Bericht
Seamus Boxley
This month Seamus Boxley is chosen as player of the month. February was a good month for the player from Seattle. He already played a couple of years in Europe before he came to Leiden. Seamus also had a contract by Matrixx Magixx but what else do we know
"I'm a single man!"
Okay, by the way how is you Dutch?
Terrible, I try to watch the tv programs, you know. I can hear the English and I try to read the subtitles so I can learn some words and stuff. But mannn, it's a slow process you know. I'm telling you. I don't think it's terrible cause you guys all speak English. We are spoiled here you know!
But as a test, what do you think about the rest of the interview in Dutch?
If you don't want to have answers from me, yeah sure, why not.
Well then something else: Leiden is not playing in the top of the league. How do you feel about that?
Right now we are fighting for playoffs for this year; we wanna be in the play-offs this year you know. I know we have the change and the team to do it. This year is tough, we are battling with injuries. We hardly play with a full team. That's the crisis you know, what hurts you in practice, it hurts you in games, you know. But the guys show a lot of character, they show up every day and if they can play, they play, you know. We won some games while we had many injuries, you know. It tells something of the characters of the guys.
Some of the guys come out and play hard, you know. Guys like Joey who battles hard and Johan got better in the second half of the season as a big-boy, you know. We can compete with everybody, this league is wide open.
And if we want to reach the playoffs we need good skills. Which of your skills needs improvement?
I like to improve my ball handling. I work on everything, but for me my handling is the most important right now. You can always get better every single day, you know. Every day I try to make a step forwards, by watching films and practice. I just take a step at the time with the coach and my team mates.
Seamus has a good relation with the other players in the team, but we are curious to know who's his best friend:
Well, I live with Bubba, you know, so we are every part of the day with each other. We are pretty close, a pretty close unit. Everybody in the team is pretty close with each other, you know. We talk and joke a lot, have a good time with each other in the bus and during practice. Also afterwards and outdoors were pretty close. So my best friend definitely is Bubba.
Do you have any rituals before a match starts?
I always pray before the match. In home games I pray before I come out of the rest-room. It's a little bit different because in home we come out at last, you know. I really have the opportunity while I am out here. I always like to make a blessing go out and play hard and do the things I like to.
Do you have any other rituals before a match?
Yes, I always take my mother with me on the court, some people say I am a mamma's boy, you know. She's been my number one fan my whole life so if she is a thousand miles away in the states or in the neighborhood, she is always with me. She is a big basketball fan, she loves to be here and be a part of it.
We already talked about the different clubs you played for, how do you like playing in Leiden?
I like it a lot, this is my third year I play in Europe and this is probably the only place I really felt like I was at home. I really enjoy college with the team. It's a real positive experience for me. And I really enjoy the fans. I've had the privilege to play for good teams you know, Nijmegen have pretty good fans and crowd. I just think that we just want to play solid and it's loud, and if we win or lose, you guys just stick with the team you know. We appreciate that a lot, you know. You make a difference. If you people are supporting us and cheering us up, you have something to play for. You know, you see about thousand people that care so much about the team, you know how we come out and how we play you know. That gives good pressure, and that is the profession I like.
Is there a difference between the Dutch and the American fans?
It's the noise level, in the States, the crowds are larger and louder but you can't blow horns or play on the drums. Out here it's loud you know. If you're on the court, you can't hear anything. This is our house and I know our opponents are frustrated to play in here. I like it here, it's not like Amsterdam or Weert where there are about 200 people in the gym. It's not loud at all over there.
Is there anything you would like to say to the fans?
To the fans I would like to say thank you. Thank you for being part of us, you know. I think we can do a lot here, we all just have to stay together, the team and the fans you know. Positive ups and downs, that's life, you know what I mean? We didn't won games we should have won. But this Saturday we have to take care of business!