Jones: «We must protect our home court» (Vid)
After the defeat in Dubai, Olympiacos returns to the SEF to face Virtus Bologna for the EuroLeague's 27th round, and Giorgos Bartzokas with Tyrique Jones spoke during Media Day ahead of the matchup.
Before addressing the game, the team’s head coach spoke about the passing of Thanassis Skourtopoulos, news he had received just a few minutes earlier: “He was a friend, my age. My condolences to his family. We just learned that he passed away. We are deeply saddened. Truly, an event like this brings us all back down to earth about what is important and what is insignificant. My heartfelt condolences to his family.”
Giorgos Bartzokas then commented on the game against Virtus and the fact that the Italian team is coming off a loss to ASVEL: “Virtus is a very good team, everyone knows that. We played very well to win there and still they made a very strong comeback to fight for the game, which was decided on the final possession. They are a team that has a player, Edwards, who has the green light from the coaches, based on his talent, to score in any way. A team that plays with many forwards, who are very helpful in terms of size, athleticism, and offensive rebounding, which is one of their strengths. They have clearly defined roles and play very tough defense, and we must respect them more than what their results suggest. It’s a difficult game. We are coming off a loss; we didn’t play well. We didn’t perform well and they played better than us, which is why they won. Regarding injuries, Papapetrou, Morris, and Ntilikina will not play. Basically, the same players who were out the other day will also be out tomorrow.”
Asked about his feelings regarding what happened after the game in Dubai, Giorgos Bartzokas said: “Combined to with what we said at the beginning about the loss of Thanassis Skourtopoulos, I would like to say that there are things that are important and others that are not so important. In my mind, what happened was very important, but suddenly, with what I learned, it automatically became less so. What happened after the game is an incident that does not honor me, and of course, aesthetically, for someone watching it, it’s not nice. However, what happens in arenas is not something I am responsible for analyzing or fixing. I always prepare myself when I go to arenas where I am insulted and I never react; when a mass of people, a crowd, insults you, it’s part of our job. But for Olympiacos to go to Dubai and for some guys to be there insulting me on a personal level for two hours, and then at the end of the game in that manner… Unfortunately, I often lose my composure and I don’t know how to handle it, and I respond directly. I would like to tell you that the main person behind this whole incident found my phone number and called me this morning to apologize for the behavior of both himself and the others. He told me they went too far and that it was something they didn’t intend to do. I told him that of course I accept the apology; everything is part of life. But as you know, each of us has an identity. This is my identity, with the good and the bad. I repeat that, aesthetically, for someone watching this, it is offensive, it’s not something I’m happy about and I will try not to do it again. But to all the moralists and to everyone rushing to find other implications, I would like to ask, even you, without being provocative, how would you feel if someone came to your workplace and insulted you for two hours? And it’s not a mass of fans; it’s someone standing 5 meters away from me for a long time. Others react differently, they leave, I acknowledge them, I respect them, and I would prefer to be like that too, but since I’m not, that's what happened.”
The coach then responded to a question regarding the statement released by Panathinaikos about the incident: “Panathinaikos released a statement about a coach of another team? We have never released a statement about members of Panathinaikos. I have nothing to comment about Panathinaikos. Obviously, Panathinaikos would exploit the whole incident, having their own issues; they want to divert attention from them and turn to something that unites them all; insulting Bartzokas. I have no problem handling that; that’s not my problem. My problem is if some people’s sense of aesthetics was offended by what they saw, and they are right about that, and that’s what I want to emphasize. I don't want to say anything about Panathinaikos. What is happening with Panathinaikos or with the media they control for the past 6 years is what it is; it’s not something new; it has a long history and there is a reason it happens. I am happy that I have an identity and that I am who I am. At least I have consistency. Those, by those I mean the media, who change their opinion and flip-flop every day based on what others tell them, are the ones who should worry. I have nothing to worry about.”
On his part, Tyrique Jones commented on the game against Virtus: “We’re playing against a quality team that plays really fast. Especially in recent games, they’ve been playing well despite yesterday’s loss. We need to protect our home court and get the win.”
Regarding the loss to Dubai and how quickly the team can move past it, Jones said: “That’s basketball. You win and you lose, but we’re professional athletes. We just have to move on. To the next game, to the next stage.”
On his adjustment to Olympiacos, the American center stated: “I think it’s something that’s been happening my whole life; being ready to adapt wherever I am. That’s what I did here as well; I tried to adapt to this system.”