West Virginia Center Deniz Kilicli is a Bearded Turkish Guitar Hero Who Learned English From Family Ties Re-runs

“He’s the best guitar player I’ve ever seen personally, and I’ve seen some good guitar players,” Martin said. “And he taught himself how to play. In fact, he learned the English language from watching TV, watching ‘Family Ties.’”

Kilicli had a scare last year when he was in his house as it was burning down.

“I had just come back from class and was in the bathroom when all this was happening. I smelled smoke, but I figured it was something little.”

He had to flee when he learned it was a large fire, escaping with all that was important to him.

“No one got hurt, and my guitars are safe,” Kilicli said. “That’s all I really care about.”

I don’t know if we should blame the cut-offs on his Turkish heritage or the house fire. Kilicli averaged just over 10 points and five rebounds last season for the Mountaineers in 26 minutes per game.