'Memo sent me to Galatasaray,' says Dee Brown

[RonnieBrewer (Reverse Layup)]

'Memo sent me to Galatasaray,' says Dee Brown

No doubt Galatasaray, an ordinary team in Turkish basketball, is nothing in
comparison to the Utah Jazz, a prominent NBA team. People thought it was a
joke when they heard the news: "Dee Brown at Galatasaray."

Mehmet Okur's teammate picked Galatasaray for a fresh start. He was not the
first to leave the NBA to play in Turkey; Zan Tabak, Mahmud Abdul-rauf and
Conrad McRae were his forerunners. But what did this 23-year-old, vibrant
young American have in mind for his career with Galatasaray? What role did
his teammate play in his decision to move to here? Like everybody else, I was
curious about these questions, so I decided to head to Darussafaka, where
Galatasaray holds its exercises. Dee Brown seems to have been playing with
the team for years and is quite impressive. Following permission from coach
Murat, we start our chat.

After I asked Dee Brown why he left Utah, his response was, "It was a job,
and now it is over." He added: "Fans loved me at Utah. They never wanted me
to leave. You can see that in my personal blog. But the club did not renew my
contract, so I started searching for a new club. At this point Galatasaray
made an offer. I also received an offer from the Greek Olympiakos, but Turkey
was more attractive." Noting that he knew nothing about Turkey before
arriving and that teammate Mehmet Okur helped him out, the young guard
remarked: "Mehmet told me to go to Turkey without any doubt. He recommended
it; I came here. We have corresponded over the Internet for a long time and
he told me: 'Go to Istanbul. You will not have any problem. It is a big city
like Chicago and New York. Turkish people are warm and hospitable.' Memo is
one of the sincerest players at the team and now I am happy in Istanbul."

Stressing that his only concern is winning, he underlines that his
outstanding characteristics include speed and stealing the ball. Brown
asserts: "Winning is the most beautiful thing in the world and I want to
score as many points as I can. I think I will lead the team. I am already
impatient to meet the fans. I am sure the games in Turkey will be exciting."
Underlining that NBA games were faster, Brown added: "I will work hard and
adapt to the system here. Basketball is basketball everywhere."

Played football in high school

The new transfer to Galatasaray Cafe Crown is also skilled when it comes to
football. Noting that he grew ambitious as a result of playing football, the
player wore the jerseys of both basketball and football teams during his high
school years. Brown, who also has an affinity with music, is also a hip hop
vocalist and plays piano. A graduate of the University of Illinois, he played
at Utah Jazz with an average of 9 minutes, 1.9 points and 1.7 assists.


Storied career

Daniel (Dee) Brown was born on Aug. 17, 1984 in Jackson, Mississippi and
played at the University of Illinois from 2002 to 2006, receiving many awards
and accolades. Brown was selected in the second round of the 2006 NBA Draft
by the Utah Jazz, and currently plays for Galatasaray in the Beko [Turkish]
Basketball League. Brown graduated from Proviso East High School in Maywood,
Illinois, where he excelled not only athletically but also academically,
finishing with a class rank of 16th out of 382 graduates. Brown was a star on
Proviso East's basketball and football teams. He played quarterback for the
football team, passing and rushing for more than 1,800 yards and 16
touchdowns in seven games during his senior season. His play at quarterback
garnered the recruiting attention of many major collegiate football programs,
including Florida State University and the University of Nebraska. His play
on the basketball court, however, led Brown to be considered one of the best
high school basketball players in the United States for his class. Brown was
named "Illinois Mr. Basketball" and was a McDonald's All-American, and many
recruiting analysts ranked him in the top 20 high school players.

Istanbul Today's Zaman  

03.10.2007
YASIN TUNCER  ISTANBUL


http://www.todayszaman.com/tz-web/detaylar.do?load=detay&link=123707 

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推 Kreen:皆一且攏喜歐庫啊诶影謀啦～
推 xjazz:Okur: 那邊的選美小姐特別喜歡籃球選手，在那邊就像天堂
推 gratitude:果然
推 gratitude:'AK sent me to Russia,' says Araujo.
推 xjazz:got you!
推 sam369:
推 MehmetOkur:
推 marktoast:原來DEE去土耳其是為了這個阿....KUKUKU
推 DeeBrown:  ^^