Published: August 27, 2008 11:22 pm            

Former UPJ standout Gilliam dunking in Denmark

Chris Gilliam intently studied his first professional basketball contract before departing for Aarhus, Denmark, last month.

The Pitt-Johnstown graduate and NCAA Division II All-American noticed a line that guaranteed him transportation upon his joining the Aabyhoj IF team in Denmark’s elite league.

“My contract said I would have transportation provided. In my head I was thinking it was a car,” Gilliam said during a Wednesday telephone interview. “When I got here they handed me the keys to the lock of a mountain bike. I thought, ‘What is this?’

“Transportation is a lot different,” added Gilliam, a part of UPJ teams that went a combined 77-36 over the past four seasons. “Everybody rides mountain bikes. You have to allow a little more time to get to where you want to go.”

Gilliam has adapted to a six-hour time difference that sometimes makes communicating with family and friends a challenge. He’s encountered language barriers. He’s tasted the local cuisine.

There have been plenty of changes for the recent UPJ graduate with a degree in professional writing.

Basketball is the one constant. Gilliam, a 6-foot-7, 230-pounder, anxiously awaits the Oct. 2 league opener after practicing for more than a month with his new team.

“Another guy from the WVIAC plays here with me, Joe Benjamin of West Virginia State,” said Gilliam, this past season’s WVIAC and Daktronics East Region player of the year in Division II. “Joe contacted my agent and coach Rukavina and asked some questions about me. They needed another big man to complement Joe.”

Aabyhof IF competes in a 10-team league. Gilliam and Benjamin are two U.S. imports.

“The style of play is a lot more physical. There is a lot more fouling involved,” Gilliam said. “From what I’ve been told, a lot of stuff is allowed. They let you play a lot out here. That’s good in one way and bad in another. You get used to it.

“They expect a lot out of the Americans. When I first came over here I tried to be a team player like I was in college. I was informed that I don’t need to be the team player I was in college. They told me I had to be the go-to guy, the guy who could score at all costs. That’s what they pay you to do, score.”

At UPJ Gilliam netted 1,762 points (second all-time) and grabbed 699 rebounds (third). Last season he averaged 19.6 points and 8.6 rebounds a game as 23-8 UPJ advanced to the East Region semifinals. His 64.1 field goal percentage topped the WVIAC.

Gilliam was named an All-American by Daktronics (second-team), NABC-State Farm (first team) and Division II Bulletin (second team).

“UPJ prepared me for this,” said Gilliam. “Being from Baltimore, (attending) UPJ allowed me to get away from the home. This is a huge change, but it’s kind of similar. I can’t rely on my mom or my friends back home. It’s all up to me. Playing basketball at a high level, especially playing in the WVIAC, really helped. You get people noticing what you could do.”

Like any talented college player, Gilliam would have preferred a career in the NBA. But he embraces the challenge that awaits him overseas.

“I thought anything else would have been a failure other than playing professionally,” Gilliam said. “I worked so hard my entire four years at UPJ. I wouldn’t have accepted anything else. Everybody’s dream is to play in the NBA but you’ve got to be realistic sometimes. This is a very good thing for me. You get to have fun. You get to travel the world. I’ll be in countries that most people never will be in during their lives.”

        

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