The Fast Break feat. Deng Deng

On where he grew up…

I was born in Sudan but I moved to Melbourne as a refugee with my mum and two sisters when I was about seven. We moved here for a better future. Being a new kid in a new country was all about trying to figure out the culture and the environment around me. Arabic and Dinka were my first languages, so learning English was tricky.

On his relationship with teammate Deng Adel…

I'm a couple of years older, but I've known Deng [Adel] since he was just a little kid. I used to ask him to come and rebound for me after training. Now we're in the same team and he's our best player. It's great to see how he's grown over the years.

I used to play him one on one after training and bully him because he was really tiny, now he’s dunking on me.

I still remember being kids riding back from training. Now we're teammates in the NBL and we live together. Everyone knew Deng [Adel] was gonna be special.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="in" dir="ltr">Deng Deng stepping ? <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/IllawarraProud?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#IllawarraProud</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/DengDeng19?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@DengDeng19</a> <a href="https://t.co/anVFIWxHlT">pic.twitter.com/anVFIWxHlT</a></p>&mdash; Hawks Basketball (@thehawks) <a href="https://twitter.com/thehawks/status/1340553502838255617?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 20, 2020</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

On first basketball memories…

I was actually obsessed with soccer and Cristiano Ronaldo. I grew up watching Real Madrid and Man City and played soccer everyday with my friends. Then one day I started playing street basketball outside for fun. I was pretty old, maybe 14-15. I met up with some of the serious guys and we started working out with a guy named Sedale Thrett. He saw potential in me and we started working out more. Sedale decided I should go to a basketball school and that’s where I met Kevin Goorjian (Brian's brother). He coached me at Box Hill Senior Secondary College.

On playing under Brian Goorjian’s brother - Kevin Goorjian - at Box Hill and the similarities between the two…

Kevin is a really funny guy, very loud. Brian is very similar. They are both passionate coaches, they love the game, love teaching, know a lot about the game and both love winning no matter what. They are the type of coaches you want to play for. I learned a lot from Kevin and now I'm learning a lot from Brian. When Brian used to come back from China he would run clinics at our high school. He would teach the coaches and we were the guys he used to demonstrate stuff.

On the current state of Sudanese basketball…

Sudanese guys have always been good, it's just about getting opportunities and being able to show our skills. Growing up in Melbourne, there's a lot of young Sudanese guys who play ball, I'd say ninety per cent of the community. We've got a lot of young kids watching us now, so we gotta lead by example and show them where they can get if they work hard. We are role models for the next generation of Sudanese baseketballers.

On which NBA players he’s modeled his game on…

I would love to play like Luol Deng (also born in Sudan) when he was at the Bulls. He was an NBA All-Star. I used to watch him and model my game on him. He was amazing. KD [Kevin Durant] and Paul George are so versatile and they're long. They guard multiple positions and at the same time, they are offensive weapons. A lot of people think of KD as an offensive weapon, but he is elite on defence. People really undervalue his defensive skills.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Deng Deng dunking everything ??<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/IllawarraProud?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#IllawarraProud</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/DengDeng19?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@DengDeng19</a> <a href="https://t.co/HyhREs9K0m">pic.twitter.com/HyhREs9K0m</a></p>&mdash; Hawks Basketball (@thehawks) <a href="https://twitter.com/thehawks/status/1340561395054567424?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 20, 2020</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>


On the Hawks game style…

We are defensive minded first, offence comes later. We have a really exciting team, and a young team,

I haven’t been as excited for an NBL season like this one, and that’s compared to previous years with the Kings and Breakers. This just feels different.

We’re really friendly outside basketball, there are no egos, everyone is helping one another.

On getting officially verified on Instagram …

I was pumped,  I’d been trying to get that verification for a minute. I tried a few times and got bounced back. They finally got it done and it feels good. Pretty much everybody has it done, except a few guys, but everyone was excited when it happened. I don’t really know why I wanted it so bad, but I am happy now.

On what fans can expect from him this season…

A guy who will run through a wall for the team. I play with a chip on my shoulder because I think I'm yet to show what I can do, especially in the NBL. I gotta show people I’ve got a higher ceiling; this year that's my aim. I'm gonna play as hard as I can and give it my all. That's me!

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