Spanoulis: “We have an identity as a team, we are winners – Doncic is a role model”

Vassilis Spanoulis spoke about the identity of the National Team after the victory over Egyptwith which he went 2/2 in the pre-Olympic group stage.

“We are not afraid to face defeat, we are a winning team and we will try to show that on Saturday as well“, he emphasized ahead of the semi-final with Slovenia, while glorifying Luka Doncic.

“I haven’t seen Doncic yet. There is great respect between us, first as people and then as athletes. I don’t need to say what a great player he is. He is a great kid and a great role model“, he commented, but also: “There are many other good players in Slovenia and we should pay attention to them as well».

He spoke in detail about:

– the data presented by the national team: “For another match we distributed the ball very well, had 34 assists and forced the opponents into many mistakes. This shows our identity and it is important to have an identity as a team. We also saw some things that didn’t work well, it’s good that we saw them now to fix them. The people are always on our side and we will all go together for the victory on Saturday».

– Doncic and his treatment: “I haven’t seen Doncic yet. There is great respect between us, first as people and then as athletes. I don’t need to say what a great player he is. He is a great kid and a nice role model. I am happy that we too have a superstar who is also a great person and leader. It is important to have such standards. We have a plan to deal with Doncic, but I won’t tell you now. There are many other good players in Slovenia and we should pay attention to them as well».

– the good players of the national team in defense: “It is important for us and one of our advantages that we have many good players in defense. But it is not only an individual issue, but also a group issue. We have to rotate and defend in the right way».

-the IQ of the group: “We have high IQ kids and a lot of good creators. Our game is based on this and good creation. We get our best shot, we have tall guys who can shoot, we have a lot of upside».

– the problem with Costa Antetokounmpo: “Kostas Antetokounmpo went for an MRI, we will know soon. We hope it’s not a negative thing and we hope to have him with us at the weekend. Health is above all».

-the level of preparedness: “We look to play as well as we can. We have not yet reached the level we are capable of, we have a lot of room for improvement. The players know it, I know it too. The most important thing is to win. When I took over the team, the most important thing I wanted was to put an identity, mentality and character. I believe these are in and when you have these elements, sooner or later the results will come. We are not afraid to face defeat, we are a winning team and we will try to show that on Saturday as well».