Vezenkov: “Prepared and ready for the challenge”
Olympiacos hosts Monaco for Game 1 of the EuroLeague Playoffs (April 28, 20:00 CET), and EuroLeague MVP Sasha Vezenkov along with head coach Giorgos Bartzokas spoke at the customary Media Day at SEF about the matchup.
The Olympiacos coach said in his opening statement: “Someone had to be our opponent, and whoever it was would be a very strong team like Monaco. I don’t think first place or eighth place matters that much right now. At this stage, all four matchups will be real battles, and everyone will try to show what they are capable of in order to reach the Final Four. There’s a narrative going around that Monaco has a limited roster. They have ten players, Nedovic will play; I don’t know about Mirotic, but they are very good. They are almost the same team that reached last year’s EuroLeague final. When I say the same, they are without Loyd and Jaiteh and have added Hayes. I believe they are a very capable team, with personality, and they play tough defense. Of course, they have weaknesses, and no one should think that Olympiacos will win the series easily. It will require great effort and unity.”
On whether Monaco is a bad matchup for Olympiacos, Bartzokas replied: “No, I don’t believe that. Everyone can have their own opinion. I keep saying that the team that finishes first has something better than the others. There could be up to 5 games, or at least 3, and all of them will be difficult; for us and for them. Maybe even more for them. We need to believe in our team. We’ve shown consistency all year, and right now we’re happy because we have our full roster available. In a playoff series, we will need many players, and that’s all.”
Regarding the idea that Olympiacos will have an easy series, the coach added: “That’s completely wrong. We’ve watched video, we’ve played them many times, and no one in the team believes that. We need to bleed on the court, play very hard, and not underestimate anyone. This team has players with very unique characteristics. They are the best iso team in the EuroLeague. They are very strong in one-on-one situations, so we must defend well individually and also be effective in our rotations. We must be ready for what we’ll face.”
On MVP Vezenkov and his development, Bartzokas said: “Warm congratulations. You can see how consistently he performs all season, that’s what matters, being there every game and helping the team win. This helps us a lot, and we also help him by utilizing his talent; how we use him, how we 'feed' him, and how we make him even more impactful than he might be on another team.
When he joined Olympiacos, I thought he would be an ideal ‘4’ for the way he plays, so we could build this kind of basketball philosophy. But that also requires unselfish players in other positions like Milutinov, Fall, Walkup, and Papanikolaou. Sasha’s constant movement off the ball, in transition and cuts, requires movement from everyone else as well.”
From his side, Sasha Vezenkov first spoke about receiving the MVP award earlier on Sunday: “There’s definitely a sense of pride. Even if you try not to think about it, when the moment comes and you experience it, it’s something very special. You have to enjoy the good things in life. But after that, you forget it, because the big goal is ahead of us. Starting tomorrow, we enter a series that will be demanding and requires 100% intensity both mentally and physically.”
On how easy it is to move on and focus on what’s next, Vezenkov said: “All is left behind; you can’t live in the past. It happened, I was very happy, and I felt great. I want to thank the entire organization and everyone behind the scenes, because without them this award wouldn’t be possible. But that’s the EuroLeague; you have to focus on the next day.”
On the series against Monaco, the MVP added: “They’re a good team. There are 8–9 players with defined roles, chemistry, and they know they’ll get their minutes. They have talent, toughness, and they play without pressure. If you had asked me two months ago, we didn’t know what their future would look like, but they made it; they deserve to be here. They have big personalities, and anyone who thinks it will be easy is mistaken. We have to give everything we've got; we are prepared and ready for this challenge. Anyone who thinks it’s easy is wrong.”
You can watch the full statements in the VIDEO below.