got the next big win over Olympiacos, however, and we got our confidence back fully. We felt that we could beat anybody after that."
How has your game improved under Partizan head coach Dusko Vujosevic?
"Everybody knows he's a great coach. He likes to work with you as much as he can, work on your game, and that helps every player. It gives you confidence to know the coach has confidence in you. But it's always a team thing with him. Even if you have a great game, he won't say much or single players out. It's all about the team."
You had a great game in the famous come-from-behind win over Maccabi in Tel Aviv to open the playoffs. What do you remember best about that game?
"We were down 21 in the first half, but the reason was that we were kind of nervous until then. Everybody had Maccabi as favorites and we were trying to get a challenge going. Then, we started to get some defensive stops, make some shots. When the confidence came, we got on a role. The biggest thing in that game was our coach saying, 'Just try to control the pace'. Maccabi has crazy fans just like us, so when you're in their gym, you can't let them make runs. In the beginning of that game, we didn't do that. We didn't play defense. We took bad shots. We had to control the pace of the game, and we started late in that game, but we did it. We're good when we do that. We can run some, like any team, but we're better when we set the pace. That win changed everything."
Did you always like to set the page, control the game, or did you learn at Partizan?
"That's something I learned here, and had to learn quickly. When I was in college, I played point guard the first two years and shooting guard the last two. In the past, I had problems with trying to control the play like coaches wanted. Here, Coach Vujosevic helped me figure it out and I started to get better game by game."
You play with two distinct types of centers, Aleks Maric and Slavko Vranes. What is it like adjusting to such different big men?
"Aleks and Slavko have done great this year, and they give us different looks. Aleks might be the best big man in the Euroleague right now when we feed him the ball. He has such a great effect in the paint. Slavko does it at the other end, on defense, where he helps us in a lot of things. We know we can defend to send everybody his way and we won't get hurt. He'll block or intimidate or rebound, and then get us into transition."
In the semifinals in Paris, you face Olympiacos. What did you learn from splitting two games with them earlier in the season?
"We can't let them make runs, first of all. If they do that, they're a really good team. It's kind of like playing Maccabi in that regard. You let them make runs and they'll kill you. We've got to slow the ball down, make them take tough shots, play defense. Simply put, we've got to control the pace of the game."
Everybody calls you by Bo, your nickname. Where did you get it?
"My dad gave me his nickname because we look exactly alike. My dad was a player, too, not university or anything like that, but they called him Bo on the court. And he was a better defender than me. I know because I saw him defend."
When you call home to New Orleans, how do you tell family or friends what it's like at Pionir Arena on a Euroleague game night?
"It's hard to explain. I tell them they have to see it to believe. If you call some friends and say the Partizan fans are crazy, it's not enough. They can't imagine everything that goes on here. My mom knows, though. She watches us on Euroleague.TV."
Were you in New Orleans for Hurricane Katrina?
"Yeah, believe it or not, I slept through the hurricane at my mom's house. I woke up the next day and the city was a mess. My mom took me to Houston and we stayed there four or five months before coming back. I was a junior in college, but I had been injured, so I wasn't playing again yet."
What is it like to play for such basketball fanatics as the Partizan fans?
"I feel good about playing for them. They are great, loyal fans. I just want to be loyal to them, too, to come out every night, play the best I can and help our team win."
The Euroleague title is just two wins away. What would it mean to Bo McCalebb to be the Euroleague champion?
"It would mean a lot. I've been playing basketball for a long time, but I have never been on real winning teams. I was a good player, scored a lot, but I was never on winning teams. This year already I have the first two championships of my life. It's going great and I want to keep it going at the Final Four!"
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Euroleague.net
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