Alonso: National Team Basketball – First Two Games Analysis

First of all, you need to understand the context – Alonso took over the team in a relatively short time, without longer preparation. In addition, unlike the Italian Luca Banki, who was not employed by the club at first, Alonso works in parallel with the team of the Spanish higher league – “Murcia”.

“Obviously, we wanted to be 2-0 [bilance]but I think we, as a basketball community, overestimate our own opportunities and underestimate other teams. We see how Poland struggled against the Netherlands and how Lithuania fared against Great Britain. Only a miracle saved them. These [kvalifikācijas] windows are very challenging for those teams whose leading players play in the NBA or Euroleague,” says LBS General Secretary Kaspars Tsiprus.

Banks could have focused more on player analysis and preparation before training camp started. In the case of Alonso, of course, this would not increase the number of training sessions before the qualifying matches, but would allow the coach himself to prepare for the new challenge in calmer conditions.

“Right now we are in a transitional stage between the past – Luka [Banki] – and [tagadni] Hitting. You must understand that the transformation of the team must be done gradually.

If, for example, I have to tell my whole philosophy in five days – the way I want the team to play – and we lose, it’s not extraordinary.

Yes, of course, victories are very important, but even after losses, you have to be able to keep a cool head and try to be better in the next games. This is our goal,” says Alonso about his work style.

Tsipruss also agrees with him, who points out that in today’s basketball, it is not unusual for coaches to combine work in clubs and national teams. “There hasn’t been a year when Luka Banki only managed the national team for us either. It is clear that at some stage he was without a club, but, especially in the spring, he was mostly only [nodarbināts] with clubs. This is a normal practice all over the world. There are very few coaches who work exclusively with national teams.”

One of the most obvious elements of Alonso’s handwriting is the desire to accelerate Latvia’s game. It didn’t always work out against the Netherlands – the play was often jerky and hasty decisions were made too often. This led to a completely natural loss in the introduction of the qualification.

“The game that our team showed in the first half against the Netherlands is not normal. It is not about talent, nor about any [taktisko] drawing. You just have to gnaw the floor there,” Tsipruss believes.

Another important aspect that complicated Alonso’s job was the availability of players. None of the Euroleague players were in the team. This was due to injuries or other considerations, whereas many other national teams had their representatives from Europe’s strongest league in their squad.

“The help of our best players is always there [svarīga]. We want them to be, but

we need to understand what the situation is now [piemēram] David himself [Bertāns] – he plays on painkillers. It is clear that if we look at the short term and think only about one game, yes, we will make Daavi suffer, we will make his health worse.

[Savukārt] ar [Vitorijas] “Baskonia” club is the most difficult to communicate from the Euroleague, but I think Rodion [Kurucam] also need to strengthen the team rotation. Therefore, Rodion can also be understood – after the operation, after the injury, just a new club, a good contract.”

Moreover, not all of the available players could help. Tsipruss promises to work to make the Latvian national team stronger for the February-March qualification window, but points out that this was a great opportunity for some young players to show themselves, who under normal circumstances would have minimal opportunities to wear the national team shirt.

This allowed the less experienced Rodi Macoch, Robert Blumberg and debutant Adrian Andzhev to get into the national team circle. The luminary of the U-18 national team also had the opportunity to go on the field in the game against Austria, and it was the arrival of Andzhev that allowed the game to intensify.

In this match, you could see an improvement in the performance of the national team, especially in the second half. Attacks became more fluid, cover episodes were used more and ball movement became more targeted. This shows that Alonso reacts very quickly to what he sees on the pitch and is able to adjust his emphasis between games. This flexibility could become one of his biggest assets in the long run, of course in combination with the best lineup available.

“If we want to go to the World Championship and have a good start there, our players must be healthy

– at least for most of them – and [spēlētājiem] have to rush to the selection. Then everything will be fine,” Tsiprus believes.

After these two games, one thing can be said – Sito Alonso has already given a clear direction to the Latvian national team. The final model has not yet crystallized and there are many mistakes, incomplete mutual understanding and searches, but the basics are clear – Alonso wants the team to play fast, aggressively and smartly.

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