Zeljko Obradovic characterized tonight’s final against Olympiakos as the most difficult final out of all those he has played in all his years with Panathinaikos, and congratulated his players for their big victory.
The “clover’s” coach underlined in the press conference after the game: “This was a game with four different quarters. We made an excellent start, but after that I do not know why we stopped playing and made some stupid turnovers, thus giving Olympiakos the chance to get back into the game. In any case, we were facing a team that works hard and knows how to press the ball, but we too showed in turn that we have character. The beginning of the second half was very bad. We did not shoot the ball and kept watching Olympiakos’ players score in fast-breaks. We were anxious in our game and wanted to take a first option shot in every offence. I called out my players and tried to calm them down. It was obvious that it was not difficult to turn the game around with a shot or a good defense. I cannot even remember how many finals I have played, but this was the most difficult one. Once again, I would like to congratulate my players, because in a very difficult fight they found the way to take victory. I would like to also congratulate Olympiakos because they too deserved to win the game and this is obvious when a game is decided in a single shot. It was easy for us to control the game in the first half, as it was also easy for Olympiakos. To talk about tactics, we know what happened in the game. It was a very good final and people will keep talking about this final.”
The Serbian coach went on to note: “Despite having won this title, we must now turn our sights to the Euroleague playoffs, so starting tomorrow we must start preparing for the next games. Immediately after this game one of my players, who knows that he played very poorly, came and told me that he is going to work very hard. In my experience all these years I can tell you that two days ago we have had one of the best practice sessions ever throughout all these years. Yesterday we have had one of the worst, but this happens when things are hard. I would also like to add that I am satisfied about the fact that the atmosphere between the players was excellent and I am proud of this.”
Referring to the fans, he said: “I would like to thank our fans, but what can we say about the things that happened? The question is how they get the things they throw during the game inside the arena. We always talk about these things after the final, but tomorrow no-one will be talking about them. Everything starts from schools and the education kids get about manners. If ever a day comes that we compete here before a full arena, that day will be a big victory for basketball.”
When asked about what he was discussing with Thanassis Giannakopoulos during the award ceremony, he replied: “Nothing special. He was very happy. He was here yesterday during practice, as he always is before important games, and wished us good luck. He asked where we are going to go tonight and I said wherever you want, but he did not say anything about the future.”
Finally, as regards the ‘tricks’ he used to turn the game around he said: “I tried to calm the players down. Thank you for your kind words, but we are far from being considered a basketball-playing machine. We are a normal team that has its problems and makes its mistakes.”
