Raoul Korner (38) on his first visit to the Hamburg Towers. Before the new coach goes to the Austrian national basketball team for the European Championship qualifier one last time, the Viennese met the bosses, the only remaining player Lukas Meisner (26) and answered questions from the media.
Korner about:
► How to become a basketball player as an Austrian. “Just like becoming a Senegalese ski trainer. The basketball bug caught me at school. Originally I played football and I was completely against it.”
► His decision for the Towers. “I’ve decided to let the universe decide. If something comes along that feels good, I’ll do it.”
► Having to completely rebuild the squad. “It would be worse if I had a team I couldn’t relate to. When I came to Bayreuth in 2016, there was nothing either, and we marched right from the start. That can work. But of course it is a challenge.”
► The Perspectives of the Towers. “The whole thing still has almost a start-up character, it started explosively. Now it’s about stabilizing the successes.”
► Squad planning. “Recruiting is one of my hobbies. We worked on the squad weeks ago before the signature was dry. Now it’s about filling the German positions first. In the next step come the foreign players. We are further than we published it.”
► His criteria for putting together a squad. “What is extremely important to me is the character component. I don’t want lazy, stupid or selfish players. We’re not in a position to bring the perfect player to Hamburg. We have to make compromises somewhere. And I don’t want to make compromises in terms of attitude and character.”
► his leadership style. “I’m not a grassroots Democrat, definitely not. I am a very structured and disciplined person. I expect the same from the people who work with me. And I believe that you only do things well if you enjoy doing them. But it’s not like we put on a clown’s nose and make-up at every training session.”
► His game philosophy. “To answer that question for the players, they get a 110-page book. I like structured and disciplined basketball, but not robot basketball. I want my players to be able to make decisions within a clear structure. And I believe in fixed roles and that everyone knows and respects their role.”
► Sporting goals. “I am an immensely ambitious guy. But I’m not completely stupid either and stand up and say: ‘We want to reach the semi-finals.’ For me as a trainer, goal-oriented thinking does not play the essential role. For me, the process is much more important. And I don’t need to talk about playoffs if I don’t even have a team. That makes no sense.”
