Czech basketball is preparing for a big holiday, already on Friday, September 2, one of the groups of the Eurobasket tournament, the continental championship in this collective sport, will be played in the Vysočany O2 Arena in Prague.
The strongest generation of players in the last 30 years in the Czech jersey wants to follow up on last year’s start at the Olympic Games in Tokyo and the sensational 6th place at the 2019 WC, which was played in China.
At both events, Tomáš Satoranský, a 30-year-old point guard with experience from 404 NBA games, was profiled as a key figure of the Czech team.
He has already exchanged America for a Barcelona jersey, but now the tournament that starts on Friday in Prague is a hot priority for him.
The problem is that Satoranský injured his ankle two weeks ago, specifically on Friday, August 19, in a friendly match against the Germans in Hamburg.
The nature and extent of his injury is such that Satoransky should rest his ankle for at least four, preferably six weeks. But according to reports from the Czech camp, such an option is not an option for the Czech player. He does his best to help the team in the tournament. And they don’t skimp on resources either.
They really don’t skimp on ankle treatment
At his own expense, he called in a renowned specialist from Washington, physiotherapist Naveen Hettiarachchi. According to information from Seznam Zpráv, he pays him 4,000 dollars (100,000 crowns) a day to use his art to help him extremely speed up the treatment of his ankle associated with rehabilitation.
On his website, Hettiarachchi presents collaborations with celebrities of the music celebrity type, such as Kanye West or Drake, soccer player Mia Hamm or Ted Leonsis, owner of the Washington Capitals hockey team and Washington Wizzards basketball team.
The miraculous hands and methods of the American “shaman” are making extraordinary progress with the ankle.
Tomáš Satoranský completed a semi-secret individual half-hour training session in the hall at Královka today. Ankle holds. And according to information from Seznam Zpráv, the heads of the Czech team have practically decided definitively that Tomáš Satoranský’s name will appear on the Czech team’s roster for Eurobasket. This decision can probably be changed only in case of some unexpected development. The roster deadline is Thursday.
A day later, on Friday, September 2, the Czech team will play against Poland. Satoranský should be present during the match at least on the substitutes’ bench, he himself definitely wants to start, at least for a few minutes.
The Czechs will attack the advance to Berlin
If the ankle holds up, there is a prospect that his condition will improve over the next week, and Satoranský should be able to endure longer periods of time spent on the board.
The Czechs play Serbia on Saturday, September 3, the Netherlands on Monday, September 5, Finland a day later, and Israel on Thursday, September 8.
In addition to the one in Prague, 3 other Eurobasket groups are played in Milan, Tbilisi and Cologne.
The top 4 teams from each six-member group advance to the final tournament in Berlin, which is played in a classic knockout fashion. The final is scheduled for September 18.
