The Frenchman is taking big steps in Hamburg but dealing with losing.
Zacharie Perrin: 'My dream is the EuroLeague over the NBA'
Player Spotlight
11 Mins read
Zacharie Perrin is not your usual youth talent in Europe as the Veolia Towers Hamburg big man has always dreamt of playing in the EuroLeague over the NBA. And the way he is playing in his first year in Germany, that seems like a realistic goal of coming true soon.
Perrin has excelled in his first season with the northern German club, averaging 12.5 points and 7.8 rebounds per night in the BKT EuroCup. The 21-year-old also has played well in the German League, where he is collecting 10.8 points and 5.8 rebounds.
Perrin played in the ProA first division in France last season with SLUC Nancy but he was a domestic player. Now there is the added pressure of the 2.08-meter center having to perform as an import player.
“That’s exactly what I wanted. I wanted to be out of my comfort zone. I knew there was a lot of pressure around me because it’s always tough to play a starting center, a 21-year-old, who didn’t have a great season in France. But it’s part of the sport,” said Perrin, who posted 6.7 points and 4.3 rebounds with Nancy last season.
“You have to handle pressure. I bet on myself. I believed I could be good, so I said, 'I’m going to work, and I know it’s going to pay off.' I have to find a way to handle the pressure.”
Perrin asked out of the final two years of his three-year deal with Nancy to come to Hamburg. And one of the reasons for that was to work with Towers head coach Benka Barloschky.
“He tries to push me. He wants me to be better – every day, every practice. When you're a young player, you want to improve as fast as you can, and Benka is always behind me to help me become a better player. And even how he plays me. I don’t think there are a lot of coaches in Europe right now who start a 21-year-old in the EuroCup and also in the German League. That’s something you look for as a young player,” Perrin said.
Playing time is certainly important for a youngster but Perrin is gaining valuable learning experience in something he really doesn’t want to – dealing with losses.
Hamburg is still waiting for its first win in the EuroCup, narrowly losing this week at home to Neptunas Klaipeda to fall to 0-13 in Group A. The club has managed two victories domestically for a 2-10 record but also lost its German Cup game for a total season record of 2-24.
“It’s really tough. Even for me, as a young player. It’s the first time in my career I have to face this. But I try to stay focused, stay with the team, and also try to be better,” Perrin said.
Perrin does have some experience in big games at the French youth national team level. He played a major role in helping the country reach the final of the FIBA U19 Basketball World Cup 2023. But France lost to Spain in the title bout 73-69 in overtime, with Perrin contributing 14 points and 20 rebounds.
“It changed a lot of things in my mind. I was around really good players in the French national team. Rayan Rupert was a first-round pick, Alex Sarr was the second [overall] pick, and I was the best player there. I’m humble, but I was the best player on that team. It changed my confidence a lot, because I’m someone who sometimes struggles with confidence. So playing a World Cup for your country makes you proud, and it changed how confident I am in my game,” said Perrin, who was named to the All-Star Five with 15.4 points and 10.9 rebounds.
Perrin got his revenge on Spain the next summer with a 74-72 victory in the quarterfinals – the game being decided on a buzzer-beater three-pointer by Noah Penda.
“That was one of the best days of my life,” said Perrin, who was named the Most Valuable Player of the tournament as France won the title and he averaged 15.4 points, 7.7 rebounds and 3.4 assists.
Perrin mentioned earlier he has struggled with his confidence and that can be seen through his body language.
“I’m still struggling with that, even now in Hamburg. Sometimes my body language isn’t great, and that’s something I’m trying to work on. I have a lot of people around me helping, even the coaching staff here, who talk to me about it a lot. But honestly, it’s just me. It takes time, but I’m starting to understand it better. It’s getting better – slowly, but surely,” he said.
Perrin knows he will need to have good body language and strong confidence if he wants to reach his goal and excel in the EuroLeague, a league he still prefers to watch over the NBA to this day.
“For me, the EuroLeague is still the main goal. But the NBA is the best level of basketball in the world, I’ve got to be honest. Since I started basketball, I watched a lot of EuroLeague clips. It means a lot to me,” he said.
Perrin definitely has a favorite team.
“I grew up and went to high school in Antibes, which is really close to Monaco. So since I was young, I watched a lot of [AS] Monaco’s games. I fell in love with EuroLeague basketball. So right now, my dream is still the EuroLeague over the NBA,” he said.
Perrin also has two other teams he enjoys watching.
“I like Paris Basketball because of the way they play. They never stop, they’re always running, always onto the next possession,” he said.
And the third team is Dubai Basketball. But that is because of center Mfiondu Kabengele, who played in the BKT EuroCup last season with Umana Reyer Venice.
“I love to watch him. I watch him a lot because of the way he plays, the way he changes the game. I would say this season, he’s probably my favorite player,” Perrin said.
Who knows, maybe Perrin will play alongside Kabengele one day in the EuroLeague.