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Axel Bouteille, Turk Telekom: 'It's going to be exciting'

Axel Bouteille, Turk Telekom: 'It's going to be exciting'

Interviews

2 May 20236 Mins read

Javier Gancedo

Axel Bouteille, Turk Telekom: 'It's going to be exciting'

Turk Telekom Ankara has reached the 7DAYS EuroCup finals for the first time and scoring ace Axel Bouteille has been a big reason why. Bouteille leads the 2022-23 EuroCup in total points scored with 374 and counting. He has been very effective from all angles, making 58.7% of his two-point shots, 44.8% from downtown and 88.9% from the line, as well as 4.8 rebounds for a PIR average of 18.0. He was the Semifinals MVP, too, after amassing 16 points and 8 rebounds for a PIR of 22 in his team's road victory over Prometey Slobozhanske. Bouteille knows a win against Gran Canaria would be a dream come true. "For me, it was a big goal of mine this season so, of course, if we win, I'll be very, very happy," Bouteille told EuroCupBasketball.com. "It will be a great achievement. And for the team too, I think it will be their first time and like they told me, it would be history, but we don't want to stop here."

Hello, Axel. Congratulations on making it to the EuroCup Finals. You reached this far with a lot of newcomers. How has your EuroCup season been until now?

"All the team was new, basically, I think except one player. We were all new: players, coaching staff, etc, and we've been working from the preseason all together, and I think we always stuck together. We go in the same direction and we had a pretty good regular season, and now we keep doing this in the playoffs, so it's nice."

Your toughest game was against Prometey in the semifinals. What allowed you to win it?

"I think they had a way better start than us. We didn't start so good, but after that, we came back in the game. We were up at halftime and I think [in the] second half, we fought the whole game and in the end, we won by two. They had the last shots, it was tough, but we managed to win the game, so we are really happy to get this win on the road to secure our spot in the final."

You lost twice against Gran Canaria this season. Is that something we must consider, or a final is a completely different animal?

"I think in both games, they were better than us, especially in the first half. We came back in the second half every time, I think, but it was not enough. So they were better than us in those two games. But like you say, it's a final, it's one game and I think anything can happen and I'm confident in my team."

Granca has a deeper roster and uses more players. How much of an impact can that have in the final?

"I think this is their style. We both have our style of playing and we both had success like this during the season. They had success, we had success. So I think if both teams are here right now, that means it's been working and I don't think it's bad for us, no. I think it's good and we'll keep on doing this if it's necessary."

Both teams have many newcomers to the EuroCup final. Is controlling your emotions and excitement a big part of winning?

"Yeah, for sure. It's going to be exciting. And for sure, it's one game but like I said, with the format of the competition, in the last three games we won, if we had lost, we were at home. It's not a series. It's just one game. Like the eighthfinal, quarterfinal, semifinal was the same, so it's one more game like this. For sure, it's the most important. It's the title game. So I think we get prepared for this with all the three games we just played and it's a final, so we know the winners win the 'chip. And I think I'm pretty confident with my team about the nervous stuff and I think we're in a good position."

How difficult was it for the team to focus after the big earthquake in Turkiye and to keep winning games like you did?

"I remember we played in Italy this day, but I think we use this, too, as motivation: the Turkish guys and the foreign players because I think we saw what happened. We see the faces of the people in our club and we use this as motivation to play for them. Like our coach said in the last game, I think the wins we have been having is for us to remember them because what happened was a really, really difficult situation for the country. So we just play for them, too."

"We know the winners win the 'chip. And I think I'm pretty confident with my team."

You are going against another great small forward in Nico Brussino. How do you like this matchup?

"I played three years in Spain, so I played a lot against him. This year, too, so yes, for sure, I know him. Obviously, everybody knows him. He's a really good player. I think he's really versatile. He can do a lot of stuff on the court and yeah, it's going to be a good matchup. But I think it's going to be a lot more good players in this game, so it's not me against him. It's more about the teams, too, even if it's going to be a good matchup."

In general, what will be the main keys to beating Gran Canaria?

"I think it's going to be the consistency we show during the game. I think in both games we played against them, they had a better first half than us, we had a better second half than them, so it's going to be the team who plays the best for the whole game. That's what I think."

What would it mean for you, the club and the people in Ankara to win the EuroCup?

"For me, it was a big goal of mine this season so, of course, if we win, I'll be very, very happy. It will be a great achievement. And for the team too, I think it will be their first time and like they told me, it would be history, but we don't want to stop here. We really want to win this EuroCup and it will be a big achievement for the club, for Turkiye and for me, for sure. And I'm really looking forward to playing this game."