Fenerbahçe Ülker

Fenerbahçe Ülker is the professional men's basketball department of Fenerbahçe S.K., a major multisport club based in Istanbul, Turkey. The department has been sponsored by the Ülker since 2006. In 2006 Fenerbahçe S.K. and Ülker signed a sponsorship agreement and agreed a deal that Fenerbahçe would contract top players of Ülkerspor after the corporation decided to abolish the successful Ülkerspor team converting it to the humble Alpella.

Fenerbahçe Ülker play their matches in 15,000-seat arena, called the Ülker Sports Arena.

History of Fenerbahçe

Fenerbahçe S.K. was founded in 1907 and its basketball section was founded in 1913 and achieved considerable success when the sport established itself in Turkey. Fenerbahçe won national titles in 1957, 1959 and 1965, just before the Turkish League was founded in 1966, and made it to the Euroleague in 1960 and 1966. Its fans had to wait until 1991 for another title, when Levent Topsakal, Larry Richard and head coach Çetin Yılmaz led Fenerbahçe to the Turkish League title over Tofaş S.K..^[3]

Fenerbahçe returned to the Euroleague in 1992, but lost in the preliminary round. Fenerbahçe was back in the Turkish League finals in 1992, 1993 and 1995, but could not find a way to win the championship for some time. A third-place finish in the 1997-98 season allowed the club to return to the Euroleague, and with players like Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf, Marko Milič, Zan Tabak, İbrahim Kutluay and the late Conrad McRae. Fenerbahçe advanced to the eighthfinal playoffs, losing there to Real Madrid. The club made it to the Korac Cup quarterfinals in 1996 and 2001, as well as finishing fourth 2005 FIBA Europe League, but it wasn't until summer 2006 that the team became a European powerhouse.

With a balance of experienced youth and energetic veterans that promises fans the best of both worlds, Fenerbahçe Ülker enters the 2009-10 Euroleague aiming high as ever. If last year, injuries led to disappointment for Fenerbahçe in the Euroleague, two seasons ago head coach Bogdan Tanjevic surprised many observers by guiding a young team all the way to the Quarterfinal Playoffs. Tanjevic now has nine players from that team at his disposal, including two who left after that summer, floor general Willie Solomon and floor runner Tarence Kinsey, but are back now. Also ready to make an impact is shot-blocking virtuoso Ömer Aşık, who missed all of last year’s Euroleague through injury after finishing in the top five in voting for both the Euroleague Best Defender Award and Rising Star Award in 2007-08. Likewise, scoring ace Gordan Giriček looks to make up for missed time after sitting out 11 games last season due to injury. In the meantime, a trio of Fenerbahçe’s talented youth - big men Semih Erden and Oğuz Savaş and swingman Emir Preldžič - have all picked up big minutes to make even bigger strides in their games. And the one player who can never be overlooked is rebounding king Mirsad Türkcan. The only completely new face on the roster is guard Lynn Greer, whose scoring power helped Olympiacos BC reach the Final Four last year. All told, Fenerbahçe Ülker starts this season with one of the deepest teams in the competition, chock-full of dynamic perimeter players and rising frontcourt stars all hungry to go far in the Euroleague.

The guard duo of Willie Solomon and Lynn Greer promises to be one of the most exciting in Europe this season. Solomon, a veteran of four Euroleague seasons with a pair of continental trophies to his name, is a true winner who can shine with his scoring, passing and defense. Tanjević will put Solomon at the controls both the spearhead the defense, score himself or distribute to others. Greer is a former Euroleague scoring champ who can provide instant offense, a role he excelled in off the bench last season. His ability to get his shot or get to the line should make Fenerbahçe more effective in tough situations. Giriček is a deadly shooter who may get even more open looks now, playing alongside Greer and Solomon. Kinsey compliments the aforementioned players with his athleticism, selfless play and nose for the ball. Team captain Damir Mršić, at age 39, remains one of the Euroleague's clutch long-range shooters, Ömer Onan enters his fifth season with the club as a clever team player and intense defender. Serhat Çetin, who made his Euroleague debut last season, provides perimeter depth, while teenage prospect Can Maxim Mutaf will gain more seasoning from the stars around him.

Emir Preldžič truly came into his own last season, making an impact as a point forward who was too quick for power forwards and too big for small forwards to guard. His ability to score, rebound and pass promise a bright future for Preldžič and those around him. Türkcan returns at power forward for his fourth straight season at Fenerbahçe and his eighth overall in the Euroleague, during which time he has gathered more rebounds than any other player. Simply put, when there’s a missed shot, Mirsad Türkcan is there, and his ability to gain possessions for Fenerbahçe will be key again this season. The trio of Semih Erden, Oğuz Savaş and Ömer Aşık give Tanjević incredible size and depth with which to plan games. Savaş’s game took a leap forward last season when he showed he can bang inside, score, draw fouls and make free throws. Erden has long arms and quick feet that help him cut to the basket for impressive slams and to get offensive rebounds. And Aşık showed at EuroBasket that he is back to his old self, which means a big, strong body, great timing and super leaping ability that results in plenty of blocked shots, rebounds and dunks.

Fenerbahçe heads into the 2010-11 season with 5 new transfers Engin Atsür, Šarūnas Jasikevičius, Marko Tomas, Kaya Peker and Darjuš Lavrinovič of 11 players who all boast experience and talent, but whose variety of skills complement each other, instead of duplicating themselves.

With a veteran winner like Coach Neven Spahija pulling the strings, Fenerbahçe fans hope their team has the recipe to make a run to glory for 2011-12 season with new transfers Bojan Bogdanović, Curtis Jerrells, James Gist, Hakan Demirel and last Thabo Sefolosha who transferred after NBA lock out.

Altogether,

Current roster

Depth chart

Notable players

Italic players still plays for the team

Coaches

Main article: Fenerbahçe basketball coaches list (Turkish)^[4]

• 1951-61 Samim Göreç
• 1961-62 Önder Dai
• 1962-65 Samim Göreç
• 1965-66 Samim Göreç / Sacit Seldüz / Altan Dinçer / Mehmet Baturalp
• 1966-67 Erol Demiroma / Altan Dinçer
• 1967-68 Altan Dinçer
• 1968-69 Önder Dai
• 1969-71 Mehmet Baturalp
• 1971-72 Mehmet Baturalp / Altan Dinçer / Deniz Sine / Bülent Yüksel
• 1972-73 Altan Dinçer
• 1973-75 Önder Seden
• 1975-76 Önder Seden / Hüseyin Kozluca
• 1976-79 Tuluğ Siyavuş
• 1978-79 Tuluğ Siyavuş / Hüseyin Kozluca
• 1979-82 Mehmet Baturalp
• 1982-83 Aleksandar Nikolić / Önder Seden
• 1983-84 Aydan Siyavuş / Önder Okan
• 1984-85 Önder Okan
• 1985-86 Dennis Perryman / Erdal Poyrazoğlu / Mahmut Uslu
• 1986-87 Faruk Akagün / Rıza Erverdi
• 1987-88 Rıza Erverdi / Doğan Hakyemez
• 1988-89 Fehmi Sadıkoğlu / Rıza Erverdi
• 1989-93 Çetin Yılmaz
• 1993-94 Necati Güler / Faruk Kulenović
• 1994-96 Murat Didin
• 1996-99 Murat Özgül / Halil Üner
• 1999-00 Halil Üner
• 2000-01 Nihat Izić
• 2001-04 Murat Özgül
• 2004-07 Aydın Örs
• 2007-09 Bogdan Tanjević
• 2009-10 Bogdan Tanjević / Ertuğrul Erdoğan
• 2010-...   Neven Spahija

Archievements

International success

• Euroleague:
  • Quarter-Final (1): 2007-08 as Fenerbahçe Ülker
• EuroChallenge:
  • Fourth (1): 2004-05 as Fenerbahçe
• Korać Cup:
  • Quarter-Final (2): 1995-96, 2000-01 as Fenerbahçe

Domestic success

Turkish Championships (8)

• Turkish Basketball League:
  • Winners (5): 1990-91 as Fenerbahçe; 2006–07, 2007–08, 2009–10, 2010-11 as Fenerbahçe Ülker
  • Runners-up (8): 1967-68, 1969–70, 1970–71, 1982–1983, 1984–85, 1992–93, 1994-95 as Fenerbahçe; 2008-09 as Fenerbahçe Ülker
• Turkish Basketball Championship:
  • Winners (3): 1957, 1959, 1965 as Fenerbahçe
  • Runners-up (5): 1954, 1956, 1958, 1963, 1964 as Fenerbahçe

Other Competitions

• Turkish Cup:
  • Winners (3): 1966-67 as Fenerbahçe, 2009–10, 2010-11 as Fenerbahçe Ülker
  • Runners-up (3): 1993-94, 1996–97, 1998-99 as Fenerbahçe
• President Cup:
  • Winners (4): 1990, 1991, 1994 as Fenerbahçe; 2007 as Fenerbahçe Ülker
  • Runners-up (6): 1985, 1988 as Fenerbahçe; 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011 as Fenerbahçe Ülker
• Federation Cup:
  • Winners (5): 1954, 1958, 1959, 1960, 1961 as Fenerbahçe
• GSGM Cup:
  • Winners (2): 1987-88, 1991-92 as Fenerbahçe
• Istanbul League:
  • Winners (7): 1954-55, 1955–56, 1956–57, 1962–63, 1963–64, 1964–65, 1965-66 as Fenerbahçe
  • Runners-up (3): 1950-51, 1953–54, 1957–58
  • Third (5): 1946-47, 1947–48, 1949–50, 1958–59, 1959–60
• Mirza Delibašić Memorial Tournament:
  • Winner (1): 2009

Individual awards

Basketball Hall of Fame Coaches

• Aleksandar Nikolić

FIBA Hall of Fame Coaches

• Aleksandar Nikolić

50 Greatest Euroleague Contributors

• Šarūnas Jasikevičius
• İbrahim Kutluay
• Mirsad Türkcan

Euroleague Weekly MVPs

• Willie Solomon - Season 2007-08, Week 12
• Willie Solomon - Season 2007-08, Top 16, Week 6
• Oğuz Savaş - Season 2008-09, Week 10

EuroLeague Score Leaders

• 1998–99 İbrahim Kutluay: 21.41 (in 17 games)

EuroLeague Rebound Leaders

• 1998–99 Žan Tabak: 10.00 (in 18 games)
• 2008–09 Mirsad Türkcan: 8.64 (in 14 games)
• 2010–11 Mirsad Türkcan: 7.33 (in 12 games)

EuroLeague Block Leaders

• 2007–08 Ömer Aşık: 2.06 (in 15 games)

NBA Drafts

• Ömer Aşık - 2nd round 36th pick overall with Chicago Bulls in 2008 NBA Draft
• Semih Erden - 2nd round 60th pick overall with Boston Celtics in 2008 NBA Draft
• Emir Preldžič - 2nd round 57th pick overall with Phoenix Suns in 2009 NBA Draft
• Enes Kanter - 1st round 3rd pick overall with Utah Jazz in 2011 NBA Draft
• Bojan Bogdanović - 2nd round 31st pick overall with Minnesota Timberwolves in 2011 NBA Draft

See also

• See also Turkish National Men's Basketball Team
• See also Fenerbahçe Women's Basketball Team

References

External links

• Fenerbahçe Ülker Official Web Page (Turkish)
• Official Fenerbahçe site (Turkish) (English) (German) (Portuguese)
• TBLStat.net Profile (English)
• Fenerbahçe Ulker Fan Page (Turkish)