Fragkiskos Alvertis and George Bartzokas talked to Euroleague about tomorrow's game at SEF. It's Olympiacos-Panathinaikos for Euroleague Top16, Round 14 and two coaches spoke about the rivalry, the tough group in Top16, the qualification...
Coach Bartzokas, Coach Alvertis, thanks for being part of this special double interview, and congratulations on reaching the playoffs.
Coach Bartzokas, some people described this Top 16 group as maybe the toughest ever in the Euroleague. As defending champs, after losing four games in a row in the middle of the Top 16, how did you and your team handle that pressure and reach the playoffs?
"I agree that this year's experience in the Top 16 was very tough and arduous. I have the feeling that all teams could have qualified for the playoffs and that it was that only the tougher ones mentally that managed to do so. We had to face the fact that we lost our main point guard and one of the MVPs of last season, when we reached the Euroleague title, Acie Law. Also, a lot of our key players, I would say our first three top scorers - Spanoulis, Printezis and Perperoglou - were out for three to five games in the Top 16. This created a difficulty, we lost four games in a row and finally, since we made it, I feel really proud of my players."
Coach Alvertis, you took over after Panathinaikos had lost five games out of six. What did it take to turn around the team in that difficult situation?
"Τhere is no magic wand to change things. The first thing I believe one should do is to make the players understand that they deserve more. To help them find their true selves, to feel confident and to play the game they already know how to play. As Coach Bartzokas said, I feel very good, too, that we managed to achieve one goal and to move on to the next phase."
How proud should fans in Greece be of both teams surviving such a tough group, reaching the playoffs and representing Greek basketball so well?
GB: "Greeks are different. Our fans think different, Panathinaikos's fans think different. I feel that our qualification to the playoffs was a very important goal since the beginning of the season, it was the minimum for us, but it wasn't easy to achieve. The expectations are great. The team has celebrated two Euroleague titles in a row, but believe me, the Euroleague and the other teams' level is very high and it was difficult to achieve the qualification. Greek fans in general, I believe that they think very highly of the European basketball. Our fans feel happy that we got here, but I believe they want something more."
FA: "It makes sense, because our team has a great history in European competitions. It was present in many Final Fours and has celebrated European titles. It makes sense that the expectations are always great. And the same goes for us as players and coaches. You always fight for the best possible and this is what are going to do for one more season."
In last year's Basketball Capitals documentary, everyone said that Olympiacos and Panathinaikos make each other better. Does surviving this group together against three Spanish and two Turkish teams kind of prove that point?
GB: "First of all, I agree that competition always gives birth to positive things, as long as we don't go beyond the limits and to things that we are used to in Greek society and in Greek sports. I don't know if that's the case this time. I think that each team went along with the big expectations it had in order to achieve its goals, different but essentially the same. I don't believe that the rivalry between the two teams was the issue. It was more the European picture. We had to face two Turkish teams and three Spanish and I don't think it was about our rivalry, our competition, but the competition in Europe which was in a very high level."
FA: "It's the law of life that the competition improves things and it makes you go one step further. But the fact is, as the coach said, that when you are in a tough place, the only thing you think about is how to improve yourself. Competition is certainly there, but in this given moment, you look how to get better, how to survive, how to win a game, to get a victory, to earn one more qualification."
How much relief did you feel to make the playoffs BEFORE having to play each other in this last Top 16 game on Thursday?
GB: "To be honest, when we learned before the game against Efes in Istanbul that we had already qualified in the eight best, there was a light atmosphere on our team, because we were under a lot of pressure to get there. But, apart from that, as you know the Olympiacos-Panathinaikos games are always special, there is no looseness and this is the way these games must be. We are not relieved, we are certainly happy for what we achieved, but our motivation is big."
FA: "Relief? Relief in the sense that you are in the next phase and that you have achieved one goal. From that point, we know very well what Panathinaikos-Olympiacos means in Greece, no matter what competition we are talking about. We must face the game with due seriousness. This is logical. The pressure, no matter what the result means, is a given. This always is going to be Olympiacos-Panathinaikos."
This, of course, is the Game of the Week, going to more than 100 countries where the fans don't get to see the Olympiacos vs. Panathinaikos rivalry. What do you want those fans around the world to see on Thursday?
GB: "First of all, this is very important for Greek basketball. As you said, 100 countries will watch this 'battle'. I expect a high-level game, which I am sure both teams will play. The players are at the best level in Euroleague, so I believe that the tactics will be at a high level, too. The atmosphere will be exciting. I hope and I am sure it will be civilized, too. What I want is for everybody in Europe and elsewhere in the world to understand that Greek basketball is at the highest possible level."
FA: "Exactly that... It's a game worthy of its reputation. It's very important that so many people from different countries will watch it and what remains is for them to see a spectacle worthy of their expectations."
Now that both teams are in the playoffs, but neither can get home-court advantage now, what becomes the most important reason to win this last Top 16 game on Thursday?
GB: "I think it's something we have answered before. I think that the specificity, the uniqueness of the Olympiacos-Panathinaikos games always gives a huge motivation to those who are part of it and that is all. It's a game we are going to try to win, us and our opponents, for our special reasons."
FA: "It's absolutely normal for an Olympiacos-Panathinaikos game in any competition to be always a derby. The team that wins this game will have a bigger advantage in psychology to move on."
These teams won five of the last seven Euroleague titles. Should fans of both teams be proud also of what Panathinaikos and Olympiacos have done TOGETHER on an international level?
GB: "A realistic approach doesn't confirm what you are saying. This is something that happens all over the world. If, for example, we speak about Spain, I don't believe that the Real Madrid's fans are happy when Barcelona wins a Euroleague title and vice versa. So, we have to be honest and to say that our fans are happy for our trophies and Panathinaikos's fans for theirs. And furthermore, they are sad for the opposite. It's something that is part of sports, as long as it doesn't exceeds the limits. There are Greeks, neutral, who watch basketball and they are happy for what we both have achieved."
FA: "It's logical and human as the coach said. Greek basketball is something we are all concerned with and it has arrived to the highest level. The fact that we five of the last seven titles demonstrates that level and the work that takes place on these two teams in recent years. Each one of them is happy for the success they had."
During some extremely hard years for your country, both of these clubs were symbols of Greek excellence. How important is it for everyone - clubs, teams, fans - to showcase that excellence to an international audience on Thursday?
GB: "I agree with you, but I believe that in the Greek society there all a lot of fields that work fine, but they just don't get the spotlight. It's a habit in Greece to display only the bad things, while there are many things that work well. One of the good things is Greek basketball's success at a high level. I think that the fact that we are giving joy to some people who have things difficult in their everyday life is very important."
FA: "It's a social-political subject. We are talking about two teams who rely totally on two owners, who have made a big effort to retain the highest possible level in their teams. On the other hand, as the coach correctly said, we have to display things which come after a productive process and concern everyone in the public sector, and we should highlight things that many people strive for to have a good result."
Thank you very much
GB: "We thank you too..."
FA: "Thank you... Take care..."
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