E.J. Rowland has played for nine clubs in the last 10 seasons, staying nowhere more than two seasons. Khimki Moscow Region is his 10th stop. Unlike fellow newcomers Perry Jones III or Nobel Boungou Colo, who will need time to adapt to the VTB United League, 33-year-old Rowland is very comfortable here, having won a regular-season MVP with VEF in 2012-13.
E.J. spoke with Championat following a team practice. He was a bit delayed by an animated conversation with fitness coach Alejandro Toledo.
– Was it a tough practice? Is it true what people say about Ivanovic’s demanding approach?
– It wasn’t easy. Coach doesn’t let anybody off easy (laughs). Personally, I’m in good condition, but that’s still not enough. The problem is that I missed the start of the preseason. I didn’t get to Khimki’s camp until later.
I just wanted to join a serious team. When I got the offer from Khimki and had the chance to be coached by Dusko Ivanovic… What’s more serious than that?
Now everything is good. Coach and I are used to each other and I’ll be ready to do everything he asks me to on the court by the opening games.
– Have you found a place to live in Moscow Region?
– Unfortunately, no. As soon as I flew to Russia, we left for our European camps. I’ve still got to find an apartment.
– How did you react to the interest from a Russian club? Were you surprised?
– It happened pretty quickly. I heard about Khimki’s interest in the middle of August. My agent said they were serious and I didn’t take long to think it over. We were shaking hands pretty quickly.
– Was it that bad at Hapoel (Rowland was most recently with the Jerusalem club)?
– For the most part, I liked everything about Israel. I had a one-year contract with Hapoel with the option for a second season. When the team decided to cut its expenses, I was affected. At first, they did offer to extend the contract, but my salary would have been much smaller.
– So it was all about money?
– Not entirely. I just wanted to be on a strong team. When you get an offer from Khimki and can play for Dusko Ivanovic… What’s more serious than that?
– Did you have any concerns about moving to our country given the tense political situation?
– I thought about it, but not much. I’ve played in Turkey and Israel. I don’t think I need to explain that those aren’t the most conflict-free spots on the planet.
– Why is it that you’ve never spent more than two seasons at one club in your career?
– I think it’s just been bad luck. A lot of teams weren’t ambitious enough, others weren’t run very well. When I joined Unicaja–a pretty serious organization–the coach changed. At Banvit, an outbreak of the bird flu was the issue. Our sponsor was a poultry producer and had to slash its financing. It’s been a lot of different things.
– So you aren’t opposed to staying at Khimki for a long time?
– Why not? When I signed the contract, I thought about that. Plus, I don’t believe that anything in life is an accident. If I joined this team, it’s because that’s what was supposed to happen.
– Do you like Ivanovic’s coaching style?
– He’s strict, but fair. And, yeah, I love being coached. You understand what I mean by the word “coach.” Ivanovic is tough, but that’s nothing compared to what happens on other teams. Believe me, I’ve played a lot of places and seen a lot. There are coaches who don’t have any sort of systematic approach to their work or standards for behavior. I don’t like that type of thing at all. I’d rather a coach squeeze everything he can from his players. It makes it a lot more likely that they will play their best.
– Have you talked with coach about your role this season?
– A little. I’m a point guard. Everyone knows what’s expected from my position on the court. You need to do more than be a leader. You also need to know the strengths and weaknesses of every teammate. Of course, in some games you have to take more initiative and score on your own. If you meant playing time, we haven’t talked about that yet. Everything will be clear soon.
– Starting on the bench doesn’t bother you?
– If that’s the coach’s decision. To be honest, I moved to Khimki to win. I need to conduct myself like a professional. Of course, I’ve got pride and personal ambitions. There probably isn’t a single player on the planet that really wants to be behind others. But I’ve always found my spot on a team. After all, the guys who start aren’t necessarily the only important players on a team. We’ll wait and see.
– It’s obvious that Alexey Shved will be the first option on offense at Khimki this season. How comfortable do you feel with him on the court, given that you both love to have the ball?
– I said before that I know how to adapt to circumstances. The fact that Alexey will have the ball a lot doesn’t really bother me. He’s one of the best players I’ve ever played with on the court. It would be stupid to complain about being on the same team with a guy that can win games on his own.
– You played for current CSKA coach Dimitris Itoudis at Banvit. Could you have predicted that he would coach a team to a Euroleague championship so quickly?
– It definitely did not surprise me. He’d already won five Euroleague titles as an assistant to Zeljko Obradovic at Panathinaikos!
– Do you stay in touch?
– You could say that. When he got the job at CSKA, I texted him my congratulations. I did the same, of course, after last year’s win in the Euroleague. But we don’t talk regularly. I don’t like to be intrusive and don’t like it when people do the same to me.
– You won the 2012-13 VTB United League Regular Season MVP. Do you feel any extra pressure because of that award?
– No, I’m ready to work to make Khimki better, but the team is already strong. It’s going to be tough to put up the same numbers that I did at VEF. I’m surrounded by guys that can take over games when necessary.
– Khimki plays its first game of the season vs. VEF. Is the game going to mean anything extra to you?
– Yes and no. Playing against former teams is always special. I think the game in Riga will be a bigger deal, returning to the old arena. On the other hand, VEF’s roster has changed significantly, plus it’s a different coach. If Antanas Kavaliauskas, Kristaps Janicenoks and the rest were still there, then I’d probably be a little conflicted.
– VEF was probably one of your favorite stops.
– Definitely! We had incredible chemistry in Riga. No one expected that we would be able to compete with the favorites! I’d also single out Banvit, especially the first season. I’ve met a lot of wonderful people in my career. I can’t name them all.
– What would you say about the chemistry at your new club?
– Even though a lot of guys on the team have enormous experience, and some have won titles, no one’s stuck up or lazy. It’s obvious and that type of approach changes the atmosphere. Sergey Monia or Egor Vyaltsev are team veterans and have probably made plenty of money, but they give as much effort as the young guys in practice every day. It’s nice to work alongside guys like that.
– You starred in a VTB United League master class. Do you remember it? Would you like to make another one?
– Of course I remember! We shot that clip at the CSKA arena, by the way. It was fun. My family and friends liked the video. I’d be happy to do it again!
– You are very calm in person. Let’s talk about the Eurocup game between Banvit and Montenegro’s Buducnost, when you punched a fan from the other team that ran onto the court. What happened?
– I don’t really want to think about that. Before the game, my teammate at Banvit, Vladimir Dragicevic–who started at Buducnost–told us that we would get a warm welcome in Podgorica. We watched some videos of the crazy things that have happened in that arena. Fights, blood, seats flying everywhere. In Montenegro, people do not like Turkey or anything Turkish.
If you think about it, that was a crazy situation for today’s world. The guy that I ended up hitting was trying to get on the court during warmups. Somebody told me that later. There simply weren’t enough police or security at the arena. I don’t who was responsible for safety. That person had already been misbehaving and ran out on the court at the end of the game and attacked my teammates. My teammates are like my family. You don’t touch them. So I reacted the only way I could. My dad raised me to be a man and I acted like a man in that situation.
– You’re dangerous to be around…
– I’m actually very peace-loving. But if the same thing happened again, I would do the exact same thing. I tried to appeal the punishment, but no one wanted to hear my side of the story. They gave me a quick fine and that was it. I want to make some sort of protest. I thought about not playing in Eurocup games, but eventually decided not to. I still have bad memories about that incident. Can you imagine if he would have had a knife. It totally could have happened. We would have lost two good people. And that’s a best-case scenario.
– Let’s talk about something positive. Have you heard that the VTB United League is going to hold its first-ever All-Star Game? Do you want to participate?
– Yeah, I heard about it from one of my teammates.
Of course, it would be nice to participate in that type of event. But that’s not a goal of mine. If I’m picked, I’d be happy to play.
– Let’s fantasize. If you got to be a part of the NBA All-Star weekend, which contest would you like to enter?
– That’s a good question (laughs). If I were younger, I’d say the dunk contest! These days, I’d probably try the skills contest.
– How about the 3-point contest?
– You’re not talking to the right guy. Vyaltsev could probably compete with them. Last season, he knocked down 12 3-pointers in one game! (The Khimki guard scored 40 points against Astana, including 12 3-pointers)
– The best dunker in history, according to E.J. Rowland…
– That’s too easy! Vince Carter, who else?!