Porter Troupe and me agreed that we will take this interview and first it will be “aired” in Romanian, then we will post it in English.

I chose to post the full English version of the interview in the Christmas period cause Porter Troupe’s story is fascinating. He played eight of the last 12 years in Romania and he could see the pains and the struggles of our country to get on par with its Western counterparts.

In this interview, Porter takes us not just into a basketball journey, but he is also talking about the way our country changed and he looks much more optimistic about the future of Romania than we usually are.  

Prima parte a interviului în limba română este disponibilă aici.A doua parte aici. 

How many years did you play here in Romania?

This will be my eight. Eight in the last 12 years.

How was it when you first came here in Romania? What were your first thoughts?

My first thoughts were ”Where am I?” and ”What have I got myself into?”. You know, Romania looks a lot different from the USA and Western Europe, so I was not sure of my choice. My first years were in Târgu Jiu, and Alex Danilă and a guy who we called ”Mitică”, a big guy whose name I don't remember, picked me up from the airport. He drove me to Târgu Jiu, and it was just me and him. I didn’t understand Romanian, he didn’t understand English, so the communication was wild. We only used hand signals. 

How was your first ride to Târgu Jiu?  

My first ride from Bucharest to Târgu Jiu lasted ten hours because it was on a Sunday night, and you know there's the exporting trucks across the country, and we got stuck in the mountains, for two hours, near Dealu Negru. Then this gypsy lady came to me and tried to sell me gum. She was knocking on my door and saying „Hey, Moreno, Moreno”. And I was like „What is going on?!” It was crazy! I lost my bag. The lady from the airport said that my bag is somewhere in Germany or in Europe or somewhere and then I told her that all my basketball stuff is in my bag. What am I going to do without them? And she was shrugging her shoulders. I was 25 years old, it was my second job and it was an amazing situation.

Did you know anything about Romanian basketball? Have you heard about Gheorghe Mureşan?

Yes, I heard about Gheorghe Mureşan. A guy that I know from Seattle, played in Vâlcea, the year before, in the first league. His name is Jamaal Miller, and he was Romanian leading scoring, which is crazy. So I asked him about it. And he said, „You know, Romania was a really nice experience”. I was like „really?”. And he said, „I had some expectations and it exceeded them, people there were better then I thought”. And he was right. To see Romania grow in the last 10 or 12 years was unbelievable.  

In your first day there, do you remember the guys you met?

Yes, there was Alex Gligă, Claudiu Alionescu, who is now the assistant coach there. We called him „Ursul” (translation: „the Bear”), and a guy named Radu Stroescu, I don't know what is he doing in Târgu Jiu right now, but he was the coach that we won the cup with. Marius Stoican, who lives in Bucharest, he plays at Sport Arena at 3X3. A good guy. Ilie Daniel, who we called „Baronul”, Mitică, Constantin Amarghioalei „Milu”, another guy called Laurentiu, who doesn't play basketball right now. I remember all the guys from there. Bogdan Popescu was there as well, he was my teammate in my first year. It was a nice situation. 

How was your first season at Energia?

It was their first time in the first league, and our objective was to stay in the first league. That year in Romania, for Christmas they gave us a two-week break. At the end of the first half of the season, we were in second place. It was me, Louis Darby, Josh Jackson, Bogdan Popescu... we had way more than they expected, for this league we had a lot! They said that we have to finish in the first 8 and we were on the second place. We finished the year on the 7th spot because teams started to treat us more seriously in the second part of the season. We made the playoffs, we lost to Timişoara. They played the final that year. We lost in the third game, we should have beaten them. We had a good team.

For Holiday you went to the USA, or you stayed in Romania?

No, I went back home, in Portland. I live in Portland and New York in the summer. I trained a little bit, I enjoyed the time because the first year I didn't have time to go home. It was the first time I was home during the season and I said „oh, that's different”, but it was nice. 

Did you ever spend your Christmas holiday here in Romania?

Yes. Until a few years ago, I had a girlfriend from Târgu Jiu, we had been together for like 7 years, so I got really close to her family, I am still really close. And we spent holidays together, on Christmas, Easter and it was different but cool. 

So, how was the season that everybody was talking about, with the Final Four in Eurochallenge?

We beat some good teams then. I had great colleagues, a great coach, good relationships between us. Guys respected each other, and first of all, we worked very hard, and we were very hungry. That was the hungriest team I was in. Maybe not the best, but the hungriest. We had an agenda, we wanted to prove something, everybody had an agenda. Me, Giordan, Nemanja. All the guys that were in that team wanted to prove something. It was an inner motivation. Like, something happened in the summer that pissed us off. Maybe the season before we thought that we didn't get the respect that we deserved. Whatever was the motivation, we all had it. We started playing in the EuroChallenge. A team from Târgu Jiu, what were we going to do? We were not going to do anything! We started to play with teams that had a good reputation and after 10 minutes we were like „Wait a minute, you are nothing like that, we are better than you”. We were in a situation where we thought the other team was better than us, but it wasn't like that. They were just like us, they ran just like us and it was all about playing basketball. We started from there, and we slowly built something. And all of the sudden we got to play Le Mans to get into the Final Four. A best out of 3. The first game we destroyed them. We beat them by 35 points! I was like „Those guys are 3rd in France?!? And we beat them by 35? And these guys are beating Euroleague teams! Wait a minute!” 

You won a Cup in 2014, how was it? What is more important, the Final Four or the Romanian Cup?

You know, to be honest with you, every competition has its own thing. I don't want to place one above the other. Obviously, the Final Four has a bigger exposure and people in Europe respect that. For me, personally, if I am in a situation where I can win something, I want that. The final four was amazing, but we didn't win. We got the bronze medal. It was cool, but we walked from there with the feeling that we could have won. When we won the Cup, we were happy because we won the Cup, because you can celebrate this like a champion. So that for me is special. 

How was the departure from Energia?

It was hard because I only played there before leaving. I had a lot of close friends there, people that I knew and respected, and for whom I had some strong feelings. So, it was very hard to leave, because I had had a lot of opportunities to leave Târgu Jiu, but I couldn't do it because of my relationships there. But also what was happening there was not good for me personally, because at the end of the day this is my profession. Ok, I have friends, whatever, but it's my job, so I had to do what's best for me financially. We weren't getting paid. Throughout that season, some bigger teams wanted me and I told them that I want to leave, but they didn't let me go, because I was some kind of a symbol of a club and I was captain of the team, and I couldn't let my teammates down. But it was hard for me because I do this for a living, I do this for money, I have bills, things I have to pay for at home and you are not paying me. So I was like „OK, I don't want to leave, but you don't pay me, so I have to leave”. I wish they would have been just honest with me, from the beginning, like „hey, we have a problem with the money, we don't know what is going to happen so if you have something better, you have our blessing because you gave us a lot in these years”. I gave my heart and soul for this team, and they should give it back. From that point of view I was upset, but at the end of the day is a place where I had a lot of positive memories, so I tried to remember only those things and forget the bad ones.

Next stop for you was Steaua. How was the move from a smaller town like Târgu Jiu to a bigger city?

I am from New York...

So Bucharest compared to New York is like Târgu Jiu compared to Bucharest? 

Not quite, but yeah *he laughs*. Honestly, I felt more comfortable. Bigger city, more things to do to keep my mind away from basketball. Sometimes you just need to take a break, to clear your mind and think about something different like: „What am I having for dinner? Are there any nice restaurants? What kind of music are they playing there?” It's a different vibe, different things, a different way of feeling the world. So that was good. I had great teammates there also. You know, all my career I have been blessed with having great teammates, great guys and Steaua wasn't different. They also had a great staff, with Ionuț and Virgil, guys that I am still friends with. So that experience was cool. I was a bit upset because I think we had a chance to win the championship that year. In my opinion, we had the best team that year. Like, I won a Cup, but I still wanted a championship. And I got hurt in the playoffs. The Mureș team beat us, they didn't have a better team than us, but they played harder than us, they deserved it.

Next year I went to Poland, and then I went to Lithuania and I won the silver there. Nice experience leaving Romania, a better level of basketball, better players. I think I learned some valuable lessons there.

And then you came back to Romania, to Pitești. You had a crazy season, with lots of injuries.

Yes. First of all, I want to thank Hristu for bringing me there, cause he trusted in me as a player, allowed me to be myself, even for my age. I was 34 and he trusted me to be a captain and a leader. He put his job on the line for me and I respect that. Secondly, we had a lot of injuries, a lot of bad luck. The changing format, the national team games kinda messed with us a little bit. We started very good, 6-1, and then the national team window came and we practiced with five guys and then the games started again and we were a little bit out of rhythm and out of shape and then the downward spiral started. Corpo, Titus, Matti, Aco, Hristu were at the international games. At the same time, Andriy Agafonov had some issues with the visa. So we were like five or six at the practice. And then, in the Top 6, Hristu counted on six or seven of us and guys started getting injured. That was difficult. It was a hard season, for sure. We played a great part of the season with only five imports and then we brought J (n.r. Jonathan Person) in March but he was hurt. Tough. We put a good fight against Oradea. I really think we could have beat them. In game 3 I played bad, I don't have any excuses. In game 4 we could have won. But I think as a team we didn't realize how close we were to win. We won the first game, in the second game I caught a virus, I was at the hospital, I played on antibiotics so it was not the same. In the second half, I could not play anything, I was tired, third game I played like shit and the fourth game we lost. I really think they were not better than us, it was the matchup we wanted and I wish we could have it back. 

This season you went to Craiova. You waited a lot for someone to call you. What happened? 

People have different opinions because I am 35. Whatever. The market is bad. I don’t know. For me, I know what I can do, I know how I feel. I know that at 35 I move much better than a lot of guys that are 28. I had to find the right situation. In Craiova, I really respect the coach. Aco Todorov is a basketball genius, in my opinion. He really understands the game, we play something different than all the other teams. And he can see past my age, he trusts me and that for me was really important. Once we had an agreement, I spoke with Mr. Toma and I became excited. I think we have a great team. 

You were here for the first time in 2008. How much do you think Romania evolved? 

I think Romania evolved a lot. I think in the last 10 years it evolved like in 30 years. It really caught up to the rest of Europe. Ten years ago, I couldn’t go to a restaurant like this, or maybe in Bucharest, but not in a small city. I think Romania really came a long way. I really think the young generation is coming up with a different mentality, a different way of thinking that is healthy for this country to come back from the Communist period, from the struggle this country had because of that period. I think that the young people have a completely different mentality, they are a lot more progressive, it's been exciting to see Romania grow, honestly. 

Your best memory in Romania, unrelated to basketball? 

That is interesting, I don’t know. That's a good question. I have some great memories here. (*needs 10-20 seconds to think*). Honestly, I tell you what it is, but it is a bit related to basketball. A lot of the younger generations... you know, Camil Berculescu, right? He plays in the national team and he is from Targu Jiu. My first year he was 11 or 12. And they saw us play and fell in love with basketball. Me and Louis Darby, we used to dunk, to score three-pointers and to celebrate. We showed them the game in the American way. In my first year, there was nothing besides soccer and the Pandurii team. When I came back the next year, they had built basketball courts and they were full. It let me know that our team had a big impact on that city. In the next five years, those kids won 4 championships in a row. It was nice to see them fall in love with the game because of us. And Carla Popescu, who now plays for Targoviste, she is a great basketball player. I taught her how to shoot, cause she is a lefty. And she still treats me like I am this master, and is not like that anymore. I am playing in the first league, you are in the first league. We are equals now! Camil is my teammate. We are brothers now. So I think that it's been interesting to see this happening. That I helped some players to grow. 

Do you have any bad memories? I know you were here when this Braila accident happened... 

I was not here when Chauncey Hardy died. I was in Lebanon. But Theo Evans, who was my first coach in Târgu Jiu was coaching Giurgiu at that time. When I read for the first time that Chauncey is in a coma, I was in Lebanon and I was reading this article and I was like `yo`. I went to Google translate to find out if `coma` means `coma`... I was so shocked, it was crazy. I felt really bad for his family, his teammates, it was a terrible situation. I have never been a part of something like that. I was just `wow`.

And about the Braila situation?

I think it was really unfortunate. I talked with one of their players, he told me what happened. It was a case of wrong place at the wrong time, messing with the wrong guys. It was a situation where you really feel bad for the guys. You are here to play basketball, not to go to war. To have fun with your teammates, to experience new places. And to be facing a situation where you can die is something so weird to you... 

I saw on Facebook or Twitter some guys that play basketball and they said that players should not go to Romania cause is dangerous. Are the two situations representative for the Romanian society? 

No. I wouldn’t have been here for such a long time if it was. In ten years I was involved in two altercations. If alcohol is involved, or women, there is gonna be testosterone flaring up. Is not a Romanian thing. It's life. It can happen in America also. You look to a woman, her man comes and slaps you in the face like `don’t talk to her`. It is not Romanian. I am just sad that it happened to basketball players. Especially African-Americans, because it made it look like a racial thing. 

Did you experience any racism in Romania?

I did not experience. You know, I experienced silly kids saying stupid things, just because they heard it in a music video. They hear something and want to say it because they think it is funny to say it. But mostly, people in Romania are cool with me. I don't have anything bad to say about them. 

Which are your closest friends, after playing 8 years in Romania? 

Giordan is my best friend, probably. Also a bunch of my ex-teammates. You are on a team and you have to either love each other or hate each other. I have been lucky enough to meet great people. Everywhere I played I had 5 or 6 guys that I keep close, but Giordan is my best friend. 

What do you think about him playing for the national team?

I think is a great opportunity for him. I am happy for him. It gives him a different level of exposure. I think he is a great player and I think he is the key for Romania to get to the next level, to help them grow up. 

You have been here, having success with Energia in Europe. You also saw Asesoft success. What do you think about the level of competition? 

In the last two years, I think the level got down, to be honest with you. I know they want to help the young players to grow. I think it gives them a sense of achievement that they don't necessarily need. My team has a bunch of young guys of prospects that are hungry, that want to be good players. Four or five guys that can play in this league as valuable contributors for the next 10 years or so. But they have to work. I have come so far as I am cause I worked and so did other Romanian veterans: Mandache, Titus, Vlad. They had to work for their spot, nobody gave them anything. Giving them something gives them the wrong idea of how this is gonna happen. I don’t like the new rule. I think it brings the level down. The year I played with Energia in the Eurochallenge in the Final Four there was no rule about Romanian young players. When I was playing for Steaua, it was still a great level. Last year and this year, I feel it went down. Because of this rule, or because of financial restrictions. Whatever.

Your favorite city in which you played?

Bucharest. I also like Cluj. 

Any favorite food? 

I like mămăliga, we eat something similar in the States. I like „tochitură”, is that right? „Tochitură”. I like sarmale, I like ciolan. 

We are really into American stuff. What is the most fun thing for you that we try to copy from you guys?

The Hip Hop culture. I mean, I respect the music, they have great producers, great musicians. But is not natural. You know, I am from Harlem. So is natural for us to act that way, dress that way, talk that way. It is natural. But when I hear someone from Romania who talks like that with me, I am like „Bro, you don’t have to talk like that. It's cool, chill”. It is funny for me, but it doesn't happen just in Romania, everywhere in Europe is the same. 

What is the most interesting habit for you from Romania? 

That’s a good question… Hmmm, Romania being an Orthodox country, they have a lot of religious stuff that is different for me. I don’t have one to say so, but I enjoy Romanian people, honestly. I enjoy that people are positive most of the time. For me, that’s very refreshing. 

*foto: Mirela Oprea, sportpictures.eu, facebook BCM U Pitești, arhivă personală