Xavier’s Kerem Kanter is being closely watched by his brother, New York Knicks center Enes Kanter.
The New York Knicks don’t have a game on Saturday but center Enes Kanter will be at Madison Square Garden cheering on his brother Kerem who plays for Xavier.
Xavier beat St. John’s in the quarterfinals on Thursday to advance to the Big East championship game at the Garden on Saturday. Kerem scored 12 points in Thursday’s game and was given Enes’s locker at MSG.
WATCH | @KeremKanter took up residence in his big brother's locker for the day. #LetsMarch pic.twitter.com/eTKo4W7k8F
— Xavier Basketball (@XavierMBB) March 8, 2018
“It’s good,” Enes told Marc Berman of the New York Post. “He’s seeing the MSG atmosphere, New York, and everything. He was in Times Square a couple of days ago with friends and teammates.”
Kerem is averaging 10.2 points on 56.5 percent shooting for Xavier. His brother says that the two are different in how they play. Kerem is a better outside shooter and driver and plays mostly small forward and power forward, according to Enes.
“He’s more quiet — chill and calm, doesn’t troll people,” Enes said. “He doesn’t go on social media and fight. I always make fun of him but I think he’s way better than me [as a shooter].’’
Kerem would like to play in the NBA like his brother does. He will try to make a team out of training camp if he doesn’t get drafted in June. If Kerem does make an NBA team it better not be the Knicks because Enes would love to play against Kerem in the NBA.
“His goal is to play in the NBA,’’ Enes said. “He’ll see his options. I hope he plays in the NBA. I’d like to play against him and bury him on the court.’’
We’ll have to wait and see what team Kerem could play for in the NBA and whether Enes can beat him or not. For now, let’s hope that Kerem gets Enes a good seat for Saturday’s game.