Demirel quickly acclimates to GCU

With Grand Canyon fall classes starting after Labor Day, the campus' Lopes Performance Center has been a relatively quiet building lately.

That made its most frequent visitor to the open-play courts stand out this week, especially when that was the new 7-foot-1 center that GCU anxiously anticipated.

Efe Demirel arrived from Turkey in time to watch the Lopes' final practice before a two-week August break, when the GCU Basketball Practice Facility court was being refinished.

Armed with plenty of available summer hours to work out and smiles that won't stop about his new home, Demirel spent his first GCU week working out with Lopes staff in the weight room and on the LPC courts by day before returning to the LPC on his own for evening shooting.

Demirel's day-long, 7,000-mile journey from Turkey increased his nervousness about the unknown and his decision to join GCU, but the past week confirmed to him that he is in the right place – one that he continually calls "perfect."

He already has experienced more of Arizona than many, bookending his week of basketball workouts with his first NFL game, Cardinals-Chiefs in nearby Glendale, and a trip north to the other Grand Canyon and Sedona this weekend.

"The first week was perfect," said Demirel, whose transition is helped by a conversational English base. "Practices, therapies, lifting. Everything is going perfect at GCU. It's really different from Europe. Everything is much bigger, more comfortable and much better."

International bureaucracy delayed Demirel's arrival in Phoenix, but the timing might prove to be ideal for moderately integrating the 20-year-old into GCU and America.

Demirel already is well seasoned in basketball, playing year-round at high levels in Turkey. In his final game for Pinar Karsiyaka in May, Demirel posted 18 points and seven rebounds in 26 minutes.

On his first visit to GCU Basketball Practice Facility, Demirel was reunited with Karsiyaka teammate Fatts Russell, who works out with his brother, former Lopes star DeWayne Russell, at GCU Basketball Facility in the summer.

"Efe has good touch," Fatts Russell said. "He can shoot it from mid-range, and he's a lob threat. I think the biggest thing about him is how well he protects the rim. His game is going to translate very well. Europe is just like college with older people, and he held his own. Turkey is a very physical league, and he already has that inside him.

"All in all, he's a good person at heart."

The in-person eye test backed up everything GCU saw about Demirel on video and revealed even more about his appreciative disposition and determined work ethic.

"His talent level is very obviously at a high level," said Lopes assistant coach Jordan McCabe, who has been working out Demirel with assistant coach Kam Murrell, graduate assistant Asbjørn Midtgaard and student managers. "There's a reason that staff was so high on him from the jump.

"What's really exciting about him is his competitive joy. He enjoys being in the gym. Right now, it's 1-on-0 workouts to make sure he's in shape and ready for when team practice starts. That's the most boring thing, but he loves it. He's easy to be around and works hard. He's going to fit into the culture really well and elevate it."

Demirel will repeat the regimen next week before team workouts resume about two months ahead of GCU's home exhibition game against USC.

"The coaches are really helpful," Demirel said. "They are so nice to me. They are doing so much for me, and our GAs help me so much. Because of that, I am happy. Everything is perfect.

"I'm feeling much better, and I'm getting ready for the team. I am looking forward to helping the team win the championship. I will do my best."

Demirel's bilingual ability has helped acclimate him at a high pace. But he speaks volumes in frequent smiles.

"With some of our workouts in terms of cardio, most humans would not smile as much as Efe smiled," McCabe said. "He's joyful. He's competitive, but he enjoys the process."

Two generations of Lopes linking this afternoon in Phoenix! 🤝📸 pic.twitter.com/XG4z82DLN9
— Grand Canyon Men's Basketball (@GCU_MBB) August 11, 2025

Grand Canyon University Athletics

Players Mentioned

Efe Demirel

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