Wheatle hoping for another big tournament for Great Britain to silence critics

BIELLA (FIBA U20 European Championship 2018) - After guiding an underdog Great Britain side to the FIBA U20 European Championship 2018 from Division B, Carl Wheatle is back to reap the fruits of his labor.

The 20-year-old small forward from London has not lost the chip on his shoulder and intends to silence all remaining skeptics in his first Division A tournament with the national team.

FIBA.basketball caught up with the Italy-based player to talk about his season with Pallacanestro Biella, representing Great Britain on the international stage and to revisit the heartbreak of being a late scratch from FIBA EuroBasket 2017, due to an incredibly untimely injury.

Carl, let's start with a small overview: how do you feel your second season in Serie A2, with Biella, went for you?

I had a bit of a delayed start, because I got injured in the summer last year. I spent the first couple of months trying to regain my rhythm, getting back into game shape. I think once I got into it, I definitely made strides during the season. I feel like I had a pretty good year. It could have had been better in some aspects, but I feel I definitely have improved a lot, I have got a lot more comfortable with the league and how the game is played here. This is my fifth season in Italy, but the second one with the first team playing in Serie A2 and having that experience from last year definitely played a role in me being more comfortable.

As you mentioned, you've been in Italy for a while now. How do you think playing there has benefited your improvement?

I think it has helped me improve my game a lot. From where I was when I left England at 15 to where I am now, it's an incredible journey. It's a really vast improvement. I think I have improved a lot technically, but my understanding of the game is what I have improved the most. The game is played at a much higher level in Europe compared to England at this point in time, helping me learn a lot in a short space of time. Mainly, the amount of training time here is a lot more than I used to do previously. It is a continuous learning process, to understanding the game better. Same goes from the technical standpoint.

You earned promotion to Division A at the FIBA U20 European Championship after finishing third in last year's Division B tournament in Romania. How big of an achievement was that for you?

I think it obviously was a huge achievement for us. That was our goal when we came into training camp. That was our idea from the start – we wanted to gain promotion and we believed we had the group that could do it. We had an understanding of the overall level from the summer tournaments before, so we knew that we're capable of doing it.

You have quite a few memorable moments from last year's tournament: a triple-double against Azerbaijan, a close-fought Semi-Final against Croatia and then nipping Russia for the final promotion spot. What was the most memorable one for you?

For me, the best game has to be the bronze medal. I do like the triple-double, it was not a tough game; I didn't need to have a triple-double to win the game. I feel the biggest one was the game for third place, because we proved ourselves. We spoke what we wanted into existence, got the promotion and reached our goal. It was really satisfying to get that third place.

Also in the Semi-Final…no one had us competing in the Semi-Finals, let alone winning it. Everyone thought: 'Yeah, it's Great Britain and Croatia – it's going to be an easy one'. We were in the game until the very end. Even though it was a tough loss, it was a game to show that we are at this level, that we can compete with these kind of teams despite people counting us out even before the start. However, the best one was definitely the third-place game against Russia, because it brought it all to a close. We're definitely very happy about that.

You were one of four 1998-born guys on the U20 roster last year. After earning that promotion to Division A, do you feel lucky to have the chance to actually reap the fruits of your labor, so to speak?

Yeah, definitely. When we earned promotion at the U16 level with the 1998 age group, we didn't get to play in Division A the following year. For me personally, this will be the first time playing Division A basketball, so I'm definitely looking to reap the benefits of finally helping the team get promoted and then being able to play there the following year with my own age group.

As you mentioned, this will be your first time competing against Division A competition. What are your thoughts and expectations ahead of the upcoming tournament in Germany?

I'm looking forward to it. I think we're going to surprise a few people. That's our goal. We're not going to count ourselves out and we're going to go out there to surprise a lot of people. We're going there to show that we deserve to be there. I'm going to use my experience and help the team any way that I can and do whatever needs to be done. I think we can realistically aim for the Top 8.

I know that many people will say Great Britain aren't usually a Top 8 team in Division A, but I believe that we can be. Anything below that will be a disappointment for me, so that's what I'm aiming for and what I'm going to project onto the team, because I feel that's what we can realistically accomplish. I'm looking forward to showing people that we deserve to be in Division A and waiting all these years is finally paying off.

You're in the same group as Lithuania, Montenegro, Turkey. It's obviously too early to talk about specifics, but what are your first thoughts?

It’s a tough group. When you think of powerhouses in European basketball, Lithuania is always one of the top names, Turkey always has a great team and Montenegro have had great success in junior level in recent years. It will definitely be tough group, but you can never count anyone out. We just have to prepare well in camp and be ready for the first game and take it from there. We know we have a tough group, we may even have the toughest group. But we have to take it a game at a time and not get too high or low over wins and losses and take it from there.

Great Britain secured a place in Division A by nipping Russia for the last promotion ticket

Before playing for your own age category, you have had the opportunity to play with older guys at every step of the pyramid in FIBA tournaments at the U16, U18 and U20 level. How valuable have those opportunities been to you?

They are invaluable. You play with better players most of the time when you play a year up and you can always learn from them, learn from the competition. It gives you a chance to see how it all is a year early, so you already have that experience the next year. It's priceless. It also helps in terms of knowing the coaching staff and how they like to do things. It makes things so much smoother and the next year you can be that leader and the guy who knows the system and how everything is run. The experience helps a lot inside the locker room, outside the locker room and, obviously, on the court.

An unfortunate knee injury prevented you from representing Team GB at FIBA EuroBasket 2017. Can you talk about what you have been able to soak in from the training camp and working with an NBA coach in Joe Prunty?

The training camp…first of all, I was very surprised by the call-up. I wasn't expecting it last summer, but I was really excited about it. Going into camp, I was trying to learn as much as possible. A lot of the guys that were there have been in the GB program and played at the international level for many years. I just tried to learn their habits, how they approach the game as professionals on and off the court. I was asking questions and trying to learn as much as I can. From coach [Joe Prunty], I was trying to understand how he sees things and try to be as inquisitive as I can be and picking up things that will help me throughout my career. Not just the technical things, but also how to conduct myself on the court in general. Those are invaluable lessons that you will never forget. You take all of them in.

The injury, that must have been heartbreaking…

It was a devastating experience. It was one of the last games before FIBA EuroBasket and I felt like I was just finding my rhythm within the team, knowing my role. To go down with the injury, it was tough. At the time, my first thought was hoping it is nothing that would keep me out for a year. Luckily, it was just a sprain and it only kept me out for a couple of months. That was the first thing.

Then, the heart-break of not being able to get to FIBA EuroBasket and what that meant set in. Especially, since Great Britain as a nation isn't Spain, who are at every tournament every time. I know it's a rare opportunity, so it was a tough pill to swallow, but it's a thing that can happen in sport. From there, I was focused on coming back. That's why I want to have a great summer with the national team and show that I'm back to my best.

How do you feel right now?

I feel good. At the start, it took a while to get the legs under you. Especially, as it's a knee injury. It affects every movement. It's not like a finger, where you can sort of play through it. With your knee, you need that to be at 100 percent to be able to play the way you want to play. Now I'm definitely in good shape and feeling good, but it did take me a while at the start of the season – a couple of weeks, a month – before I was comfortable.

Wheatle was FIBA EuroBasket-bound before suffering a knee injury in a friendly game

You did eventually make your official debut for the senior side in the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019 European Qualifiers against Estonia. Is cementing that spot on the men's national team one of your goals right now?

Definitely. I definitely want to show that I belong and that I deserve to always be in contention to play for the national team. I think that's one of the next steps I want to take in my career – to be cemented in as one of the Team GB national team players. I've always taken a lot of pride in representing my country and I always try to when I can. The last few years I've been lucky enough that my club has allowed me to do that and have been really supportive. Apart from last year, I was lucky to have been injury-free during the summers for the most part and have been able to compete and I want to continue to do that for years on.

Last summer was a busy one for you. Are you planning to play for both teams this summer?

Yes. The training camp last summer was much longer because the team was preparing for FIBA EuroBasket 2017. Now, it's just two games, so it's just a week of commitment. Last year, it was over a month and just after I finished with the U20s. It was basically a non-stop summer. I was not sure how much time I was going to have to be at home and take a week or two off to recharge after the season. But it all worked out this year.

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