Anthony Clemmons “Monaco is one of the best places in the world”

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Anthony Clemmons, the international American Kazakh guard of AS Monaco, talks about his new life for his fourth year overseas and his goals.

Can you introduce yourself?

I’m Anthony Clemmons. I currently play for the club of Monaco. I am from Lansing, Michigan in the United States.

How did you start playing basketball?

I started playing basketball at a young age. My dad placed a ball in my hand around 5. From the time I could play outside I fell in love with the game.

What was your basketball path before becoming a pro player overseas?

I went to the University of Iowa. I graduated with a degree in sports management and in my last year I networked with a lot of the people in the sports department to help me get into the marketing field.

You are coming out of two great seasons with Astana, a team located in Kazakhstan. You were so good that their national team has recruited you to represent them on the international scene. Is this a pride for you and what do you keep in mind from this experience of playing for a country that adopted you?

The experience was amazing. I never really realize how exciting it would be to play for a country. For them to adopt me to become one of them was a great feeling. To know that you are wanted from a different country, not just by the people you see day to day but the people around Kazakhstan is a surreal feeling.

You are now a player of AS Monaco. It looks defenetively a nice place to live and to play basketball: the landscape and whether are great, same as the salary offered and the team level at the european scale. Do you agree with us?

Yes, Monaco is a great place to be. I never could imagine living here but to have it be apart of my journey, I can truly say I’ve been to one of the best places in the world.

The Roca team was recently still undefeated that season and the coach, Saša Obradović, has only lost 4 official games since he arrived in Monaco last season. Do you feel the pressure to win every game?

As a competitor you would like to win every game. But that isn’t our main focus. Our focus is to become better as a team each and everyday. I like our chances when we reach our full potential. But we have a long way to go and we just want to grow and compete every time we step on the court.

Your association with Dee Bost, who is the team captain and who has established as the leader of the team since his return to Monaco last season, looks very promising and complementary. Did he gave you some advices? Do you learn from him during practices and games? More globally, what kind of relationship do you have with him?

I have a great relationship with Dee. He has helped me adjust to the way Coach Sasa wants me to play and his expectations. We communicate a lot when we are on the court together. We both know as guards we have to lead the team to the best of our abilities on both ends of the floor.

What are your first feelings about the french league comparing to the others competitions you played in the past?

I haven’t really got too much of a feel. After the first round, I will have a better understand. But from the first few games, it’s a faster pace.

From your first season in NCAA to today, it seems like you have a steady progression year after year. Do you dream about the Euroleague or even the NBA for the future of your career?

I would be a liar if I said NBA wasn’t a dream of mine. It’s definitely something I would like to be a part of before I’m done playing for sure. But if it doesn’t happen, I wouldn’t feel like I failed.
Euroleague is for at the top of the list of getting to when playing European basketball. I’m a competitor and I would like to be a part of the toughest competition over here. I know it’s great basketball and I for sure would like to experience it.

To conclude, do you have something to say to your fans worldwide?

Thank you all for following and supporting me. I know I can’t reach out to everyone individually but nothing goes unnoticed and I appreciate all the love. I will continue to play at a high level and compete like it’s my last every game.

About the author
Danny Fouqs

Danny Fouqs