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Bartzokas: “We play with a gun on our heads”

Olympiacos is hosting Laboral Kutxa on Friday (21/3, 20:30 CET) and Giorgos Bartzokas made it clear that the game against the Basques is a qualification “final” to the play-offs.

Olympiacos is hosting Laboral Kutxa on Friday (21/3, 20:30 CET) and Giorgos Bartzokas made it clear that the game against the Basques is a qualification “final” to the play-offs.

“The way things have evolved we have lost four consecutive games and are now playing with a gun on our heads. We need to win, but it’s anything but an easy task. I don’t think Laboral Kutxa is going to be indifferent and without motivation to play. Everybody’s got motivation to play in the Euroleague. And let us not forget that Laboral beat Panathinaikos two weeks ago in OAKA. We had won easily in Vitoria in the first round, difference was up to 30 points at some point. Pleis has evolved to a first class center in Europe right now. They are a team with 12 good players but with many ups and downs. They have won big even on the road. Vassilis (Spanoulis) is returning to our roster which is a very important addition for us. We lost previous games due to minor details. This is history and no longer counts, what counts is tomorrow’s game. And all that are playing tomorrow have to be prepared for anything” the Greek coach said at first.

Next, questioned about the injury of Giorgos Printezis, the 48 year old coach said that “Printezis has been suffering from a back spasm and all tests showed that there was no hernia or any vertebrae problem. I’ll try to be as clear as possible although I’m not a doctor, I don’t want to enter the field of scientists, and I’m not one in this case anyway. Yesterday there was an indication that there could be a small fracture in a rib cartilage, I repeat an indication and today a new test eliminated that possibility. This is the medical diagnosis following a number of tests, I repeat it’s a very special case, the MRI’s the CTI’s and the scintigraphy taken showed actually nothing, but Giorgos continued hurting. Finally, a clinical exam taken today showed it’s a first degree tear in a lower back muscle, an effort will be made so as he maybe makes the game tomorrow, which is extremely doubtful but from that point on it seems that it’s not something serious enough like a fracture or a hernia that could cause him problems and keep him out of courts for long. It was a very sneaky injury and all tests could not define what the problem was. I hope he doesn’t miss the game tomorrow; we missed him a lot in previous games. What we had wanted was for all team to be healthy and we were missing two very important players. We are optimistic since Vassilis is back and now we are waiting for Giorgos”.

Questioned on whether Olympiacos can also make upsets this year just like the previous years when being with the back against the wall, Giorgos Bartzokas was clear: “The two previous seasons’ team was totally different from this one since 6 or 7 players have changed. Olympiacos is right to build the team around Vassilis Spanoulis. Olympiacos has been acquiring players that can fit the playing pattern around Vassilis. That means we are signing players that are not the same as Vassilis, but can play with him. Vassilis has rarely missed a game in the last 5-6 years, but we miss him right now. So we have asked players that don’t do what he does to do what he does. Vassilis had returned injured from the Eurobasket and is now suffering from a new injury due to fatigue, too many games and practice. Vassilis has suffered a lot of wear in the summer, but now he’s with us and as I said before we still have chances to qualify to the play-offs which is our goal at the moment”.  

On the many injuries and the general bad luck of the team, Giorgos Bartzokas answered that “I get carried away as well at times and talk about bad luck, for example the basket by Lawale. It happens with a lot of teams, it’s part of sports. Happening to us is probably because we are European Champions and we have to make a double and even triple effort than anyone else. We are compelled to win every game, we approach each game under huge stress. Simmons’ game has to do with Spanoulis’ game, it’s depended on it. Olympiacos was built around Spanoulis with me as a coach, just like with Mr. Ivkovic the years before. That’s how it was built, with players that have chemistry together. We are a team that can play well together, but this chemistry was undone by injuries. I hope the team can play the way it can and reaches its goals with the returning of the injured players”.

Giorgos Bartzokas was asked why opposing guards play excellent games against Olympiacos and replied “If you want me to tell you the truth, I’ll be clear about it, we miss Law. No evasions. Let’s not go around this matter any longer. Mantzaris has to guard and set the plays. But from the moment we did not replace the player that could guard the best opposing perimeter player we all try to cover this very specific weakness with team work”.

About the pressure on the foreigners of the team, Giorgos Bartzokas said that “first of all, we have to admit, both you reporting on the team and I being here as the coach and am fully aware of what this Club is, that it’s a very tough Club to be with. I had told you before that many great players had failed here, it’s a great burden and it had been greater in the past years. Now the fans are far more positive in regard to the past, recognizes that we got two European titles in a row, this is a successful team in the conscience of everyone around. In the previous years, after Mr. Ioannidis had left Olympiacos, Olympiacos was not in the front stage, now Olympiacos is back in the most emphatic way, with two European Championships and one Greek League title.

For a player that cannot win the Olympiacos fans, the atmosphere is tough. Just like with Perkins last season and now with Collins. This disapproval, which was not coordinated, but rather spontaneous, puts pressure on the other foreign players of the team as well, not just on the one being disapproved of. Just like encouragement does not only have an impact on one but rather on the whole team, so does disapproving”.

On the possibility of Olympiacos signing a new player, Giorgos Bartzokas has made clear that “our goal is to remain the same team. We are all more cautious with our moves since injuries are a first this year. For example, Spanoulis injury has kept him off courts for 25 days and he missed three Euroleague games. So, we try to control this as much as possible”.