Sfairopoulos: «Team spirit is Valencia’s characteristic»
Olympiacos left today at noon (28/11) originally to Madrid, where the team will be staying the night and with the final destination being Valencia, where on Thursday (30/11, 20.30 CET), will be playing against the local team, for the 10th day of the Euroleague.
«Having a difficult trip ahead of us, with two uncomfortable flights, we chose not to travel the whole distance on the eve of the game, but started out one day before so can be less tired in view of the game” the ‘reds’ coach Giannis Sfairopoulos explained, and continued highlighting the profile of the Spanish team… “They play together and always look for the best choice when attacking. They have Green as the go to player, who in turn tries to score and some times create. However, they are multifaceted and have many players that can hurt you. They really play together. They don’t rely as much to one player’s high time, they rely on team spirit. Their main characteristic is running the open court with the transition and also their spot up three. They have good operation, they create and they can shoot from all positions. So this is tougher to deal with”.
On whether he knows how to stop Eric Green, given the fact that they worked together last season, he answered : “Green is a very good player, a scorer before anything else. We know him very well from last season and he knows us. How we are going to guard him is a team thing. We need to remain focused. However, it’s not only Green. There are many capable scorers with Valencia and their team can lean on many to score , not just Green. They have players that can execute from the post and from the perimeter and they are a team that plays exactly like a team should be playing».
As for the return of the captain, he pointed out: “Vasilis is ready. He has practiced as much as he should have lately. Both on the level of physical conditioning as well as that of readiness, he’s in a satisfactory one, following two months he’d been away from courts. He’s ready to get in and play a good game».
«Vasilis is our leader»
The consecutive losses for Valencia are not a problem to Brian Roberts… “It’s not a problem. We need to get on the floor knowing that they are hungry to win. They play at home, they play well, they play fast… So we need to be ready and not forget that they are hungry for the victory».
On his predecessor Eric Green: “Of course this is a game with extra motivation for Green. He will be ready to play. He’s a key player to his team, so we need to stop him. We are excited for the challenge and it’s going to take team work to stop him».
Finally, the American guard talked about the return of V-Span: «We have a more complete team with Vasilis. We miss Mantzaris, but Vasilis is the team leader. I know he’s ready and happy to be back. We all look forward to seeing him on the floor and play along his side».