Our team
The people behind JustBelieve.
Our founding team didn't study the NCAA — they lived it. Between them, they've played at the highest levels of US college and Turkish professional basketball. When they read your file, they read it as people who have made the journey themselves.
Portrait — coming soon
Co-founder
Can Sonat
The first Turkish basketball player to play in the NCAA (University of North Dakota, 1978).
Career
- 01University of North Dakota
NCAA — the first Turkish basketball player to play in the NCAA (1978).
- 02Efes Pilsen
Back-to-back Turkish league championships.
- 03Fenerbahçe
Starter on the club's first-ever league title team (1990–91).
Why Just Believe
“I left Turkey as a young player with a suitcase and a scholarship, not knowing what to expect on the other side. What I found in the American college system changed my life. Decades later, I want the next generation of international athletes to walk into that same opportunity with clearer eyes and better company than I had. That is why JustBelieve exists.”
— Can Sonat
Third-party verification
Portrait — coming soon
Co-founder
Burak Eşlik
Spent his college career on a basketball scholarship at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (NCAA Division I), where he was his team's leading scorer.
Career
- 01SIU Edwardsville
NCAA Division I — basketball scholarship; his team's leading scorer.
- 02Turkish pro leagues
Continued his playing career professionally in Turkey.
Why Just Believe
“I lived the recruiting process from the inside — the film, the emails, the offers, the paperwork, the flight, and everything that comes after you land. When I read an athlete's file today, I read it as someone who has been on the other side of that inbox. JustBelieve is the practice I wish had existed for me.”
— Burak Eşlik
Third-party verification
Talk to the team.
Send us your file. One of the founders will read it personally.
Start free assessment