Kostas Papanikolaou talked about tomorrow’s (Wednesday, 23/03, 21.00 CET) game against Monaco and explained how the ‘reds’ can come back to Piraeus with a win.

At first, the Olympiacos’ forward was asked, moments before the delegation boarded the flight to Nice, about the two games against Monaco and Villeurbanne this week. “We are looking at one game at a time. First of all, we have to play against Monaco in a tough home court, where they have shown to feel really well, they have won big and it is only fair that they rank the way they do right now. They could probably be ranking even higher. They are a difficult team to play against, they impose a ‘crazy’ and sometimes uncontrollable rhythm that suits them, but does not fit with our playing style. That’s why we need to be 100% focused in our defense, so as to set the tempo and challenge all possibilities for a win there. Otherwise, it has nothing similar to the previous game between our teams”.

Then ‘Pap’ replied on whether the outcome of the derby against Panathinaikos gives an extra boost to himself and his team mates, with the left-handed forward explaining that ‘the game against Panathinaikos, from what I can see and want to believe, has been left behind by all of us. It was an important victory, but we are moving ahead. Even if we had lost, we should still be moving ahead, because only by looking ahead you can move to the next day”.

The next question was in regard to whether the Piraeus team players aim to win the home court advantage, with the international forward stressing that ‘the truth is we have qualified to a Final Four without having the home court advantage and we have lost the qualification while on home court advantage. I think that it’s very important for us especially this season, because we have only lost two games at home, one for the Greek League and one for the Euroleague, but should anything happen and the advantage eludes us, it won’t be the end of the world. I repeat, if we are well, serious and focused, we can win at any court. We have proved so in the past. So, we definitely aim for the advantage, but if it doesn’t come our way, it doesn’t mean anything”.

Mike James is the locomotive for Monaco and when Kostas Papanikolaou was asked about him, he replied : “That’s 100% so. In a road game, you have to control the tempo, impose your game style, it’s the only way to have a chance at winning. We have to remain focused at 100% because it’s not only Mike James, there are other players with lots of talent and they have shown that in previous games. But above all else, we have to be well as a team. You have seen that when we were not having a good day, one player was able to hurt us and I’m talking about the game against Alba Berlin. So, we have to be focused”.

The 31-year old forward was also asked about the Russian teams, that are probably going to be absent from the remainder of the competition. “It’s a universally sad situation. Watching what has been going on around us, basketball is a lower priority and that’s absolutely normal. But in terms of our craft, it isn’t ‘fair’ for these guys that have tried to within the season to rank where they currently are. And these athletes, just like the coaches, have goals, dreams, they had set personal and group goals, so when you lose the opportunity to compete for them, it’s sad. But all of that are only relevant in the world of basketball and that’s why I’m answering to your question. They play absolutely no role within the big picture and of course I’m talking about what everyone in the world is experiencing right now that is so devastating”.