Bozikas: “The difficulties in the season “built” our character – No team wants us as an opponent in the playoffs”

For yesterday’s difficult home win Olympiakou on Villerban, spoke, among others, George Bozikason EOK WebRadio’s “Live Replay” show.

The assistant coach of the “red and whites” spoke about the situation in which the team is facing final stretch in the Euroleagueas well as the goals that the Piraeus team has in view of the playoffs, stressing that regardless of which position they will occupy in the 8th, Giorgos Bartzokas’ team will be a really difficult obstacle for each opponent.

The statements of Giorgos Bozikas in detail:



On the difficulty of yesterday’s (21/03) victory over Villerban: “We didn’t expect an easy match at all. Villeurbanne is a very competitive team and their last games are not just by chance. It has beaten Efes and Armani Milano, while against Fenerbahce, Maccabi and even Panathinaikos, away from home it was competitive until the end. He has a lot of athleticism, he has experience, he plays a free and fast basketball, he has nothing to lose and he really gives you a hard time during the game.”

For the situation the team is in: “We’ve been playing with our backs against the wall for a long time now, as in round 1 we lost a lot of ground due to injuries and the recruiting we did during the season. We had to make up lost ground, we had very big wins in difficult places, like Valencia, Zaglargiri and Bayern. We also protected our home ground in the 2nd round and right now we are where we want to be during the season.”

For the remaining games in the Euroleague: “We enter the final stretch ready. We are in good shape, we are confident. Certainly the difficulties “built” our character, to try to overcome them. Right now we are concerned that the two point guards have suffered minor injuries and are out of rhythm, so we have lost a bit of our rhythm mainly offensively. We have time to get back healthy, find our rhythm again and play at the level we can. The team has a lot of potential, our roster has a lot of options, we can change a lot of formations, so we can adapt to any kind of match.”

On whether they consider home advantage: “What interests us is to be in the top six of the play-offs. Advantage scenarios are not something we have in mind, we want the team to be healthy and in good shape. There is no team that we cannot face, on the contrary, I believe that no one would want to face us in the play-offs”.

On whether they think a team suits them better for the play-offs: “In no way do we think that there is an easier or more difficult team. No team wants to face us. We will be a very tough and difficult opponent in a series of play-offs. Last year and the year before as 1st and 2nd to finish in regular time, we had the toughest opponents that could happen to us. It doesn’t matter who comes to us, whoever comes we will be ready to face them.”

On whether what they have achieved so far is a feat, always based on the difficulties they have faced: “In our eyes it is. If we look at what is happening around us, teams that have faced several injuries this year are out of the top ten, such as Armani and Efes, teams with a bigger budget than ours, which could not cover this lost ground. We fought every game, no matter who we played. We played a match without anyone tall, in OAKA against Panathinaikos we played with five Papanikolaou because Milutinov was injured during the match. At the beginning of the season we had both point guards injured, we played games without either guard. It was very difficult to function both in training and in games. Many times from the results, but also from your image, you also fall psychologically, but luckily for us the players stood together, they had self-confidence, they believed in the program and in our team and they knew that everyone just had to try harder when needed, so that when we are full we get what we can. There are many matches where we have shown our potential. Having already won 2 titles this year, I believe we have the confidence and are ready for the play-offs to face any team that comes, either with a disadvantage or an advantage”.



On the injury of Philip Petrusev: “The doctor from the first moment feared that his injury might be bad. His knee was swollen and from the clinical examination he was worried. Fortunately the tests did not show any major damage and he will only be out for 2 weeks.”

For Moses Wright’s appearances: “It had the elements we wanted and we liked them. Apart from the talent that each player has, there are many other elements that determine his quick adaptation to the team. The most important thing is spiritual. That is, the player who will join a team must understand what he needs to do on the court, how to move, how to become a member of the team, to “build” good relationships with his teammates, to listen to his coaches and to try as quickly as possible to join a team that in recent years has been playing at a very high level. This set him apart from the first moment, that he was able and quickly understood what he had to do to immediately enter the rotation of the team and find a rhythm. He was lucky because when he came he had a lot of space to be able to find rhythm and confidence, since we had absences in the tall ones. He has made a duo with Fal where they can complement each other and with him we completely change in the match, we become more mobile and faster. This change has helped us to present two faces in one game.”



On Nikola Milutinov’s condition: “He has started to do individual trainings, but only two. Right now he will spend a few days in individual to see how his leg reacts to the loads, then he will come in with the team and then he will play. It’s a process that we believe will take another 2-3 weeks.”

For the Euroleague: “We have to be patient in our game, because the level of the Euroleague is very high, especially this year with the change of format, where it has given interest to many teams until the last matchday. You don’t play any game indifferently. Only three teams are currently off target, Alba, Villeurbanne and Red Star. All the rest are interesting. All the “lights” are on this league, so all the players know they are being watched and it’s an opportunity for them to show their best.”