Toko Shengelia speaks to SKWEEK from Abu Dhabi about a new chapter in his career with Dubai Basketball, the ambitions of a club determined to establish itself among Europe’s elite, and his desire to keep chasing the EuroLeague title.
The 35-year-old forward opens up about his decision to leave Barcelona, reuniting with Xavi Pascual, playing alongside Thomas Walkup and the lessons he took from a difficult season in Spain. He also reflects on what still drives him at this stage of his career, why he believes Dubai can become something significant in European basketball, and the challenge of helping build a winning culture from the ground up.
From his perspective, this move is not about taking a step back, but about taking on a challenge with the potential to bring him closer to the ultimate prize. Shengelia discusses the expectations surrounding Dubai, the criticism of its ambitious project and the responsibility that comes with helping a new team find its identity. Above all, he makes clear that, with the final years of his career ahead, the goal remains simple: compete, win and make every opportunity count.
Dubai puts me a little closer to my goal
Correct me if I’m wrong, but do you think this year’s Dubai Basketball has all the pieces to be a real contender?
Listen, man… one thing I’ve learned throughout all these years playing in the EuroLeague is that it’s really difficult to make predictions at the beginning of a season. Every time you think a team is going to do something, or another team is not going to do it, many things can change. I would say that we have enough to put ourselves in a position to compete at a high level throughout the season. That’s what we have to focus on.
You’ve played at the highest level of European basketball for many years. What attracted you to this particular challenge in Dubai at this stage of your career?
It was not just one thing, you know. I wanted to find something that could potentially put me a little bit closer to my goal. And, of course, Xavi being here helped a lot. When you join a new project, it’s different, and in this case, I was lucky to have someone I already knew and trusted. But mainly, I wanted to be part of a project that could potentially — not guaranteed, but potentially — put me a little bit closer to my goal.
You’ve mentioned your goal. But what exactly is the big goal you’re chasing at this stage of your career?
I’m 35 years old now. And as hard as it is to admit, I probably have three or four years left, hopefully — if everything goes well health-wise. So, in these three or four years, I want to maximize every opportunity to compete for something and, hopefully, to win something. But, like I said, nothing is guaranteed in life or in a career. We have tough choices to make. And one of the toughest choices I’ve ever made was leaving Barcelona. It was a very, very difficult decision. But here we are. We made the choice, and now we have to live with it.
Some people might look at this move and say that, after leaving an established club for a project that is still trying to prove itself, this is a step back in your career. What do you say to those people?
Listen, you said that I went to a club that has not proven anything yet. But, you know, in this life, you don’t have to prove anything until you prove it. This is exactly why we’re here. This is why I came, and why other players came as well. I believe we’re here, and the coach is here, to help this club prove something — to show that this is a serious project and that it can become something important in European basketball. That’s the challenge. And for me, that’s what makes it exciting.
What do you say to those who see Dubai as a “one-and-done” team — a project that can simply throw money around, sign whoever it wants and try to win the EuroLeague overnight?
I can probably name five other EuroLeague teams that can buy whoever they want, but I don’t hear people talking about the same thing with those clubs. Yes, Dubai has a big budget, but at the end of the day, they still have to operate within the EuroLeague’s financial regulations, just like everyone else. Of course, having the resources to invest gives you possibilities. But it doesn’t automatically give you a team, chemistry or success. There are many clubs in the EuroLeague with significant budgets. Dubai is not the only one.
If we sit down again at the end of the season, what would have to happen for you to say, “Yes, joining Dubai was absolutely the right decision”?
The obvious, man. The obvious… Honestly, at this stage of my career, I’m at peace with myself. I don’t think I’m here to prove to anybody that I can do something new or surprise people. I don’t have an individual agenda anymore. I know one thing: I’m here to help my team, my teammates and my coach win. Whether that means one rebound or ten, one point or 20, it doesn’t matter to me. It’s a long way to go. We haven’t proved anything yet. We’re just starting, and we understand that. But we’re ready for the work ahead.
Looking back at last season, what do you think Barcelona got wrong that wasn’t necessarily visible from the outside?
I’m not here to talk about problems. Every team has problems. We had some difficult situations, and I learned a lot from them, but I don’t want to label Barcelona or put those things out there. Everything I had to say, I already said to the club management.
We did reach the Spanish League final… I don’t want to call it a big achievement. It was not a big achievement, but many people from the beginning were thinking that we were going to fail. They called us one of the oldest teams, and in the finals, we were competing against one of the youngest.
But we were also very unlucky with injuries. We had many players go down at very important moments, and after that we started losing games and slipped in the standings. In a EuroLeague as competitive as this, once you lose that ground, it’s very difficult to catch up.
We missed the playoffs by one game, which was very unfortunate because that was one of our main goals. Honestly, I believe that if we hadn’t had those injuries, we would have made it. And with the experience we had as a team, I don’t think many teams would have wanted to face us in a playoff series.
So, for me, it wasn’t necessarily that the club had one big problem. It was more a combination of unfortunate circumstances that made the season much harder than it needed to be.
Walkup is exactly what you want from your point guard
Giorgos Bartzokas once called Thomas Walkup “the very essence of a point guard”. You’ve spent years playing against him — what is it like now to have him on your side?
What I like about him the most is that he understands the game, the reads that he makes. Many times, they may appear to be very simple reads, simple passes or simple decisions, but at this stage, that’s what you need. You don’t need to make everything fancy or complicated. This is exactly what you need from your point guard. And also, the defensive reads and rotations as well. So, you can rely on him, and that’s also a big relief for the bigs. We’ve only had maybe three or four practices together so far, but, I’m very happy he’s on our team.
At this point in your career, what matters most to you? Is it what you’ll leave behind, what you can still achieve, or simply how you feel when you walk onto the court?
Listen, I wouldn’t say I have to choose one out of the three. Those three are all in my mind. When you walk onto the court, your focus is on the last one, like you said — how you feel in that moment. The big picture is what you’re going to leave behind, and the short-term goal is what you’re going to achieve. So, I would say all three are very important to me.
What is the one thing about the new season that you’re genuinely looking forward to the most?
I’ll tell you two things. One thing is that during the summer, there was a moment when I was like, “Damn, I miss playing! I miss basketball.” And then finally the national team window came, I got to play some games, and I was very happy. So, what I’m looking forward to is just starting to play. That’s really something that, you know, during the season you feel tired and overwhelmed with so many games. But then when you rest for a week or two, you start missing it. So, I miss it too. I’m looking forward to getting started. And also, this first-ever Super Cup for the EuroLeague, in Abu Dhabi. I’m kind of excited about that as well!
I think you answered me indirectly, so I have to ask you directly: Is Dubai Basketball perhaps your best opportunity yet to finally win the EuroLeague?
I mean, this one and moving forward, yes, because I don’t think I’m going to change many more times after this. But throughout my career, I’ve been to two Final Fours. Those two Final Fours — one with Baskonia and one with CSKA — were also the closest I could get to winning it. But yeah, at this point, it could be. Who knows? I just hope so. I don’t know. Only time will tell…
