Check out what the coaches and players are saying ahead of Round 14 of the 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague season.
Pregame quotes hub: 'Paris is top of the standings, that says a lot'
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Friday, December 6
AS Monaco vs. ALBA Berlin (19:00 CET)
Vassilis Spanoulis, AS Monaco head coach
"We'll need to be consistent for 40 minutes, and it's up to us to make our mark at home. Of course, when you lose a game like the one against Olympiacos, you can be disappointed, but you have to be mentally strong to bounce back very quickly. It's the EuroLeague, a constant challenge; you have to move forward, fight, progress, and it's the team that's the strongest in the head that'll be able to evolve the best throughout the season. There's no point in projecting ourselves far ahead, you have to question yourself every time, starting with me, and try to understand what went wrong last time and put things right. We mustn't make excuses and move forward, and that's what's so important about this match against ALBA Berlin."
Georgios Papagiannis, AS Monaco center
"Against Olympiacos we passed the ball well, which is a very good thing, but we weren't hard enough on the rebounds in particular. Of course, we need to bounce back against ALBA. It's a home game that we have to win. We need to secure the advantage of playing at home, because we know how difficult it is to win away from home in the EuroLeague."
Israel Gonzalez, ALBA Berlin head coach
"Monaco has a high level of individual quality in his roster. That's why good one-on-one defense will be very important for us. We're also continuing to work on building up rhythm with the players returning from injury."
Tim Schneider, ALBA Berlin forward
"Playing two EuroLeague games in such a short space of time is no easy task, especially after such an intense game as against Virtus on Wednesday. But we've built up a bit of self-confidence, which we have to build on for the remaining challenges this week."
Olympiacos Piraeus vs. Paris Basketball (20:15 CET)
Georgios Bartzokas, Olympiacos Piraeus head coach
"Paris is a very good team with a clear structure. They play very well on both ends. They have had the same game style for the last 2-3 years. They are on the top of the standings, and that says a lot. For us it is a game under special circumstances, since we have one day less than our opponent to get some rest and get prepared. Our flight from Monaco landed at 6 in the morning. Since it is going to be a game in which energy will be the key, we must play smart. We should not allow ourselves to be carried by our enthusiasm and our feelings. Every possession is going to be important; that’s why we must protect the ball. We must be patient. We have some problems… Sasha [Vezenkov] went to the hospital today because he is suffering from tonsillitis, and [Moustapha] Fall is injured and he will not play. Still, it is a game that we really want to win. The gym will be full as the game is sold out."
Luca Vildoza, Olympiacos Piraeus guard
"It is going to be a tough game. They play with confidence and at a very high pace. I believe that it is going to be a real fight over who will control the pace. There is no doubt that Paris is a very good team, with very good players. I feel that tomorrow's game will look like a war. TJ Shorts is a great player. He is the main leader in this team, and his statistics are impressive. We have to play hard defense on him and at the same time not allow any of his teammates to step up on offense."
Virtus Segafredo Bologna vs. Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade (20:30 CET)
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EA7 Emporio Armani Milan vs. LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne (20:45 CET)
Ettore Messina, EA7 Emporio Armani Milan head coach
"We face a very athletic team, well organized on offense around the talent of its guards and the excellent use of the pick and roll, and with a full-court defense that knows how to be very aggressive. The theme of the game for us will be defense, to keep the pace high, and fast ball movement against their defense."
Thursday, December 5
Zalgiris Kaunas vs. Anadolu Efes Istanbul (19:00 CET)
Tomislav Mijatovic, Anadolu Efes Istanbul head coach
"We are entering the second game of the double-game week against a very tough home-court opponent which has a great offensive system presented through their main player and offensive leader, Lonnie Walker. They are a very well-coached team that requires our maximum effort on both sides of the court. That being said, we have to do great individual as well as team effort and present 40 minutes of hard played Anadolu Efes basketball in order to reach our goal and conclude the double-game week with the second victory."
Rolands Smits, Anadolu Efes Istanbul forward
"It will be a very difficult game. Zalgiris Kaunas is playing with different energy at home, they have very good and talented players. We need to be ready for a physical game."
Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv vs. FC Barcelona (20:05 CET)
Oded Kattash, Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv head coach
"We've faced a lot of challenges. We've had injured players, we've had newcomers... Basically, we lost many key players last summer, so we are trying to build something. But it's not easy with all of the travelling and the schedule that we have. Almost every 2-3 days we have a game. So we have to, in between, try to build the process and hopefully to get some confidence. We are facing another great offensive team in Barcelona, which really plays with a high tempo, dominant bigs, dominant guards. We have to go to our basics. It's easy to say, tough to do."
Jaylen Hoard, Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv forward
"Our main focus should be on personnel. They're a talented team individually, so we really have to focus in on guys strengths and things like that. I feel like once we know those things, try to play good team defense. I feel like that's been hurting us a little bit, so I think if we can take care of that part of the court, I feel like our offense will be fine; we'll be able to flow, get easy buckets on the other end, so I think our defense is the main pillar we have to focus on."
Marial Shayok, Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv guard
"I think our main focus is just to stay together. Coming off a tough loss, I think we've just got to keep our energy right, listen to Coach's game plan, and keep together and keep the chemistry high. Coming out and playing hard tomorrow and see what happens."
Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade vs. Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens (20:30 CET)
Zeljko Obradovic, Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade head coach
"We're playing against Panathinaikos, the European champions. They've added Omer Yurtseven and Cedi Osman to their roster, both with NBA experience, as well as Lorenzo Brown, one of the best point guards in Europe. They have a very deep roster and tremendous quality, so it’s clear what kind of opponent we’re facing. Last night, they played an outstanding and highly competitive game against Barcelona. They have versatile perimeter players and [Mathias] Lessort, who dominates in the paint. Their players at the '4' position are exceptional shooters, so it’s hard to say where the biggest threat will come from. We must avoid repeating the defensive mistakes from the first half against Zalgiris. We need to be aware that another very challenging game is ahead of us, and we have to be significantly better."
Frank Ntilikina, Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade guard
"I expect a tough game, as they are a talented team and the reigning champions. However, this game is no different from any other EuroLeague matchup – it's a high level of competition, and we can't expect anything less."
Ergin Ataman, Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens head coach
"It's a great team, Partizan, and a great coach [in Zeljko Obradovic]. Of course, a great atmosphere. It will be a very difficult game on the road. But I believe that in that kind of atmosphere, we have the atmosphere, we have the experience to play an aggressive game. Maybe we will play more aggressive on our home court because on our home court, we have a lot of confidence about winning the game. Now we know that, starting from the first minute, we must fight for every possession to win this game. I don't think the score will be too high in this game. It will be more important offensively to attack well, being smart to not make a turnover, because the worst thing in that kind of game is to give the opponent fast-break points after turnovers. For me, when I started coaching, it's always a pleasure to play against Zeljko because he's a maestro, he's part of the history of EuroLeague basketball. It's a pleasure and always I try to beat him – sometimes I won, sometimes he won – but we continue to fight."
Jerian Grant, Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens guard
"They're playing well, we're going to have to come ready. They've got one of the best fan bases in the world. Our defense has to get better, but the way we score the ball, it's going to be tough for opponents to keep up. We're figuring it out, but as long as we get the win, that's the most important. But we're trying to fix a bit of everything."
FC Bayern Munich vs. Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz (20:30 CET)
Gordie Herbert, FC Bayern Munich head coach
"This is a game where we need to get back on our feet. We need a defensive reaction, and it’s good that we’ll be playing again at the SAP Garden in front of our amazing fans. Our offense is not the problem."
Real Madrid vs. Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul (20:45 CET)
Chus Mateo, Real Madrid head coach
"We know that we have to take a step forward. We are at a point in the season where we are aware that we have to get into a good position. Right now we find ourselves out of the playoffs. We are taking one step forward followed by one step back, and we need to move forward and do things with more consistency. We have good moments and not so good moments in which we must grit our teeth and be much more solid, something we have been looking for since the beginning of the season and the time has come to do it because we cannot let games slip away. Tomorrow we play in front of our fans, we need them more than ever, but we are the ones who have to start by taking a step forward. Fenerbahce is at the top of the standings, they are doing things right, they have a very good team, players with a lot of quality on the perimeter like [Marko] Guduric, [Arturs] Zagars, [Wade] Baldwin, [Tarik] Biberovic and [Bonzie] Colson and a great inside game with [Sertac] Sanli who can open the court, [Nicolo] Melli who sometimes plays at the '5' or Nigel Hayes-Davis who is a player who is playing at an excellent level this year. We know what we are facing, a team that plays good defense, does not take too many shots and has very good percentages. That's why we have to be especially careful with their perimeter players, with their shooters."
Usman Garuba, Real Madrid center
"Tomorrow we play a key game for us, even more so playing at home where we want to do our best to get the victory. We know what we have to do and we are prepared for it. We have to play as a team, defend as a team, be consistent throughout the game, avoid avoidable mistakes and give our all to win because stringing together a good streak is important for us. We want to play in front of our fans after several road games. Now we have four in a row at WiZink which will be decisive to gain confidence, but the first thing is to face Fenerbahçe, a club that always represents a great challenge."
Sarunas Jasikevicius, Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul head coach
"[We are] facing one of the most difficult away games. Real Madrid is a team where the players know each other incredibly well. They have great players in every position. For sure they will be very motivated after the last games. So, we need to focus on taking easy points first in transition and the offensive rebounding. We also need to deal with their great players like [Facu] Campazzo and [Walter] Tavares."
Marko Guduric, Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul guard
"Second game of the double week. It is always tough, especially if you are on the road. We have had a difficult stretch so far, but we have to come out ready to fight on their home court. As we all know, it is very difficult to play there. They also struggle a little bit, like us. But the energy and the competitiveness will decide the winner, whoever wants it more."
