2018 Final Four Official Programme

Signature Star: Ali Muhammed, Fenerbahce Dogus Istanbul When the history books are written about Fenerbahce Dogus Istanbul, the name Ali Muhammed (formerly Bobby Dixon) will appear front and center in any discussion of the team’s current golden period. Muhammed has been a driving force for the club through his leadership, tenacity, playmaking and three-point shooting. This season has been tough forMuhammed, whomissed the first twomonths with a hip injury. However, whenever he is in form, Fenerbahce has been a better team. In the five regular-season games that Muhammed started, Fenerbahce was undefeated. Moreover, he showed his ability to take over games with 24 points on 6-of- 11 three-point shooting against Olympiacos Piraeus in Round 21 and 25 points on 7-of-10 shooting from downtown versus Crvena Zvezda mts Belgrade in Round 28. That performancemade him just the second player in competition history to record three games with at least 7 three-pointers made. Before his emergence as a star in Turkey, Muhammed played for eight teams in three countries over five seasons, including his debut EuroLeague campaign with ASVEL Villeurbanne in 2009-10. His rise fromhumble beginnings came fromMuhammed’s conviction to never give up, and that positive attitude and willpower became his calling card as he continued persevering and looking for the right professional situation. The decision to join Pinar Karsiyaka Izmir in the summer of 2012would change his career. Muhammed starred while leading Karsiyaka to success domestically and in Europe, culminating when the team claimed a historic Turkish League title in 20015, the same year that Muhammed was named to the All-EuroCup Team. After that, Fenerbahce came calling andMuhammed became its motor, helping to deliver the team to new heights. He was ever-present in Fenerbahce’s run to the 2016 EuroLeague championship game, in which he scored a team-high 17 points in an overtime loss to CSKAMoscow. Last seasonMuhammed set a (since broken) EuroLeague record for three-pointers in a season when hemade 78 on the road to Fenerbahce reaching EuroLeague glory at the Final Four in Istanbul. Now, in Belgrade, he will have a new chance to further cement his place in the hearts of Fenerbahce fans. OFFICIAL PROGRAMME 19