Bartzokas: «We want to win with our fans» (vid)

In the Media Day press conference ahead of the Euroleague clash with Crvena Zvezda (March 20th, 19:00 CET) for the 30th round of the competition, Olympiacos head coach Giorgos Bartzokas emphasized that although the team has secured a place in the playoffs, the players don’t need extra motivation for the remaining regular-season games. He also gave updates on the fitness status of Nigel Williams-Goss and Tyler Dorsey.

When asked how the team would approach the game after securing a playoff spot with the win over Panathinaikos, Bartzokas said: "The high-level players we have don’t need extra motivation for such games. It’s a Euroleague game, in the final stretch of the regular season, which is important for us, just like for every other team. I don’t think motivation is an issue—we’ll play in front of a full stadium, in a great atmosphere, and we want to win with our fans, that’s it."

On whether Nigel Williams-Goss would play against Crvena Zvezda, Bartzokas said: "Right now, it seems like he won’t. He might be able to play, but we don’t want to risk it. Most likely, he will play on Sunday against Panionios. The most probable thing is that he won’t play. Also, Tyler Dorsey is doubtful because he twisted his ankle in the Maroussi game. It’s not serious, but it hurts him, so we’ll see tomorrow."

Asked if Olympiacos would shift its focus to the paint, given Zvezda’s lack of a center, Bartzokas responded: "No, we insist on our style of play, which doesn’t change based on the circumstances. We will find mismatches through the tempo we play at. We don’t force mismatches; we want to find them through our rhythm. It could be in offensive rebounds, for example. The opponent will definitely prepare a plan to counter this, trying to trap in the low post. We’ve seen how they play, because in the first round they played without Bolomboy and Petrusev, and we also played without Fall. They were very aggressive on defense and played hard. The key is to be ready for the defense they’ll implement and obviously try to hide their lack of big men. We need to be prepared to face a team that will play hard, even without the 'must' factor due to their absence in the frontcourt. They will fight like they do in every game, and they have a lot of talent and experience in their perimeter."

Regarding the status of Keenan Evans, Moses Wright, and Thomas Walkup, Bartzokas said: "It’s a daily process, and when there’s any update, I will let you know. Right now, there’s nothing new."

Vildoza: "We Need to Show a Different Face Compared to the First Round"

On the other hand, Luca Vildoza said: "It will be a tough game. They need the win. They are coming without a center, and that will make things difficult, but they will play for the victory. We lost in the first round, and we need to show a different face against them tomorrow. I’m expecting a tough game against one of the 8 best teams in the league."

Asked if there was still motivation after securing a playoff spot, with five games left in the regular season and a derby victory, Vildoza replied: "Even though we’ve secured our playoff spot, we want to stay in first place. We are here to win. We can’t relax now, the best part of the season is coming. We need to be excited and motivated. Soon, we’ll have new players in the rotation, and we’ll play together for the first time, and that excites us and gives us motivation."