Shane Larkin on his Turkish co-star after a dominant run at EuroBasket: “Alperen (Sengun) is just, like, a different kind of breed. There’s not one thing he cannot do on the floor.”
“There are a lot of people who settle for the NBA lifestyle of being that 13th man on the team that doesn’t dress every single game, but they can say I’m in the NBA. A lot of people are hanging on to that as opposed to people who genuinely love the game.”https://t.co/bXqjcujzYG
— HoopsHype (@hoopshype) September 13, 2025
In a conversation with HoopsHype’s Cyro Asseo, Turkish guard Shane Larkin offered candid thoughts regarding the rise of Houston Rockets big man Alperen Sengun.
Larkin played four NBA seasons in the mid-2010s, and he’s since become an elite player in Europe. Today, he’s 32 years old, and he’ll compete alongside Sengun in Sunday’s FIBA EuroBasket 2025 final. It’s the first time Turkey has made the tournament’s final since 2001, and they’re hoping to win it for the first time.
So, Larkin has plenty of perspective when it comes to putting Sengun’s elite performances into context. Regarding the 2025 All-Star and whether he might already be Turkeyn’s best-ever NBA player, Larkin tells HoopsHype:
I was in Orlando when Hedo (Turkoglu) was the guy in Orlando. And when he went to the Finals with the Magic. So I actually watched a lot of him growing up and was actually a big fan. And a very high-level player, I think, borderline All-Star for many years.
But I think Alperen is just like a different kind of breed. I think he’s just like this hybrid kind of player that doesn’t come around too often. There’s not one thing he cannot do on the floor. He can handle the ball, he can pass the ball, he can shoot the ball, he has touch around the rim, and he has IQ and he has the flashiness.
You know, Giannis Antetokounmpo isn’t flavorful; he’s just so dominant. Like, he just runs through people, and he’s just so dominant in the way he plays, but you wouldn’t say Giannis has a flashy game. You know, (Nikola) Jokic is very fundamental, super high IQ, makes the incredible passes, but you wouldn’t say it’s like super flashy, flashy. So I think the combination of like the flair, the excitement, the talent, the IQ, all of it, and a 23-year-old kid.
He’s going to tell you about it, too. It’s like, ‘When I’m having my day, I really don’t think anybody can guard me.’ Like, that’s a 23-year-old kid from Turkey saying that. The confidence is just what sets him apart.
You saw it when I played against him when he was 18 years old in the Turkish League, and it’s been that same kind of level of confidence, and just continued to build. And now with the accolades and All-Star, the world stage is now, everybody is watching him, and he’s just like, ‘I’m ready for this moment.’
He dunks the ball the other day, and he walks down the court, and he’s like, ‘I told you.’ Heart, mind, it’s all there. The fundamentals are there, the attitude is there, the flash is there. Everything for somebody to break through and become that guy is all there for him. And I’m excited to see where his future is, and I’m glad to be a part of his journey.
HoopsHype’s complete Q&A with Larkin can be read here.
Sunday’s final between Turkey and Germany tips off at 1:00 p.m. Central, and information on how to stream is available at FIBA’s website. The German squad also features a pair of former Rockets in guard Dennis Schroder and big man Daniel Theis, with the latter likely to guard Sengun for extended stretches.
Turkey and Germany are both a perfect 8-0 in EuroBasket play.
As for the NBA, Sengun averaged 19.1 points and a career-high 10.3 rebounds last season in earning his first career All-Star honors. Houston went 52-30 and finished at No. 2 in the Western Conference standings, and Sengun led the Rockets in rebounding while finishing second in scoring and assists on a per-game basis.