Sfairopoulos: «It’s a matter of how prepared we are»
How prepared Olympiacos is will be the key factory for tomorrow’s (09/03, 20.00 CET) game against Bamberg, according to Giannis Sfairopoulos.
“Tomorrow’s game hides a lot of traps. Bamberg is a very good team, that although it has been playing very well, has not reaped the results they deserved. I think that having won the first two road games of the season and then losing a straight nine games, in conjunction to the change of the coach, makes this game a very dangerous one. This is because their players are motivated enough to return to winning on the road and show a different face. We have advised our players to be really careful tomorrow and they all need to be doing what is asked of them, to perform at the required level. It is imperative that we do the things that we have worked on to get a positive result. Bamberg is a talented team. They play well together on both ends of the court. We need to be very focused, stick to our plan and do the things we have prepared to do. All the players need to be ready to fight”.
Asked on what is the reason Olympiacos has only won two games in a total of seven against the German team in recent years, he replied: “There is no one specific thing that we cannot deal with game wise. Looking at the history of these games and talk about them has not point. The important thing is that we need to remain focused and play our game. We play at home, we also have strong motive to win and we need to be ready. I think that the level of preparedness of our team is going to be of high importance in this game”.
On whether the change in the way Bobby Brown is playing compared to the time he was with Siena has to do with his plan for the player, or that simply the American guard is still adjusting, he commented: “He’s a quality player, experienced that was acquired to give us something extra. He’s a scorer, however, he’s also smart. He knows what it is he can do and when he needs to be doing it. He scored against Panathinaikos when needed, but he also organized and ran the team as he should have. The more the time passes, he will be doing better at both tasks. He will be scoring and organizing and he will be playing defense of course. It is certain he needs a little more time compared to Tillie. Tillie has been a part of the team’s pre-season camp, he knows the plays and he just need to remember a few things. Brown needs to learn. The more time passes by, he will be getting better”.
Asked on whether he’s been expecting any surprises from Bamberg, given that Luca Banchi is now in its bench, he said: “I don’t think there is anything that can surprise us. We know Banchi, how he operates, what he likes to play… It is certain that he’s going to be put his own seal on the team. He may be adding some plays, maybe some tricks in the defense. However, no matter what you change, you cannot bring drastic changes in just three days. Whatever happens in the game, we need to ‘read’ it and cope with it. No matter what happens, we can react. The thing is to be mentally and physically ready to play a tough game”.