Former Badger Nigel Hayes-Davis has had quite the run in the last week as he rides the high of winning his team and his country a basketball championship in the Euro League. He was awarded the MVP trophy for the Final Four, and he scored 23 points and grabbed nine rebounds in the championship game.
The parade back in Istanbul came, and it was insane. It may have been one of the rowdiest celebratory crowds ever. There weren't official counts, but thousands poured into the streets as fires were lit and crowds chanted and cheered along the route for the Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul champions.
Nigel Hayes spoke to the massive crowd about how great it is to win the championship
Nigel Hayes-Davis was blown away by the outpouring of joy in the city, telling the crowd, "We are the EuroLeague champions, we have won the biggest trophy in Europe! This success is the work of a team that believes in us, a community that never gives up, and you, our great fans, who are always by our side."
The crowds loved Hayes-Davis, too, as they chanted for him as he stood on top of the double-decker bus leading the team through the city. You can hear the crowd in the video below chanting, "MVP! MVP! MVP!" as Hayes-Davis soaks it all in.
It's incredible to see the former Badger finally have the championship feeling. His story took turns he never saw coming when he was younger. I'm sure he didn't plan to be standing on a bus speaking to thousands of people in Turkish after winning the Euro League championship, but he seems to be relishing the moment.
He has the championship that alluded him in high school, coming up just short, and in college, coming up just short again in the 2015 National Championship game. He is now a champion and has an MVP trophy to go with it.