"Alvertis is the coach and we, as players, we are going to do on the court whatever our coach asks of us". Dimitris Dimantidis was simple in his statements, but also clear as far as the new page in Panathinaikos' history. The captain of the team spoke about the change in the technical staff, but also about the game against Anadolu Efes, without forgetting to thank Argyris Pedoulakis.
"These things happen. The new coach is here and we have to do what we have to do. We'll follow his orders. We have tough games ahead, because of the standings and also because of the results we had so far. We will try to be ready in order to win the game in Turkey on Friday".
Asked about "how different it is for him to have Alvertis as a coach and two living legends to cooperate", Diamantidis replied: "I am not a living legend... Alvertis is the coach and I am the player and I will do whatever my coach asks me to do. All players will follow his orders. Nothing less, nothing more. We are obligated to listen to the coach and to work on the court".
Diamantidis was asked how can he help Alvertis, given the fact that he has no experience as a coach: "It's not an issue on how I am going to help him. The whole team will help, because we all have a common goal: The team. Above all it's the team and what we want is to do the best possible. We all have to help ourselves and the team".
The situation is not something that he has experienced before in Panathinaikos: "It's the first time since I got here that something like this happens. I have said it before that in basketball in general is something usual. For us it's a new experience. We have to get used to it and adjust to the new facts".
Regarding the game against Anadolu Efes, he said: "It's the most important thing. We'll try to be ready for a really important game. Winning against Anadolu Efes is crucial, judging by the standings. We are going to play away in a "tough" court and we are going to claim the positive result. The fact that Anadolu Efes is lower in the standings must not affect us. Laboral Kutxa is lower than us and we all saw what happened. This defeat cost us a lot. We said since day one that all Euroleague teams are good. If you are not serious, if you are not serious, if you don't play the way you must play, the results are obvious on the court".
Diamantidis was asked also about Argyris Pedoulakis: "Coach took over in a very tough period. We took over after mr Obradovic, with whom the team has conquered everything more than once: Euroleague, League and Cup titles. His job was not easy, but mr Pedoulakis had the stamina and the determination to lead the team. We had good results, we celebrated the league and the cup title last year, the cup this year.. We thank him very much. It was a nice experience, we had good moments, but things have changed now and we have to continue differently".
