2019-10-24T11:00:57+00:00

2019-10-24T11:00:57+00:00

2019-10-24T00:30:09+00:00.

By Stefan Djordjevic/ info@eurohoops.net

Happy Casa Brindisi has started the 2019-20 season strong winning six out of nine games in total across three competitions.

They lost one and won one in the Italian Super Cup while they hold a 4-1 record in the Italian League including a road win over Olimpia Milan. They’ve lost the first Basketball Champions League game (vs Neptunas) but managed to bounce back with a narrow win against Telekom Baskets Bonn.

Although that win came at the buzzer thanks to Tyler Stone’s putback, it was Adrian Banks who led the squad with 31 points on 10-14 shooting (6-8 threes), nine rebounds and three assists.

Banks has been playing across Europe since 2008 and the 33-year-old guard is still going strong. He scored only twice less than 17 points this season while he also exploded for 31 points two times: “I feel my game has matured, the game is slowing down for me. I know what I want to do every game, some games it doesn’t work but I have a set style of how I want to do things. Also, with this being my 12th season, I’ve gained an unlimited amount of experience. That might be the best part of my game, having experience”, Banks told Eurohoops.

As the team captain, he believes in his squad and has been trying to lead them with the right mindset: “I expect this team to grow. I tell my teammates I can’t guarantee a win always if we play right but I promise you, we will feel better about a loss if we play hard and play right. And we will always have a chance to win. To me, this mentality is what we need to grow as a team. And that is all I want to do, individually and as a team.”

Out of the twelve seasons, Banks played four in Israel – also possesses an Israeli passport – and this is his sixth season in Italy. He noted that although it was usually just where his path was leading him, the last time around he had to choose, Banks decided on Italy in search of the challenge to play against the best:

“As far as playing in Italy, it was just the path that was open for me. After the last couple of years in Israel, I actually chose and wanted to come back to Italy. The competition and level of play is what I crave. I want to play against some of the best players, teams and coaches. And Italy is one of those countries that have that. Also, the fact that Italy is the country I’ve gained the most experience from. And the people in this country treat me very good, that might be an understatement but you understand the love I receive”, he said and couldn’t stress enough how grateful he is: “I just want to say thank you to everyone in Italy that supports me. You definitely have some credit for my success over the past six years!”

Last but not least… shoes. Banks loves shoes: “I’m still a bit of a shoe freak. I’ve always been about fashion in my career, especially on the court. My favorite and most comfortable shoe I’ve worn might be the LeBron 15’s. Even though I have a pair of the new LeBron 17’s now, they are becoming my favorite.”

“When I was younger I always went for looks but as I got older, it was and is a must that the shoe is comfortable. So it kind of cut my options in half. Which for my wife is good because I spend less than half the money I used to on shoes”, Banks ‘dropped the mic’ in a humorous tone.

Photo Credit: Basketball Champions League

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