Memnun ready for Vardarli Demirmen to continue
ISTANBUL (FIBA EuroBasket Women 2017) - Ekrem Memnun believes there is plenty of gas left in the tank when it comes to the future of Turkey national team favourite, Birserl Varadrli Demirmen.
The play-caller has insisted that while he still has to sit down with the experienced guard and talk abut the future in detail, he is confident that the 32-year old will play a major role at next year’s Final Round in the Czech Republic.
Fears that Vardarli-Demirmen might follow fellow veteran Nevriye Yilmaz into retirement have not yet been realised, with Memnun even suggesting that she could still have some of her greatest basketball ahead of her.
He explained, "Except for [Nevriye] Yilmaz, I hope we will have everyone back for consideration and I will be doing everything possible to make sure this includes Birsel.
"She is such a great player and also a great character, who has lots to still give to the national team.
"I still see her as being young and in fact, I would say that some of her best is yet to come for Turkey."
Having seen his team drawn in Group B alongside Belarus, Italy and Slovak Republic, Memnum is hopeful Turkey can make a few changes to their roster and yet still make an impact at the tournament.
"All of the teams at the Final Round are going to be dangerous and many nations showed this during the qualification process," he warned.
"We will be taking it game by game, with our first goal to make it past the first round.
"We will also have the opportunities to introduce some new players and rely on those who continue to do a good job.
"I am excited for the future and about some of the new faces that we can look to."
More than anything, being freed from the day-to-day demands of club basketball has given Memnun a fresh lease of life. He now has a greater ability to ensure Turkey are future-proof, with much more focus on succession planning at the highest level.
He said, "I have a new motivation in not coaching a club team this year, which means absolutely all the focus on the national team and watching the players – as well as contacting them and looking at their progress and preparations.
"I am also able to attend the training camps for the younger generations and in this respect, I am loving being able to have an influence on the younger generations.
"We have a great balance and the future is very bright."
There is one potential cloud overhead and that is the fact that while almost every Turkish player is on a EuroLeague Women or EuroCup Women roster, they don't necessarily play leading roles.
"Of course I want Turkish players to play in all of the games, get more minutes and show they can be important decision-makers," declared Memnun.
"But more important is that the players have to fight for this as nothing should be just granted to them.
"If they want to play these kind of roles and grow in influence, they will have to practice even harder and meet what can be a big challenge," he concluded.
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