<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">?Thabo?s got great physical gifts that, frankly, a lot of guys in the league just don?t have. He?s got tremendous length and has really quick hands,? says Skiles. ?He grabs your attention whenever you watch him play. It?s easy to see that he knows what he?s doing out there. You can tell he likes to play defense, too. He?s eager to get after it.? Bulls GM John Paxson first saw Sefolosha play last winter in Italy, on the recommendation of Chicago?s chief European scout, Ivica Dukan. ?Ivica always raved about the guy. He kept telling us how much Thabo had improved in such a short period of time, and that in his opinion he was someone who could really help us. ?For a long time we had been looking for a bigger guard who could complement both Kirk Hinrich and Ben Gordon?someone who could defensively shut down guards with size when Kirk was on the floor, and someone who could also initiate offense when paired with Ben,? explains Paxson. ?So Thabo sounded like a really good fit.? Sefolosha is used to fitting in wherever he goes, and he?s been all over the world, visiting 20 different countries, living in five and speaking three languages (Italian, French and English). His mother, who is Swiss, headed to South Africa at age 20 in search of adventure. There, she met Patrick Sefolosha, a prominent musician, who was one of nine children raised in a Pretoria township. The two were married during the time of apartheid, when blacks were often mistreated and abused by the predominantly white minority South African government. It was also a time and place when a mixed-race couple (Christine is white; Patrick, black) weren?t allowed to be seen together in public. Several times, Patrick was arrested or roughed up ?just because they were together walking down the street. Back in the day, that?s just how it was in South Africa,? says Thabo. Top: Mother and son?competitors through and through. Middle: Thabo (on defense) and big brother Kgomotso Sefolosha loved to challenge each other to games of one-on-one while growing up in Switzerland. Bottom: Although Christine Sefolosha is acknowledged as the chief artist of the family, Thabo, at age 9, thought he?d test his own creative skills by sketching a self-portrait, which amazingly foretold his future as a Chicago Bull. Before Thabo?s older brother was born, the couple moved to Switzerland, where they hoped that they and their children would no longer be harassed. Kgomotso, Thabo?s big brother, was born soon after the move, and 13 months later, on May 2, 1984, Thabo came along. Like other Swiss kids, Kgomotso and Thabo played soccer, but one day, when Thabo was nine, a neighbor invited them to play basketball at a local club. ?Immediately, they knew that basketball was the game for them,? recounts Christine. That same year, Thabo cut out a photo of his head and placed it on a drawing of his body dressed in an NBA uniform. In a foreshadowing of what was to come, he painted the shorts red, with the Bulls logo on each side. ?I?ve always told Thabo that it is important to find a passion in life,? Christine says. ?I?m an artist (some of her work is currently on display in galleries in France and Switzerland, as well as in Chicago at the Judy Saslow Gallery), and his stepdad is one, too. And, his dad?s a musician. Basketball wasn?t very common where we lived, but, as you can see, it definitely became Thabo?s passion.? </div> Great Article check out the whole thing here..... http://www.nba.com/bulls/news/sefolosha_feature_060914.html .........Its a must read for any bulls fan. Go Bulls!!!
Nice story, great accomplishment from him coming from Swiss, which really is a pretty lame country (sport-wise)
