For everyone and everything, he spoke in an interview he gave to Cosmote TV George Bartzokas!
The coach of Olympiakos revealed the moment from the last years that brought him the greatest disappointment, referred to the goals set for the “red and whites” for this season, answered how he manages the stars of his team and referred to the players who are playing the role of leader.
What the Olympiacos coach said in detail:
On the style of basketball he wants his teams to play: “It doesn’t matter at all. All coaches have a philosophy. Some attack differently, others defend differently. But at the end of the day, in professional sports, what really matters is winning.”.
For his basketball highlight: “Even if I felt it many times, life itself or basketball comes and lands you with a thump and you reconsider things. From time to time there were teams that I coached that made me happy as they executed on the field to a very satisfactory degree what I had in mind. And Olympiakos two or three times in history and Lokomotiv and Khimki and Maroussi earlier. Panionios, Olympia Larissa. That is, at times I was able to establish a style of play that in my eyes was attractive”.
On the moment that hurt the most in the three Final Four losses: “Theoretically Yul’s buzzer-beater, because he was in the final and because by general admission and coach Matteo, that we were better all year and that night we were very good”.
On his coaching philosophy: “This has to do with my perception of team sports. And in football I always liked teams that moved the ball with passes, like Michels’ Ajax back in the day with Cruyff. This was the first time in team sports that a team that defends and attacks all together, that passes the ball so much was presented.”.
About the changes he has made since 2006 when he became head coach until today: “Too many times I changed theories and opinions about basketball. I talk all the time with people who have expertise and because I listen enough, I don’t want to be the narrator, some people influenced me in my opinions, because I saw that they were right. Besides, I have no great idea of myself, nor do I believe that I am infallible.”.
If basketball were a word what would it be: “I won’t help you by telling you that I like something more than others (eg a shot, an extra pass, a contested ball etc). I would say basketball is basically an emotion.”.
On how emotional he is: “We are human and we have feelings. Sometimes we check them, sometimes not. Ultimately the bottom line is that we are all vulnerable to something. Obviously I have made some mistakes in how I behave, but I have some principles as a person and from my family. I accept some things and some others I don’t. But that’s nobody’s business. It’s more about how I manage all the pressure that you have anyway as the coach of Olympiakos, as a club that requires wins, titles and there are generally huge demands”.
On his Olympic feelings: “In any team I worked for, I tried to identify with the culture, with the fans and above all with the owners, because they put their money. There is another reason here. In football it is more visible. In basketball I try to be professional”.
Regarding the renewal of his cooperation with Olympiakos: “I know very well the difficulty of the undertaking. Especially after the successful year of Panathinaikos, who won the EuroLeague and the demands that exist at the moment, that we have to answer. No one ever starts to conquer the EuroLeague, if we exclude Panathinaikos last year, which Ataman said we would conquer it 8 months before. He must have divination skills after all. Nobody starts. I’ve never seen any team on the planet say anything like that. I won’t change either. I will say we will try to be as good as we can, based on the team we have. I know the difficulty of the project, because many times it is also what happens in the surrounding atmosphere”.
To manage superstars: “It depends how we say it. A superstar is someone who impresses you on the field. Someone who has made a lot of money in his career. All of these usually go together. Assuming that the two loudest signings we made this year were Vezhenkov and Fournier, if those are the superstars of Olympiakos, I assure you that the fans should be very quiet, because both of them have no such attitude towards their teammates. them or my partners. They love basketball and enjoy it”.
Source: Sport Fm
I am currently a news writer for News Bulletin247 where I mostly cover sports news. I have always been interested in writing and it is something I am very passionate about. In my spare time, I enjoy reading and spending time with my family and friends.
