MoraBanc Andorra has already qualified to the playoffs and, after three consecutive victories, boasts a 9-6 record for third place in Group A. A road victory against Lietkabelis Panevezys would allow Andorra to lock up home-court advantage in the eighthfinals, the club's next goal in the competition. One of Andorra's pillars has been playmaker Codi Miller-McIntyre, a EuroCup veteran in his fourth campaign in the competition who leads the team in scoring (13.3 ppg.) assists (7.1 apg.) and performance index rating (16.6). Miller-McIntyre is interesting for more than his stats, though. He has his own clothing line, observes an extensive game-day routine and embraces an alter ego: The Wolf. "I realized that my natural personality is not good for on basketball court, because I'm not too aggressive. I'm passive and I kind of just go with the flow sometimes," Miller-McIntyre explained EuroCupBasketball.com. "I just decided that this would be my alter ego. When I'm on the court, I would try to become something different to help me mentally, be more consistent at basketball."
Codi Miller-McIntyre, Andorra: 'I call myself The Wolf'
Hello, Codi. Not many teams have beaten Turk Telekom in Ankara. What worked there for Andorra last week?
"I think we were very focused from the very beginning of the game. We knew it would be a tough one to get there. But defensively, we helped each other out a lot. We got extra possessions, I think over 13 or 14 offensive rebounds, and then we shared the ball great, as well. So I just think it was an overall great game in terms of our focus and intensity."
With three wins in a row, do you think that the team is peaking at the right time?
"For sure, especially in the EuroCup, staying focused and doing certain things that we need to do to win games. So yes, I think it's a good time for us to be playing very well and hopefully we can continue at this level and even pick it up some more."
This is your fourth EuroCup season. What do you like the most about the competition?
"That we play a lot of different teams in different countries. So we are able to travel and I get to see a lot of different places all over, instead of staying in one country and only playing once a week. So I think just that exposure, going different places, for lifestyle and for basketball, I think it's great. I think it gives opportunities for people like myself to see the world."
And to learn languages, too. Is it true that you try to learn a little of the local language in all the places you play?
"Yes, I lived in Russia for two years, and it always makes me feel a little bit better, a little bit more at home. Even just knowing a little bit of things to be able to say in people's language instead of expecting and hoping everybody can speak English. Of course, my Russian is starting to go away a little bit because I haven't been there in two or three years and I don't speak it a lot now, but I still have classes from time to time. I thought coming to Spain with Andorra would be a good opportunity to learn a little bit of Spanish, because in America, obviously, a lot of people speak Spanish as well. Marko Nakic is helping me. We hang out a lot, and he tries to teach me a lot of Spanish. We probably talk in Spanish every day. Not all day, but when we are texting or in person, we will say phrases and everything, just as a little bit extra practice."
"It's a good time for us to be playing very well and hopefully we can continue at this level."
Can you tell us about your clothing line, CMM Patience?
"Long story short, I used to have very bad anxiety when I was younger, around 16 or 17 years old. I think that was around the same time Instagram came out, so I would be on Instagram at my military school and I would see basketball players in the NBA wearing certain clothes, and it looked like they were living their dream life. So I used to have pretty bad anxiety with that and also some personal family stuff. And one day, I don't know, I just kept repeating 'patience'. Like be patient, be patient. So I think over the next four years, up until I was 21 or almost 22, I just kept saying this word over and over, and eventually people started to associate that word with me. I thought it would be a good idea to start a clothing line. So that's kind of how it began."
We were told that you like to be called The Wolf. Why?
"Yes, I call myself The Wolf, I think, for different reasons. I always loved dogs growing up. I always had a strong attraction to having a dog, like many people, and then I realized that my natural personality is not good for on basketball court because I'm not too aggressive, I'm passive, and I kind of just go with the flow sometimes. Maybe I want to change something, but I don't change it. I realized that to play this sport at a high level, you have to have some type of very strong aggression consistently. And I just started looking at different famous people, different artists, rappers, singers, some famous basketball or football players. And a lot of these people go by different names. A lot of these people go by a name that's a different personality or almost an alter ego, you know? So I just looked more into that and maybe a few years ago, I just decided that this would be my alter ego. When I'm on the court, I would try to become something different to help me, mentally, be more consistent at basketball."
Everyone told me your are very methodical. Can you tell us a bit about your game-day routine?
"I will just do the day of the game. If we are at home, I know every morning we will have shootaround, so I will wake up maybe an hour and a half before. I will have my oatmeal or yogurt, do regular shootaround and then everything kicks in. I usually don't talk most of the time on game day. I barely say any words. Sometimes, maybe one or two games, I have spoken a lot before the game, but usually I'm pretty silent and quiet. But once I get home from shootaround, I have my lunch. I sleep a minimum two hours, and once I wake up from that sleep, I light incense in the house for a smell. Every day, you read at a certain time, but you also light a candle or incense. It puts your body in a mood to make you understand, 'OK, it's time to read.' So, I know when I light this incense before a game, it helps me get a type of aromatherapy to get my mind focused on the game. And after I light the candles, I do... It's a guy named Wim Hof, a very famous guy. He teaches different breathing techniques, so I do that before I leave the house. And once I do that breathing, I am fully focused on the game. I get to the gym a minimum of two hours early -- when we play at home, obviously, because I can control when I come. The first five minutes is me just sitting around with no shoes on, just socks. Just like playing around, like reminding myself to be focused, but also, this is just a game and, it reminds me of shooting outside sometimes with no shoes on when I was a kid. So I do that for a little bit. Then for 30 minutes I stretch and then I go into a basketball ballhandling routine. Then I do form shooting. I do a type of shooting that makes me focus on my arc before the game, and then I have my normal basketball routine- shooting, dribbling and all that stuff. And four minutes before the game, I get into one of my little meditation positions and I just sit there focused, block out all the noise and try to become fully present in the moment and try to make that last little effort to get that Wolf personality to come out and be ready to play that game. So it is a kind of a lot!"
Andorra is a different club, in the sense that a lot of players live in the same building, where the team's office is located, barely two minutes away on foot from the arena. How unique is that?
"It is very different, but I really like it. I think it creates a very close bond. You know, maybe we always don't go out to eat together and hang out together because everybody has families and things. But I think this is one of the teams where everybody is... How can I explain it? We are nice to each other. There are no real big problems. If something happens, people get over it within like 30 or 40 seconds, from the management all the way down to the players. Our GM and the president are constantly in the gym speaking to us, communicating. So it's really nice. It feels like a family for sure."
"I'm excited because anything can happen once we make it to that next step."
You will play against Lietkabelis this week in a big battle to earn home-court advantage in the playoffs. How important would it be to get it?
"I think it's very important. It is extremely important for us to try to keep taking that step forward, whether we go there and we play extremely hard and we lose, but we still take a step forward as a team. Or we go there and we win. I just think it's extremely important for us to stay focused and understand we want to go as far as we can in EuroCup. It won't be easy with the long travel, but people also have to come to Andorra so we can't use that as an excuse. They're a great team and we just have to go there 100% focused on each possession."
It is going to be your first time in the EuroCup playoffs. Looking forward to it?
"I'm excited because anything can happen once we make it to that next step, especially if we can secure home-court advantage. And I think that would be great for each individual on the team. I think that would be great for the coaches on the team and obviously for the management and the club in general. So I am definitely excited for that. But obviously, my focus is next game at a time, or one game at a time. So if we can take care of what we need to when we travel to Lithuania, everything else will fall into place."