Submitted by sagyeman on April 6, 2008 - 2:15pm.

I got the chance to interview mi familia Alhaji Mohammed, former Louisville standout and current overseas boss. He gives out some great advice to all those looking to get their overseas bread up. Check it out:

Tell the people a little bit about yourself. Where are you from, where’d you play ball at for, where are you playing now?

My name is Alhaji Mohammed. I’m from Chicago; we’re from the same neighborhood (The Dub, Lost World, the 4-8). Growing up there were either two things I could do, play ball or hit the streets. Being African, my mother wasn’t going to have me in the streets, so I played ball. I played college ball at the ‘Ville (Louisville University). After that I went to Germany, and now I’m in Holland. I play first division. Everything has been good so far man. I won MVP honors at the All-Star Game out here; I’m the leading scorer (20.3 ppg) in the league this year and was the leading scorer in the league last year (23.3 ppg). We have two more games left, and if we keep up, then we have the playoffs.

What are some challenges you face being overseas besides being away from family?

It’s a different world. You have to adjust your life and let a lot of stuff go. I learned out here you can’t have your guard up all the time because you’ll be uptight. Also, if you’re single out here you have to learn to be a man fast. You have to cook for yourself, clean for yourself and so on. You have to get your groceries early in the week too, because on Saturdays and Sundays the grocery stores are closed.

Another challenge is my last name. Seeing as how it is Mohammed, people that don’t meet me or know me look at me funny and think I might be one way or another. Most people know I’m a real dude so it doesn’t really matter. But honestly, I know I’m out here for one thing and that’s to play ball.

What/ who inspired you to ball? What is a normal day like for you out there?

Watching the older dudes in our neighborhood play. We had All-Americans in our neighborhood and they taught me how to play on crates on the swings in the park. I found out my older brother was good (Nazr Mohammed, Charlotte Bobcats) so that pushed me along too. At first, I wasn’t good at ball at all though, but I worked hard stayed in the gym, practiced, and got my game right. Hard work pays off man.

My daily routine out here is I wake up, try and catch some basketball highlights on TV. After that, I go to the gym and shoot around. We have two practices a day, so after that, I come home. I might chill with my boys sometimes. I’m not into video games, but I play MONOPOLY. That game is real life. It teaches you a lot about life, and strategy, like how to sell property and do business.

What’s the social scene like out there? I know there has to be some bottle popping’, jersey chasing, or something!

In Europe they see black people, but they really don’t see black people. They can tell out here by your swag if you’re real. I try to keep a low profile, man. I don’t drink and I don’t smoke, but I might buy drinks or bottles for the homies. All I drink is Orange Juice and water.
Women out here are all over you if you doing your thing. They go hard.
Also, sometimes people out here front, and try and do what they normally don’t do back home in the United States and act out because they can’t do it at home. Some people out here believe it too, because they don’t know any better. I try and keep it 100% all the time.

Tell me about your future aspirations. Obviously there is the drive to make it to the NBA, but what else do you see yourself doing?

I’m going to keep grinding until they let me in the League. People think because of my brother (Nazr) they’re going to just let me in the league. It doesn’t exactly work like that.

Also, if you come to Europe all your money is untaxed, so $500,000 is just that, so it’s easier to stack up. Eventually though, I want to own buildings back in the USA and do some other real estate ventures. I know I want to be around basketball for the rest of my life, so I’d love to work with a college or in the NBA somehow.

What kind of hustles, businesses, or activities do people have out there? Are there places to grab fresh gear, or do you mainly shop online?

The system here is different. There are a lot of phone shops out here that sell used phones. But to get fresh, I go to Amsterdam or Paris. The stuff out here (Holland) is very limited, and people dress differently too. I usually get my gear at home or order stuff online and get it shipped here.

With the Euro being as strong as it is, do you think its better to get money out there or to come back to the States and try your luck out here?

It’s best to get money in Europe. The Euro right now is $1.57 to the $1 so you get extra money. Europeans love coming to America and getting over on Americans because everything is cheaper in the USA.

What’s in your iPod rotation?
Lil’ Wayne and Jay-Z. With the ladies, you can never go wrong with R.Kelly. And I’m from the Chi, so you know I got to have that in the rotation.

Is there anything you want people to know that you have coming?
I got some businesses and stuff I’ve been looking into, but right now its just ball.

Any last words?
Money can’t be made watching TV, for real. Money is my motivator and God is the motivation.