Euroleague Basketball partner VRM, which helped bring the EuroLeague Land metaverse to the world, has designed a unique NFT collection to pay tribute to the 2022 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague champion. After the crowning of this season's winner on Saturday, May 21 at Stark Arena in Belgrade, fans and memorabilia collectors will have the opportunity to acquire one-of-a-kind NFTs from the new Trophy & Rings collection.

Euroleague Basketball, VRM to celebrate champion with Trophy & Rings NFT collection

The Trophy & Rings NFT collection is the latest step in Euroleague Basketball's diversified strategy. Said strategy aims to tap the possibilities available to global sports properties in the Web3 space in a safe and enjoyable way for fans to enable them to own a piece of the content produced by the league, clubs and players they love.

"NFTs are the rage among sports fans and collectors of all kinds and we knew that partnering with VRM to release the Trophy & Rings collection would offer our fans a perfect way to celebrate the 2022 champion,” Roser Queralto, Chief Business Officer of Euroleague Basketball, said. "Having already worked with VRM on the EuroLeague Land metaverse, we knew we had a world-class partner we could trust whose values and goals line up with ours."

The Trophy & Rings collection of NFTs will be released at the end of the season, at [ChampionsNFT.euroleague.net](http://ChampionsNFT.euroleague.net). Euroleague Basketball and VRM plan to continue the development of such collectible objects in the future and retroactively so fans across the EuroLeague can create their own collections.

“We can’t be more proud of extending our partnership with the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague," VRM CEO Juan Marí-Guillot said. "It is an amazing property to work with and together we have endless potential to develop amazing digital assets and unique experiences around the competition. We’ve just created a new experiential NFTs category and much more is to come."

The 2022 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Final Four will take place in the Serbian capital on May 19-21. Olympiacos Piraeus and Anadolu Efes Istanbul will meet in the first semifinal followed by a duel between Real Madrid and FC Barcelona in the second.

Asked about it, Laso believes having its own identity as a team is critical. "First of all, we try to be recognized as a team. That's the most important thing. For sure, players show you the way. I'll put a stupid example: I cannot have Tavares shooting threes or defending point guards. That's pretty logical and easy to understand. And that's a great part of being a coach; you have to adjust to the players who you have," Laso told us, and went on about his team's continuity. "But at the same time, you have to keep the ideas that you want and that your team is able to do since the first day that you come to Real Madrid as a player. I'm very happy that with different players over these last 10 years, we've been able to reach Final Fours, and play for championships with different players of different characteristics. That speaks very well about the club and the team. And like I always said, this is a very important part of our success; the way you find your players to give the best for the team."

Overall, Real has done a good job of remaining competitive all these years, rebuilding the team with great patience and trusting the players that already know the system. Seven players - Fabien Causeur, Anthony Randolph, Rudy Fernandez, Walter Tavares, Sergio Llull, Trey Thompkins, and Jeffery Taylor - won the EuroLeague title with Real in 2018 and are still with the team. Players come and go, but Real always has a core that has been together for many years. 

Laso believes having some players with experience and others willing to showcase their skills in the biggest scenario in continental basketball is a perfect combination. "If you remember, 6-7 years ago when we won the championship in Madrid [in 2015], the heart of the team was OK: both Sergios [Llull and Rodriguez], Rudy, Felipe [Reyes], Chapu [Andres Nocioni], Slaughter, Jaycee Carroll... Now, only two of those players are still here, Rudy and Sergi. Their experience and what they give to the team are very important to us. But we also have a bunch of new guys who are going to get their first experience at the Final Four, let's say Abalde, Yabusele, Williams-Goss. So we have different players who have to step up and they have to understand from the beginning what playing for Real Madrid means," he said.   


"You have to be ready to give everything for this team because this team wants to win."

"Being in Real Madrid cannot be a case of, 'OK, we have time to make this change and, you know, progress.' We have to keep the winning mentality from the beginning, even understanding that we have young players. They have to step up and win games; let's put it this way," he added "We are missing Alocen because of injury, but these other guys have to be ready somehow to step up. Because when you talk about the championship seven years ago, only two players are staying, Rudy and Sergi. We still love them. We still know that they are very important for us, but we still know that we have a bunch of new players stepping up."

Coach Laso has an advantage in terms of understanding his players. He was a star guard in the 1990s and helped Real make it to the Final Four in 1996. His experience as a player has proved to be just as valuable as his many appearances with Real as head coach. Having Final Four experience with both roles, with the club he currently leads, allows him to guess what's in his players' minds. Above all, Real Madrid is the winningest team in continental basketball and players need to honor that tradition by being ready to keep winning, over and over again. 

"I have been a player in Real Madrid, and a lot of times your goal is that: 'OK, I became a Real Madrid player.' And probably you don't understand that the difficult part starts when you are a Real Madrid player. It's not getting here or being on this team; the important thing is what you're going to do to help this team. Because this team has structure, goals, call it however you want, but you have to be ready to give everything for this team because this team wants to win," he told us. "As we said, there is no time. There is no, OK, take time, we'll wait, they will process, they will grow. No. We have to be ready to win from the first day, understanding situations, but for sure understanding also from the beginning that the Real Madrid culture is to be competitive from the first day that you arrive in this team."

Keeping a winning mentality is not always easy. It is impossible to stay strong all season long, and Real went through a rough couple of months late in the regular season. Los Blancos had a 20-3 start in this EuroLeague campaign but went 2-10 after that to rank fourth at the end of the regular season. Like all winning teams, Real bounced back when the most important games arrived, sweeping Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv in the playoffs. Laso believes that despite all the circumstances that all teams went through this season, all the work the team did pay off at the right time. 


Real Madrid Head Coach, Pablo Laso, discusses what it takes to play for Madrid, the winning mentality and lifting trophies.

Final Four Interview: Pablo Laso, Real Madrid

"It was a difficult year with lots of games back-to-back. There were weeks when we played even three or four games a week. So we knew it was going to be important to somehow build what we needed at the right moment," Laso admits. "And I think that Maccabi series was a great moment for us. We understood from the beginning that it was going to be very difficult to beat Maccabi because they were coming on a roll. But it's true that after the Spanish Cup, for us, it was difficult because we had injuries, we had people coming in, coming out. And let's say, not just because we were losing -- but it was true that we were not winning -- but we were not worried just because we were not winning. We were worried because we had our difficulties, but at the same time we were convinced that we could get back and get ready for the playoffs, and that's what we did. Right now, we're in a good situation arriving at the Final Four."

All of a sudden, Real fans went from being a bit worried to feeling extremely confident ahead of the big 'Clasico' against FC Barcelona in the semifinals. Laso, however, believes that his team had to battle hard against Maccabi and that taking one game at a time helped Los Blancos sweep the series. 

"For us, the first game was very important, because Maccabi was on a roll. They won like six in a row. They were playing great so for us, that first game was very important. On the second one, also, we understood that we need to go to Tel Aviv ahead 2-0. And then we wanted to finish the series, and we played a great third game there and we won," Laso recapped. "But that doesn't mean the series was easy. We swept, OK, very good. But I don't think that series was easy because Maccabi was playing great basketball, and we had a lot of respect for them."


"We were convinced that we could get back and get ready for the playoffs, and that's what we did."

Real has faced Barca three times in the Final Four semifinals, and Laso was always there. In 1996, Barca topped Real 76-66 - Laso had 2 points and 3 assists in a losing effort. As head coach, Laso led Real to back-to-back semifinal wins against Barca in 2013 and 2014. Los Blancos rallied from a nine-point deficit in the final 8 minutes to beat Barca 67-74 in 2013 and trashed its archrivals in 2014, 62-100. At the same time, Barcelona has won its last five showdowns against Real this season, including the 2022 Copa del Rey final.

Laso is not hyped up about his Final Four wins or worried about his team's recent losses against Barca. "For me, every game is different. I would be very stupid to think that a basketball game is going to be the same as yesterday. I think we have a great game, a great sport that obliges you to do something different and do it well," he told us. "Talking about 'El Clasico', the easy thing would be to think, OK, it could be like the last game we played together. No. It's going to be different. They're going to make adjustments, we're going to make adjustments, and probably even the players are not going to be on the same form, that's for sure. So, for me every game is different. I'll take the result that we had in the previous 'Clasico' at a Final Four, for sure, but I know it's going to be a different game."

Like all top-class rivals coming from the same country, Barca and Real face each other many times each season. Both teams' recent success adds more value to their already legendary sports rivalry. Above all, Laso believes that having two teams in the Final Four is nothing but good news for Spanish basketball. Real and Barca combine for 27 Final Four appearances, the most - by far - for two teams coming from the same country. Panathinaikos OPAP Athens and Olympiacos Piraeus are a distant second, combining for 21 Final Four appearances.

"I would be very stupid thinking that a basketball game is going to be the same as yesterday."

"First of all, two teams in the Final Four speak very well about Spanish basketball. Barcelona and Real Madrid have been very consistent the whole year. We played the final of the SuperCup, we played the final of the Spanish Cup, and now we're in the Final Four and we're going to play each other again," Laso said. "So that speaks very well about Barcelona and Real Madrid, despite everything, and of basketball in Spain. I think our fans, for sure Barcelona fans, and all the fans in Spain, they're proud of two teams that are going to be in the Final Four and we're very happy to be here in this position."

Last but not least, it is hard to ignore that Real won its 10th EuroLeague title in Belgrade barely four years ago, in 2018. Laso doesn't think that it will play a big role but again, seven of his players know how it feels to lift the EuroLeague trophy at Stark Arena. Laso just hopes to feel just as good as he did when the 2018 Final Four was over and confetti hit the floor with him and his team on top of the podium.

"You always think about karma. And now, let's say it's a fashionable word. And I hope it helps. But I don't know. As I said, it's going to be different games, different situations. But for sure, my thoughts about that weekend in Belgrade before are great, and I wish that my thoughts in the future about this coming weekend, will be the same."

Real Madrid is back to the Final Four for the first time since 2019 and of course, head coach Pablo Laso is back to lead the team. Laso has taken Real to seven Final Four appearances in 11 seasons with the club. Above all, Los Blancos have been loyal to Laso's guidebook, on and off the court, playing with a certain style that honors the team's run-and-gun tradition and keeping a core of players every season. 

Pablo Laso, Real: 'Right now, we're in a good situation arriving to the Final Four'

Anadolu Efes Istanbul head coach Ergin Ataman shared his coaching philosophy and how he prepares for big games before traveling to Belgrade to defend the EuroLeague crown at the 2022 Final Four. 

Ergin Ataman, Efes: 'Basketball is a simple game'

Every team in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague is well-stocked with talented players up and down the roster. One of the things that separate the best from the rest is how they work together and, of course, how much their coaches bring out of them. Coach Ergin Ataman is an expert in that area. 

Ataman has his basic coaching principles, which include mastering how to move on the court to maximize spacing and playing strong individual and team defense. Once his players are comfortable in that system, he gives them almost unlimited freedom.

“I never tell my players not to shoot, to not use an early fastbreak… I want them mentally to feel free on the court,” he explained. “This is my philosophy because I don't want that my players when they come to play on the court will think too much about what coach is asking from them. I like to teach them before, in practice, in the preseason. 

"Basketball is a simple game. How much you complicate the game will be more difficult for the players to show their potential in the game."

“When the game starts, he is responsible, the players are responsible. He doesn't think about what I like, what I think, because he knows that and he uses his freedom, of course, with all respect to their friends on the court. Very simple. For me, basketball is a simple game. How much you complicate the game will be more difficult for the players to show their potential in the game.”

Naturally, to get it all to work together, the players must trust each other and work well together. Ataman does not need to get involved in building the chemistry. Instead, he tries to put together a puzzle of players with certain roles and personalities that he thinks will come together on their own. 

“Somebody must work more on defense, somebody will be more responsible to take the rebounds, somebody will be more responsible to play in the open court and fastbreak, somebody will control the game in the five-on-five, in the half-court, somebody must control the locker room of the team. When you build the team, you don't choose only the best players, you must think about everything,” he said. “The character of the players, the players that like to show their capacity inside of the team. I don't like only players who score every game 20 or 25 points, but others are not happy. So okay, maybe in the team you will have some players that score, but everybody must be happy to share the roles on the team. And we build the team, we built for this chemistry.

“It's important that everybody must understand his role and everybody must respect each other. In our team, inside the team, there's the same respect for Shane Larkin and for James Anderson. Same respect for Vasilije Micic or Chris Singleton. Because everybody knows that everybody needs to help his friends.”

Final Four Interview: Ergin Ataman, Anadolu Efes Istanbul

The core of the team that Ataman leads to Belgrade has been together for four years now and making club history at every step of the way. The next challenge is to repeat as EuroLeague champions, but that is not the way Ataman is framing it in his mind.

“We will try to win. We'll try to win one more time the title,” he explained. “Only two games to reach the EuroLeague title against a team that during the season once we beat Olympiacos, once we beat Real Madrid, only we lost two games against Barcelona. But now it's a Final Four we'll see the players’ performance, health, shape. I don't think too much about back the back. I think only about winning the title.”

To go all the way, the next hurdle will be Olympiacos, which Efes split two games against during the regular season. After winning big at home, Efes fell to the Reds in Piraeus on a game-winning three by Kostas Sloukas in overtime. However, Ataman does not think that those results will have a major impact on the semifinal. 

“Every game is different. Every game you have a different performance from your players,” he said. “Olympiacos is a great team, great coach, they have had an excellent season this season. It will be a tough game for sure. We know their system, they know our system. I don't know which performance the players will show on the court. In these practices, we will try to prepare our players to show their best.”

The team’s preparation begins with scouting the opponent. The assistant coaches all have their responsibilities, though Ataman has a preferred method of watching the games to take in ideas, too. 

“I like more to scout the games that we played against them. But, of course, we will scout also the playoffs that Olympiacos played. Some big games that they played excellent and some games that they were in trouble to find the correct strategy for the game… I believe I will watch for sure our two games and maybe two or three more other games from the playoffs and maybe from another big game that they played,” he explained. 

"It's important that everybody must understand his role and everybody must respect each other... because everybody knows that everybody needs to help his friends." 

“I watch actually quarter-by-quarter. I watch one quarter in half an hour, thinking about it. Then I give 10 minutes rest. I go out then I come back and I watch the second quarter. And in that period, I analyze, I think. That is my philosophy, my work when I'm making a scouting report, but of course, my assistants do a great job. They watched six or seven games, they prepare everything. They prepare highlights. And then finally I watch that at the end. But I like to watch full games, minimum three-four games thinking about the game.” 

Ataman said he is confident in his team rising up in Belgrade, in part because they already faced early-season struggles. 

“Actually, for us, it was the most difficult year because after we won the title, a little bit maybe we lost our motivation to reach the big goal because last year we reached the goal. This year we started slowly, maybe a lot of confidence to think about winning everything. Maybe the other teams that we played against had great motivation. Honestly, in that period, it was a difficult time for us,” he said. 

Now thanks to the players he has assembled, their chemistry, Ataman’s playing principles, the coaching staff’s scouting reports and much more, Efes will head to the Final Four confident in its chances.  

“My team mentally will be ready,” Ataman summed up. “We have a great team, great players and we will be motivated a hundred percent to win one more time.”

Before FC Barcelona bench boss Sarunas Jasikevicius leads his team to Belgrade for the Final Four, he sat down to discuss what makes his team tick. 

Sarunas Jasikevicius, Barcelona: 'It will be a very difficult matchup'

This time last year, the common narrative around the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Final Four was that Anadolu Efes Istanbul was poised to fulfill its destiny. The Turkish team had come close in 2019, losing the championship game against CSKA Moscow, and was then denied by the COVID-19 lockdown after leading the regular season standings when action was halted in spring 2020. 

So, heading to Cologne, it was widely assumed that Efes would complete its long journey by reaching the summit of European basketball… and so it proved as Ergin Ataman’s men downed FC Barcelona in the title decider to claim a triumph that appeared to be written in the stars.

This year, you could suggest the same thing about Barca: after a few years of disappointment, Svetislav Pesic inspired a big improvement which saw the team ranked joint-second when COVID halted play in 2020. The upturn then continued under new coach Sarunas Jasikevicius, taking his team to that title game against Efes before topping this season’s regular-season standings with two more wins than any other team.

"It’s very difficult to get into the players’ heads and to understand what they feel."

Jasikevicius, however, is not a believer in the theory that now is Barca’s time to complete their cycle: “That’s just people trying to make stories,” he said. “The only reality is that we’re going to Belgrade trying to win the semifinal to give ourselves a chance. That’s it.”

He does, however, acknowledge that last season’s experience should be advantageous as his players look to go one better this time around. 

“It’s very important that we went through that situation last year,” he accepted. “The majority of the players are still here, so let’s see. I think it always helps, but there is no guarantee obviously. It’s very difficult to get into the players' heads and to understand what they feel, but we are one year more together. More time to go through different situations as a team and hopefully that helps.”

The semifinal will see a clash between the two teams who know each other better than perhaps any other pair in world sport: Barca and Real Madrid. They have already met on six occasions this season, with Real winning the Spanish Super Cup in September before Barca claimed the next five in a row: twice in the Spanish League, once in the Spanish Cup Final, and twice in the EuroLeague.

With such familiarity between the teams, Jasikevicius admitted it will be almost impossible for either him or Real counterpart Pablo Laso to come up with any tactical wrinkles to catch their opponent off-guard: “There are less chances for surprises. I’m sure that there will be some, but it’s very difficult at this point to change a lot of things. Maybe one or two details for a surprise, but it’s difficult,” Jasikevicius said.

Rather than worrying about finer tactical intricacies, the Barca boss is more concerned with making sure his players head into the game with the right mental approach.

“You have to understand that it will be a very difficult matchup," he said. "There is going to be a lot of suffering and you have to be ready to suffer against Real Madrid for 40 minutes.”

Jasikevicius has repeatedly been honest enough to admit it cannot be guaranteed that his team will perform at their highest level, ruefully noting that Barca occasionally suffers unexpected glitches when they struggle to reach their best. And he has no explanation for those downturns.

“I don’t know. You’ll have to ask the players," he shrugged. "I’ve been fighting for a year and a half and I accepted it already. I have to fight through it, not fight against it. The worst thing we can do is lie to one another that we’re different. We’re not. It’s been proven that we are in general very, very good, but we are an inconsistent and up-and-down team.”

"There are so many things that go into what you’re trying to teach the players over the course of the year: to be fast in thinking or moving; to be physical." 

Jasikevicius was, though, particularly pleased with the efforts of his players in Game 3 of the playoffs series against FC Bayern Munich, praising them for playing ‘simple basketball’. Elaborating on that idea, he explained: “We played as a team, we didn’t complicate things. Very quick passes out of double teams.”

However, he also explained why it’s impossible for any team – not just his own – to execute the things required to make ‘simple basketball’ happen.

“At this point, it’s not so easy to achieve. We set out to do some things and we did them \[against Bayern in Game 3\], but obviously, you have to do it all the time and it’s not so easy.

“There are a lot of things involved. A lot of stuff going on every game. Opponents throw different things at you, and you’re just not so good sometimes. It’s not easy or everyone would do it all the time.”

With those points in mind, Jasikevicius is reluctant to spell out his basketball philosophy, instead believing that players and coaches have to be prepared to undertake a constant process of evolution.

“There are so many things that go into what you’re trying to teach the players over the course of the year: to be fast in thinking or moving; to be physical. There’s a lot of stuff going on.

“I think we want to play together, we want to move the ball, we all want to be happy. We want to play fast. But the other team is also not so stupid. They will try to prevent you from those things, try not to allow you to play to your strengths or what you believe in the most. So it’s a constant adjustment over the course of a 10-month season. It’s a constant process. You have to make adjustments obviously, because the other teams are very good and they are preparing against you.”

The same is true on the defensive side of the ball, as the Lithuanian coach again underlined the need to be prepared for anything. 

“Every team is different,” he said. “Usually we will understand what we can risk and what we cannot risk. You set your priorities and try to work on them, trying to take away the strongest parts of the other team’s basketball.”

Another key aspect of coaching – especially during this decisive phase of the season – is preparing his players to psychologically manage the ups and downs of elite sport, which again cannot come with a simple ‘one size fits all’ approach. 

“Not always everybody will be happy,” he explained. “You have to accept that and deal with it in the best way possible. 

“There is a mixture between the team chats and little individual chats. Sometimes you need to help somebody out a little bit more, but somebody else maybe you need to leave them alone. We try to juggle it and you have to get help – you cannot do things on your own.”

Acibadem Healthcare Group has once again become the official medical services partner for European basketball's top event, guaranteeing the best possible care for the continent's top players and fans at the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Final Four.

Acibadem, Final Four medical services partner

The group will be providing medical services throughout the season finale in Belgrade, highlighting Euroleague Basketball's commitment to developing long-standing and meaningful relationships with premium brands to improve the quality of our events.

Acibadem strives to provide world-class healthcare for its patients, expanding its overseas footprint since 2011 to operate hospitals in Turkey, North Macedonia, Bulgaria and the Netherlands.

All of the hospitals within the group meet high global standards, including expertise and internationally accredited centers in cancer (surgical, radiotherapy, chemotherapy), heart care (pediatric and adult cardiology, and cardiac surgery), IVF, organ transplants (liver, kidney, bone marrow), spine care, sports medicine and robotic surgery.

Euroleague Basketball welcomes Technogym as the Official Training Partner of the 2022 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Final Four in Belgrade. The Italian-based Technogym is a leader in the field of commercial and home gym equipment. 

Technogym is the Official Training Partner of Belgrade Final Four

At the Final Four, Technogym will provide all the necessary premium equipment for players and team trainers to continue their normal workout patterns while in Belgrade on the chase for EuroLeague glory.

"Our athletes are used to training at their clubs' state-of-the-art facilities all season long and we are obliged to ensure they can continue to work out with the most advanced equipment as they prepare for success at the Final Four in Belgrade," Ibrahim Erkan, Euroleague Basketball Sports Director, said. "Technogym offers us the perfect solution for our players' and teams' needs, and we are delighted to partner with a premium brand that has a long-standing reputation in the training programs of world-class athletes from all across the sporting spectrum."

Technogym's stated goal is to help develop the philosophy of fitness and wellbeing and turn it into a true lifestyle. In doing so, it not only makes training products of the highest quality, but it complements that with all the necessary content and programs.

"At Technogym, we work every day to develop the best products and digital solutions to support professional athletes as well as fitness enthusiasts to reach their goals and their aspirations," Technogym Founder and CEO Nerio Alessandri said. "Technogym has been an Official Supplier of the last eight Olympic Games as well as the brand of reference for athletes training all over the world. Starting from our long-term commitment at the side of athletes, we are delighted that Euroleague Basketball has chosen Technogym as Official Partner of the Final Four."

Olympiacos Piraeus head coach Georgios Bartzokas heads to his third Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Final Four - and second with the Reds, which he guided to the 2013 crown.

E2021

Bartzokas made history earlier this month when his team ousted AS Monaco 3-2 in the EuroLeague Playoffs, becoming the first coach to win a deciding Game 5 of a EuroLeague Playoffs series for the third time.

While the coach is ending a six-year Final Four drought, Olympiacos is making its return to the season's pinnacle event for the first time since 2017 after a season that saw the team open and finish the regular season in style. The Reds set the tone by winning 12 of their first 17 games and finished by winning eight of their last 10 to claim second place in the standings.

Then came a thrilling playoff series against Monaco, in which Olympiacos won the first, third and fifth games, including rallying from a double-digit deficit in the decider in Piraeus.

"It is always difficult", Bartzokas said with a smile. "It is never going to be easy. Never in my life, but never for sure in Olympiacos's life. Everything is tough. But if it is tough, it is difficult, you appreciate it more."

Throughout the season, including during that series, Olympiacos displayed a great team effort with multiple players ready to take leading roles. Only one player, All-EuroLeague forward Sasha Vezenkov, averaged more than 25 minutes per game and the team averaged more than 80 points per game despite no players scoring better than 13.7 points and only three players averaging in double figures. It all aligned with Bartzokas's coaching philosophy.

"Day by day, practice by practice I try to create a philosophy that we are not selfish."

"If you see my teams at times, you will see the team effort and creativity," Bartzokas explained. "Everybody is involved in the offensive game. Everybody has to share the ball. We always appreciate a guy who passes the ball more than a guy who scores."

To have a philosophy is one thing, but to successfully implement and adapt it for each new season despite some inevitable roster turnover is another. For Bartzokas, it is a constant effort.

"Day by day, practice by practice I try to create a philosophy that we are not selfish. Whoever is selfish, he goes to the corner. If someone does not care about the team, cares only about his stats, he is leaving the team. That is my perspective," he said.

Final Four Interview: Georgios Bartzokas, Olympiacos Piraeus

But for as much he is proud of his teams and the success he's had in the past, Bartzokas will point out: "The roster here of Olympiacos this year is one of the best I ever had. Not only according to the talent but also for caring for each other."

In 2013, Bartzokas guided Olympiacos to the EuroLeague crown, one of the club's three EuroLeague titles. In 2016 he reached the Final Four with Lokomotiv Kuban Krasnodar, that club's only Final Four appearance, and in 2018 he led Khimki Moscow Region to the EuroLeague Playoffs, also the club's only such achievement.

In the past, Bartzokas has repeatedly succeeded and often done so almost instantly. This season with Olympiacos, however, the coach explained that the success is a result of a two-and-a-half-year process since he returned to the club.

"We needed patience because we were in the transitional period for the club," he said, referring to the status of the club's two legendary players. Vassilis Spanoulis retired and team captain Georgios Printezis is nearing the end of his career.

"We needed to bring some new kids here who fit the Olympiacos mentality," Bartzokas continued. "The fighting, playing for the team, playing for the fans. Being in the same philosophy that the philosophy of the club that you never give up, you keep on fighting."

"The roster here of Olympiacos this year is one of the best I ever had. Not only according to the talent but also for caring for each other."

This summer, Olympiacos signed Moustapha Fall, Thomas Walkup, Tyler Dorsey and Michalis Lountzis. They were added to a core of players, some of whom were added a summer earlier, including point guard and three-time EuroLeague champion Kostas Sloukas.

Each player chosen has his purpose and Bartzokas knowing the mentality he wanted was one of the keys to the Reds' success.

"I have experience from Olympiacos, it's that simple," Bartzokas said. "There is never an easy day. Whoever knows the club, knows it is something different. Fans, it is amazing how they support the club, and also they put pressure on the club to achieve things. At Olympiacos sometimes it is not easy to just win games. You need to play well, you need to sacrifice yourself for the team."

And even when the expectation rose because of the team performing well this season, Bartzokas had a way to handle it.

"I know exactly the mentality and I was trying every day not to set long-term goals, just the next practice, the next game. That was a philosophy I had to do, and I did it. To translate to everybody not to start thinking what is going to happen during the Final Four \[if we make it\], let's start watching the next game, the next practice. And finally, we ended up reaching the Final Four."

What separated Olympiacos from other teams this season was its consistency. They lost two consecutive games in mid-November and had a four-game losing streak in January after the team was struck with 13 COVID-19 cases. Other than those two occasions, Olympiacos never lost consecutive games.

"Whenever we had a tough loss we bounced back. We were always ready to play the next game", Bartzokas pointed out. "I am more concerned about this team after a big win, not after a big loss. I am sure we are going to be ready, going to prepare mentally and physically in the right way. I was not concerned about attitude."

One can easily assign the credit for that bounce-back ability to Bartzokas. He went on a record in the past saying that for a coach "losses can feel like funerals", but also that "for a coach, it's always very important to see how a team reacts when they lose a game."

Bartzokas also admitted that he, as a coach, is more mature. Years on the sidelines and being in many different situations have helped him shape an understanding of how to navigate through the season.

"I am more concerned about this team after a big win, not after a big loss. I am sure we are going to be ready, going to prepare mentally and physically in the right way."

"We did not have many ups and downs, which are normal in a long season. It is impossible to always be at a high level, you have to admit that. It is normal to see the champions lose by 30 points. The level of intensity is fantastic in Europe, physicality is great. You cannot always be in a winning process," Bartzokas said.

"You just need to handle the situation inside the locker room, in the environment of the team. You need to be supportive, you need to have conflicts. You must do this sometimes. There are many egos in any professional basketball team, and sometimes you need conflicts, you need to be tough."

When it comes to this season, Bartzokas says his players made it easier for him.

"I am really lucky, we have great characters this year. Everybody is caring about each other. Five or six players came to my office and asked how can we help one teammate that is not feeling good right now, how can we support him?

"When I saw this, I was sure about this team and what we can achieve."

Bartzokas said that he believes the way the team went about business throughout the season, including overcoming the high-pressure Game 5 in the playoffs, can give it an advantage in Belgrade.

The series against Monaco made us better as a team. It helped us get stronger, and stick together. And I believe it was the same for Monaco, which is a better team after going through the series. We might be better in the Final Four just because of the series," Bartzokas concluded. "Now, we have to prepare our minds, and prepare ourselves tactically, physically and mentally to compete against the European champions."

Georgios Bartzokas, Olympiacos: 'I was sure about this team'

Georgios Bartzokas - Olympiacos Piraeus - EB21-PO3

When he first left his native Hungary for Spain in 2011, Adam Hanga was very much a complete unknown, certainly for fans. More than a decade later, his career lacks only a Turkish Airlines EuroLeague title to seal his status as one of the signature players of the competition since his debut in 2013.

Adam Hanga, Real: 'The third time is the charm, right?' 

Hanga arrives in Belgrade this week for his third Final Four with three different teams: Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz, FC Barcelona and, now, Real Madrid.

In his very first Final Four game, an overtime semifinal loss to Fenerbahce Istanbul in 2016, Hanga was on the court for almost 42 minutes, more than any player in a Final Four game since 2010 and the third-most ever.

"I can recall that game minute-by-minute, to be honest," Hanga says. "I remember the gym was full of yellow because they were all Fenerbahce fans, and the experience was amazing. Obviously, I was a little bit nervous at the beginning, but I think that was the year in my career when I established myself as a player. So, for me, it was a really important year, and obviously to get to the Final Four with that team... If you look back now at the roster, you understand why we made it to the Final Four. But at that moment, no one was expecting us to be there." 

"This year, with the fans and everything back in the arena, I think it's going to be amazing."

Hanga was a tad older than Tornike Shengelia and Mike James, among others, as they went on that magic carpet ride to Berlin with Baskonia. The next season, EuroLeague head coaches recognized Hanga with the Best Defender Trophy. Then, he moved to Barcelona for four years, culminating in the team's runner-up finish at last season's Final Four in Cologne, Germany. In contrast to his first Final Four experience, however, Hanga was barely used in last season's championship game, which Barcelona lost to Anadolu Efes Istanbul.

Final Four Interview: Adam Hanga, Real Madrid

"If you talk about possibilities of winning the Final Four, winning the title, last year I was pretty close to it," Hanga recounts. "Obviously, it was really unfortunate that I couldn't play that many minutes. But you know, I've always been a team player and I always try to be a good teammate. And my goal was always to win as a team. Last year, I was at a moment of the season when I was not one of the most important players in Barcelona, so I accepted it. It was obviously tough; everybody has character and, obviously, I wanted to play. But I accepted it and I was the one going crazy on the bench for 40 minutes in the final."

When his contract with Barcelona ended, Hanga was snapped up by Real to bring his proven defensive pedigree to the backcourt. Hanga plugged right into head coach Pablo Laso's rotation and has started 24 of the 29 games he has played this season.

"The adjustment was easy because I played against Madrid so many times in the past 10 years that I kind of knew everybody. I kind of knew the system. I kind of knew what they want to do," Hanga explains. "So, for me, it was like the easiest transition to come from Barcelona to Real Madrid."

"El Clasico in the semifinals, I think it's huge. I think it's huge for EuroLeague, it's huge for basketball, it's huge for us."

His old and new teams jockeyed for the top two spots in the EuroLeague standings until Real struggled down the home stretch of the regular season and tumbled to fourth place. That presumed a tougher playoffs matchup with fifth-place Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv, which was as hot as Real was cold late in the season. Nonetheless, Real found its mojo and registered the only playoffs sweep of any series as Hanga's averages soared to 9.3 points, 4.7 rebounds and 2.3 assists and 1.0 steals. In just 21:49 minutes per game, roughly 3 more than until the playoffs, he more than doubled his performance index rating to 13.0.

"Throughout that bad period, already we were saying to ourselves that we knew we were going to get through it. Obviously, this happens sometimes for teams; the only thing was that for us, it was pretty long. It's like we looked pretty desperate to get out of that hole. But the confidence, we had it from the very beginning," Hanga said. 

Spalding Dunk of the Night: Hanga hammer!

"Nobody sees inside our locker room. Nobody sees what's going on. People might see what's going on on the court, or what we tell to the press. But nobody sees what's going on in the locker room. And in the locker room, I think we were always confident.

"And I think we came back at the best moment, to be honest. Right before the playoffs, we got together one last time. We had a barbecue at Rudy \[Fernandez\]'s house. We talked about it again, and we came through. So, that's all that matters." 

Another part of Real's story this season has been losing to Barcelona, its semifinal opponent on Friday in Belgrade in what will be just the third such El Clásico in Final Four history. 

"It's no secret that they've had the upper hand in the last five games they beat us, including the Spanish League and Spanish Cup final," Hanga says. "So obviously, they have found a way in which they could beat us. And we have to find the way that we can beat them. As we all know, it's one game, so defense is going to be key. Apart from that: physicality, concentration. Obviously, the team that's going to make less mistakes is going to make it to the final." 

It is safe to say that Hanga is unlikely to be cheerleading for much of the semifinal on Friday. But neither is he distracted by the idea of showing his old team what they are missing. Rather, he is keen to keep his eyes on the only major prize that has eluded him in his rise from relative anonymity to EuroLeague standard-bearer. 

"This year, to be honest, I was not thinking about revenge or anything like this. I was focusing on the task ahead of us, which for us at Real Madrid was making it to the Final Four. This was the only thing on my mind," Hanga says. "Even now that I know we are going to play against Barcelona, and all of my friends and a lot of people are asking me, 'Do you feel like revenge?', I say, 'No, to be honest, I don't really feel anything like this.' The only thing I feel is that I want to win because I want to lift the title. But it has nothing to do with Barcelona. If we have to go through Barcelona, so be it."

Swingman James Anderson represents all that’s special about the defending champs as a one-time elite scorer who has embraced a much-different supporting role during his four seasons with Anadolu Efes Istanbul.

James Anderson, Efes: 'Whatever it takes for me to impact the team'

Those who are first seeing Anderson play today may not know what a talented scorer he can be. The 33-year-old small forward led his conference in scoring in college, was a double-digit scorer during one of his seasons in the NBA and was among the top 10 scorers in the EuroLeague in his first season in the competition, in 2014-15 with Zalgiris Kaunas. 

“In the past, I would go into the game thinking about how to score, I'm pretty sure the same way that Shane [Larkin] and Vasa [Micic], knowing that they’re going in trying to figure out how to beat the trap or where they're going to get their shots or where they're going to come from,” Anderson explained. “Now I feel like my approach is just trying to affect the game defensively and look to score when I have a chance and when I can be aggressive and it’s definitely a different approach.”

Members of the Efes coaching staff and his teammates credit Anderson for being a team-first guy on and off the court. What makes the transition in role even more impressive is that Anderson himself didn’t see it coming. 

“I was still in the mindset of scoring the ball and just being aggressive in that manner,” Anderson said of his thinking when he signed with Efes in the summer of 2018. “Coming here with so many guys made it impossible to play the same way that I was playing. So I just took the time to help develop the role of whatever it takes for me to impact the team…

“We mostly call on our guards to score and they get most of the balls, so I had to find another way to impact the game. Once I'm called on to score and I see the opportunity, that's when I try and take the opportunity. But I really don't try to force and go after a bucket like I normally used to do. So I just started trying to figure out other ways to impact the game and be on the court.” 

"It's a great group of guys. We have no issues off the court. Everyone gets along. Everybody puts their egos to the side... It's definitely a recipe to make it to the championship."

How dramatic was the change in Anderson’s game? At his peak as a scorer, he was among the best in the game. Anderson scored a career-high 37 points in college at Oklahoma St. University, notched 36 in the NBA with Philadelphia and netted 27 in his first EuroLeague season with Zalgiris. This season, Anderson had seven games in which he attempted just 1 field goal and five in which he did not attempt any. In Game 3 of the playoffs against AX Armani Exchange Milan, Anderson played 24:15 and impacted the game through defense with 3 steals, but did not attempt a single field goal!

Of course, that scoring touch does come in handy when needed. Anderson scored 11 points in 7 minutes off the bench in Round 27 to help his team to a rout of Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv and with Micic sidelined in the regular-season finale, Anderson stepped up with 12 points on excellent shooting. He set a career-best in three-point shooting accuracy this season by making 47.6% of his attempts from deep. 

“I feel like there's certain times where I feel like I can be aggressive. There’s times where after the game I go back and look at the game where I take on myself because I feel like I wasn't aggressive enough. That's usually most of the cases, not being aggressive enough,” Anderson explained before adding that his teammates often want him to shoot more. “They are definitely encouraging me and telling me to be more aggressive. It's mostly on me to know when and not to wait on it to come and go out and actually search for a shot or be aggressive attacking the basket.”

Final Four Interview: James Anderson, Anadolu Efes Istanbul

Anderson deflects credit for his role in making Efes one of the league’s top teams over his tenure there. However, he is quick to praise his teammates, coaches and club management. 

“We have a great group of high-character guys who, like I said, even from the top with Shane and Vasa, no one has an ego. We all hold each other accountable to play our role and do what we have to do to win,” Anderson said. “It can literally be anybody who beats you from one all the way through. We have such an amazing group of guys who do so many different things and everybody on the team can shoot the ball and can score in bunches. It's just a matter of how the game is played and whose night it is.

“[Coach Ataman] and the GM get a lot of credit. It's a great group of guys. We have no issues off the court. Everyone gets along. Everybody puts their egos to the side. So anytime you can do that and build the chemistry that we have, it's definitely a recipe to make it to the championship.”

There is one more piece to the puzzle that Anderson said Efes needs to complete their historic run by winning back-to-back EuroLeague championships: the support of the Efes fans at the Final Four in Belgrade. 

“Last year we had no fans and there was a different atmosphere and this year it will be different. We have a different team to face against so it'll be different approach. We got to put last year in the past and try to get this one this year,” he said. “We definitely need all our fans to come out and support us because Olympiacos will have a lot of fans.”

James Anderson - Anadolu Efes Istanbul - EB21