Bartzokas: "We must not get carried away by Paris' Tempo" (vid)
Olympiacos is hosting Paris for the 12th round of the EuroLeague and Giorgos Bartzokas and Evan Fournier talked about the game during the scheduled Media Day.
Olympiacos' coach talked about the game responding to a question about what it is our team must do to beat Paris and stressed the following: "We must not get carried away by the tempo, because the faster they attack, the more opportunities you also get to score. We are talking about the team with the best offense and the best pace in the EuroLeague. Hifi is the top scorer of the Leauge and plays 21 minutes, during which he takes 19 shots. That's kind of indicative of how they play. They are the top team to get score from pick'n'roll handlers. We must execute with patience in offense, not force efforts and have a good read of what they allow us and what they don't. We obviously have to go for the rebounds. They play with press all over the court and we must not allow them to have many balls. We committed quite a few turnovers in our latest games and we must protect the ball if want to have good execution".
Then, Giorgos Bartzokas responded regarding the absentees of tomorrow's game: "Ward is going to try and practice today, it's not certain. It's doubtful if he can make it. His problem is with his calf and we don't want to take risks, but we'll see. McKissic is out because he has a groin problem since the game against Milan. He hasn't practiced all week and will be out. Ntilikina is in".
Then the coach replied to another question regarding tomorrow's game: "You have to do all the fundamentals well. Execute well in offense, not go to hasty attacks because it will be in their favor. They'll get the ball and run the transition. We will have a situation that is not recognizable to the opponent and sometimes, this messes things up. But, if you are patient and focused on what you do, you will make problems for them. I repeat, they play a unique style of basketball, with great speed, but they are also vulnerable regarding other things. It's an interesting approach to basketball, which is what they had last season as well, but they have evolved it this year. They are a good team, despite having lost key players and it's something you need to respect".
The coach was then asked to comment on the criticism Sasha Vezenkov is receiving this season, despite his good numbers: "The question is, who is criticizing him. My associates told me that there have been at least 5 or 6 web shows talking about what we should have done in the last play in Milan. Whether the shot should have one for Sasha or Peters or Dorsey. We live in a democracy, that's how things are done. Everyone gets to say their opinion and we respect that. Having said that, if those talking on these shows think they know the team better than I do, the circumstances, the players' psychology, well, I respect that too. What I would like though, is for those who talk with such certainty about these things to tell us where they have worked in my capacity or where they have studied it. Because if they haven't done either of these things, they are in danger of misstepping".
Giorgos Bartzokas also talked about signing a new guard, the traits he's looking for and if Evans' injury makes the signing more imminent: "We don't have the luxury to say that I'm looking for a player with 50% in threes, 10 assists and great defensive skills. There are no such players right now. If they were out there, we would have done it and the Presidents would have signed them. What you all need to understand right now, because you are reporters and you obviously know who are the free agents right now, even straight from the US, because information is free flowing for everyone, is that we are looking for a good player who can play at this level. It would be great if they had some different qualities to the other point-guards we have.
But he needs to be able to play at this level, to come into a EuroLeague game and understand how it is played. Because if he can't, then it's going to take him a long time to adjust, if they adjust at all. Being of a certain level, doesn't necessarily mean having played the EuroLeague before. It means though that they should be mentally strong. I'm just laying out what we are looking for. If we had found him, I would have him by now. That would save me from all these questions and you from having to look for information and write all those articles and the fans from trying to find out. I would really love to have signed a player, but I don't want to add a player of lower quality to the team. I have proposed 5 or 6 players since the beginning of last summer but for various reasons we weren't able to sign them. More or less you know who I'm talking about. The signing fell through not because the Presidents said no or because they didn't want to pay the money, there were other reasons that did not allow for them to conclude. So, we are not going to make a huge mistake and get a player we are not certain he has the level we are looking for, only to satisfy public opinion. We will do it when we find a player that is right for us.
Evans' injury makes the signing more urgent, but how? Going for a fast signing because of the sear number of games and the need for a player, but on the other hand... there isn't a suitable one, so what am I supposed to do? We have to find someone, have someone get out of a contract, have a process in the US, if he is to come from the US. We have all kinds of players offered to us, but those offered cannot leave their team, because agents play a different game right now, let me tell you what it is: Olympiacos, like other teams is shopping for players. They offer you a player, you start negotiating, but their team is not releasing them. So, what's the end game? They tell the player, who is their clinet 'look, I'm working for you, Olympiacos is interested in you, they made an offer' and so on.... But his team is not willing to release them, they haven't secured that. Do you understand what I'm talking about? And then, you enter a vicious cycle. So, we have our eyes open, we do the work, but we have to choose well".
On his part, Evan Fournier said about the game against Paris: "They are very challenging as a team. They have speed and rhythm. It's a matter of will. We must control the tempo, move the ball, play our style of basketball, shoot and play hard".
Then, the French player replied to a question regarding the injuries that have befallen Olympiacos: "Each team goes through hard times. It's part of the job and we are ready. That's the life of a basketball player. We are blessed that we get to play basketball. We have a big game at home, we have to be ready for the challenge in a packed gym".
WATCH THE FULL STATEMENTS IN THE VIDEO BELOW...