The first episode of Euroleague Basketball Originals’ latest documentary series is out now
Delve into the Efes-Fenerbahce derby with ‘Rivalries: Istanbul’
Članak
3 Min čitanja
Istanbul is certainly a unique place, particularly when it comes to basketball. In ‘Rivalries: Istanbul’, the first episode of a new documentary series by Euroleague Basketball that looks at some of the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague’s fiercest rivalries, the derby between the Europe-facing Anadolu Efes Istanbul and the Asian-facing Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul takes center stage. Discover what makes this rivalry so distinctive, both on and off the court, in ‘Rivalries: Istanbul’, now available on EuroLeague TV.
The episode begins with Doğancan Işik, a tour guide in Istanbul, explaining some of the key historical landmarks of Türkiye’s largest city and cultural differences in Istanbul. Then, other individuals, such as music artist Kerem Sedef, an Efes fan, and several basketball enthusiasts provide a sense of the local basketball culture in the city.
From there, we go back in time to reflect on Fenerbahçe’s 2017 title-winning season and hear from three of the star players from that team: Bogdan Bogdanovic, Ekpe Udoh and Luigi Datome. Fenerbahçe made history that year by becoming the first Turkish team to win the EuroLeague. Three years later, in 2020, Efes would end up winning a championship of its own – and then again in 2021, making it the third team to go back-to-back this century. Star player Shane Larkin and team captain Dogus Balbay both attempt to explain just how Efes managed to get over the line in successive years.
As the episode delves back in to the sights of Istanbul, specifically the Grand Bazaar, Fenerbahçe team captain Melih Mahmutoglu and ex-players Bogdanovic and Udoh state their favorite things about the city, as do former Efes forward Cedi Osman and current guard Larkin. Sports journalist Deniz Aksoy also stresses how Istanbul is a hotbed for basketball with so many teams in the city before we get to relive the first Istanbul derby from last season, which came in Round 17.
Efes hosted Fenerbahçe on that occasion, but it was the visitors who came out on top. Efes duo Larkin and Mike Daum comment on the incredible noise that the Istanbul derby provides, while Fenerbahçe head coach Saras Jasikevicius and center Georgios Papagiannis were more than happy to play the role of party pooper as their team came away with the win.
One week before Fenerbahçe and Efes met at Ulker Sports and Events Hall in Round 33, the penultimate round of the regular season, Fenerbahçe’s Nigel Hayes-Davis made EuroLeague history by scoring a record-breaking 50 points against ALBA Berlin, leading him to earn the nickname of “Fifty”. He took that record from a man who plays across town, as Larkin had 49 points for Efes in a game against FC Bayern Munich in November 2019.
With Fenerbahçe having already secured a playoff spot and Efes chasing a spot in the brand-new Play-In Showdown, Tomislav Mijatovic’s men secured an important victory. That win means the record between Efes and Fenerbahçe this century is 8-14, and we get to hear from several protagonists from that Round 33 triumph, including Larkin, Dan Oturu, Will Clyburn and Rodrigue Beaubois.
The Istanbul derby is not one to be missed and you can see why. Future episodes of ‘Rivalries’ will focus on El Clásico in Spain, the Eternal Derby in Serbia, the Derby of the Eternal Enemies in Greece, and the Derby d’Italia in Italy.