Bartzokas: «There's room to play better»
Giorgos Bartzokas spoke at the press conference immediately after Olympiacos’ victory over Maroussi for the 15th day of the Stoiximan GBL.
In his opening remarks about the game, the Olympiacos head coach said: “First of all, I would like to wish Maroussi good luck in the new year. They look strengthened with the addition of De Souza, because that was what they were missing. As for us, we wanted to play team basketball. That was evident from the many assists we recorded, as well as our good shooting percentages. But that lasted for about 25 minutes. After that, most of the players switched off. Essentially, the game took on a procedural character. In my opinion, we should have kept at a high pace a bit more, since we haven’t been practicing much during this period. None of the players was overworked, so we should have played a little longer with greater intensity. But it is what it is. We won; we remain first. We have the double EuroLeague week coming up, with demanding games on Tuesday and Thursday.”
When asked whether Olympiacos are currently at their best level this season, the Olympiacos coach stated: “Generally, we are in a process of improvement. You can see it from the results, our offensive production, and our cooperation on both defence and offense. I think we have plenty of room to play better than we currently do. This game is not a benchmark. Neither was the one against Partizan, even though it eventually looked easier than it actually was. Consistency is what truly establishes teams. Playing well over a long period of time and being solid. Playing well systematically and winning. So, let’s see where we can go in the next series of games.”
Finally, Giorgos Bartzokas answered a question regarding whether Ntilikina has any injury issues, commenting: “Our doctor told us not to use Ntilikina. He wanted to play, but since he only returned last week from an injury and 10 minutes were enough, given that a double round is coming up. It’s not that he experienced any discomfort. Essentially, the doctor took him out (in the second half); I would have put him back in.”