“The Euroleague is the goal. We want to be in the finals and fighting for all the titles”
”I know I can contribute: consistency, ethical work. Those things are contagious “
Returns the Euroleague after five months and the Barça, among the wheel of favorites, opens this Friday night in front of the Alba Berlin (9pm, Dazn) “more motivated than ever” by the memory of the defeat in the Cologne final against Anadolu Efes, according Brandon Davies (Philadelphia, July 25, 1991). The Barça pivot, with a Ugandan passport, is one of the referents that remains in the hard core of the squad, along with Calathes, Higgins y Mirotic. With a more balanced team, in the words of their coach, although shorter in resources (13 chips compared to 15 last year), the team of Jasikevicius to the title that has resisted since 2010.
In these hours before the debut, two captains like Oriola and Mirotic acknowledge that the defeat in the Euroleague final still stings in the dressing room. Of course. When you lose a final like this, you never know if you will be able to win it again, because it is not easy. We didn’t do enough and of course it hurts. So we have to use it as motivation and do everything we can to be better this season to have another chance.
Do you see the dressing room especially motivated in that sense? Of course, it is a goal for us and for the whole club to be back in the championship finals and fighting for the titles. It is not something they give you. You have to conquer it and that is one of the great moments that we have marked here at Barcelona.
“The defeat against Efes still hurts, but we must use it as motivation to give ourselves another chance.”
Jasikevicius has lowered starting expectations. You said this starts from scratch. That’s how it is. We had that opportunity, but this begins again and we will have to fight all we can and more to be in a final again. The day to day at work has to be our mentality.
Do you see the team ready to fight, again, for the Euroleague? We are at the point of seeing what we are capable of. The first Euroleague game will be a good test to prove it. The template has changed a bit. But I trust this group of players that we have. We share the goal of fighting for all titles and we have the will and desire to improve every day. But with that said, we have yet to test what this team is capable of.
There is a shared desire among the squad, the fans and the club for the Euroleague. Are you not afraid that it will end up becoming an obsession? If we take it in the positive sense, I don’t think obsession is bad. In fact, if I didn’t have an obsession with basketball, I wouldn’t be where I am. I think you have to be obsessed with winning, with being a better player to achieve your goals. That also brings more pressure, right. But you also need it to become a champion. From the moment it pushes you to improve and leads you to fight for the championships, I see it as a good thing.
Aside from defending Efes, there are arguably a handful of strong contenders to unseat him. How do you analyze the new season? I think there are great teams this year, teams that have improved a lot. Players who have changed. You can check it just by looking at your template. But in the end, this starts over for everyone. You have to imagine where you can go, but it is not how you start but how you end. You just have to look at last season, a lot of teams that said they should be in the top and then they didn’t. Of course, Efes seems the rival to beat. It could be said that a special rivalry has been born with them because they are the team that beat us and our desire is to dethrone them and be the champions.
You appeared last season a decisive role in quite a few games. Is that what Jasikevicius asks of you? What Saras asks of me is simple: she asks me to do my best every day, whether in training or in games. Every year your role can change a little and I think I still have a lot to give, a lot of room for improvement. I have worked a lot this summer in training, hopefully this year I can take another step forward …
Can you take that step and take a leadership role? I know that I am an important part of this team, which also means more pressure and responsibility. But it is a challenge that I am ready for. I know I can contribute and so does the team: consistency, consistently playing at a good level, leading by example with my ethical work on the court. I think these things are contagious and they help me personally to be a better player and I know that when your teammates see that they also try to be better.
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By the way, with the start of the season, fans return to the pavilions. How do you rate it? For me it is great news. Without them, basketball is not the same and I personally love to play in crowded halls. It is one of the things that motivates you the most.
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