Bartzokas: «We must get used to playing under pressure»
Olympiacos got a huge win Kaunas, however, the ‘reds’ coach kept the tone extremely down in view of the difficult games ahead.
“Like always, the game here in Kaunas is a really big event! The fans always support their team, which always play with motivation and desire. I had said before the game that Zalgiris has a great momentum and is playing really well, especially now that Lauvergne is back on the rotation. All the players know the game, they pass the ball and of course they have a coach, Yuri Zdovc, who is doing an excellent job according to my opinion. We knew that for us, it would be a complicated game. Now, we have to win all the games and we play against some teams that have no chance at advancing to the playoffs, however, they have good players and are still good teams, with good coaches. That’s how the Euroleague is, but at this moment, the pressure is on us. We have to adjust to that, that is playing under pressure. To succeed in advancing to the playoffs, if you wish to finish the regular season at a really good seed, you have to play under pressure”.
He went on to say: “Congratulations to my players. We made a very good win. I think we showed stability in our game on both ends of the floor, but, at the end of the game, we found many open shots, we had patience, facilitation, everyone played for one another on both ends of the floor and we controlled Zalgiris’ offensive game as well as its facilitation. Also, we stopped Lekavicius and the other good shooters they have. Congratulations and good luck to Zalgiris”.
Asked how he explains the number of offensive rebounds his team got, he replied: “It’s a combination of two things. One is that Zalgiris decided to play defense with switches a the end and their big players were coming on our ball handler. So, the big players were out of the post. Also, we missed a lot shots. We finished with 30% in threes, a low percentage for us. Especially when you want to win on the road, you have to have higher percentages. I think that it mainly had to do with the defense and the switches they decided to be making. We were concrete in that part, our big players, Fall, Martin, Vezenkov did a very good job in that part”.
On whether he’s looking at the ranking and if he has started studying the scenarios as to where Olympiacos can finally be seeded, he replied: “To tell you the truth, at the beginning of the season, the goal had not been to finish with home court advantage. We had been out of the playoffs for three seasons, if I’m not mistakes, so our goal had been to once again be in the playoffs. You cannot be looking too far ahead in the Euroleague. You have to be focusing on the next practice, the next game. Looking at the schedule and saying we can win there or maybe lose there, is completely wrong in my opinion. My philosophy is to concentrate on the next game. That makes it much easier for the players also. If you don’t do that, it’s like you have to climb a mountain, with such a hard schedule, so many difficult games and such tough opponents. We have four games till the end of the regulation and they are all difficult games. We have the Greek derby against Panathinaikos ahead of us and it’s never an easy game. They have had the whole week to prepare, while we played an intense game tonight. So, we need to focus on that game. We have four more, Barcelona and Panathinaikos at home, Monaco and Villeurbanne on the road… No game is easy”.
When asked to comment on the ‘pause’ on the Russian teams, as well as about the war in Ukraine, he pointed out: “I have worked in Russia with two different teams, Lokomotiv and Khimki. Euroleague is the one that makes the decisions. At the end of March, on the 20th, we’ll know whether the Russian teams will be expelled from the competition for this season or not… They probably are going to be expelled. As for the war, there’s no doubt it should not be happening… I don’t want to be talking about such issues, because I become really emotional. When you see kids lose their lives or their parents… It really makes me grieve. Just like everyone else, I pray for the war to stop. War is never the solution”.
Finally, when asked about a comment on the possibility that this might be the last season on the courts for Jankunas and Printezis, the said: “They have my absolute respect. I don’t know how many years Jankunas has been playing with the Euroleague. Giorgos has been playing in the Euroleague for 21 years with Olympiacos and I don’t know how many in total for the competition. It’s really hard. Sometimes I wonder if it’s boring to have the same routine for so many years. Being a champion at that level for so many years is not easy. It’s not easy at any level… For your spirit, for your mind, for your body… They have my absolute respect. Last season we had Spanoulis that retired at 39. Olympiacos respects everything they have give to our team, great titles, big wins, reputation… Printezis is our captain and everyone loves him, because except for an excellent player, he’s a fan of the team. What I want to say is that whatever they decide for their future, I’m going to be wishing them all the luck”.