After five seasons out of the EuroLeague, the Virtus boss swiftly made his presence felt again.
Luca Banchi, Virtus: 'As a coach, you have to adapt'
In just its second season after returning to the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague, Virtus Segafredo Bologna has emerged as arguably the most surprising team in the competition thanks in great part to a new man at the head of the bench, Luca Banchi.
Banchi arrived to Bologna rather unexpectedly on September 15, a couple of weeks before the start of the regular season, before which all had pointed to Sergio Scariolo continuing as the team's head coach. After the initial shock, Banchi's system started to sink in little by little.
"My first mission was not to change too much," Banchi explains. "I was conscious of the power of the roster (...) I decided to understand as soon as possible the pillars of the system (...) and, little by little, add some changes that made our style more familiar with my vision."
Virtus started the EuroLeague season with a narrow home loss, but after that reeled off a string of five wins that sent the team's morale through the roof. Since then, Virtus has been hovering over the playoff spots with no signs of slowing down anytime soon.
"He gave us a lot of confidence," Virtus big man Toko Shengelia says. "He also understands the players that we are. At this level, we know pretty much what we can do on the court. He just gives us the confidence."
Banchi's return to the continental elite came after a five-year absence since his last stint in the EuroLeague, in 2017-18 with Brose Bamberg. Most recently, he was also named Best Coach of the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023 after leading Latvia to an unexpected fifth-place finish. Banchi himself believes that one of the keys to this success is evolving with the game.
"Basketball is evolving," Banchi says. "And, as a coach, I believe you have to adapt your style, your ideas, to personnel changes."