He is averaging team highs of 15.8 points and a 16.2 PIR this season
Kevin Punter gears up for his first Clásico: ‘I understand what’s at stake’
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The 37th edition of El Clásico this century in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague will see Kevin Punter come up against Real Madrid for the first time in an FC Barcelona jersey, but he certainly has experience of playing in high-pressure derbies.
Punter, who got to experience the Belgrade derby during his three years as a Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade player, is looking forward to what awaits Barcelona on Thursday night (20:45 CET), one day before the Azulgrana celebrate their 125th anniversary.
“It’s a lot of pride, it’s a lot of bragging rights,” Punter said in a feature interview. “Those derby games are not just regular games, everybody knows that. But the most important thing is obviously to win.”
Joan Penarroya’s men come into El Clásico after suffering back-to-back defeats to Paris Basketball and FC Bayern Munich, which resulted in Barcelona giving up 100 or more points in consecutive games for the first time in EuroLeague history. The good thing for Barcelona is that in Punter, it has a player who knows what to expect in a game the magnitude of El Clásico.
“I played in real, real crazy derbies, so I understand exactly what’s at stake,” he added. “Understanding who you’re playing against and how those games work. It takes experience to play in those games. I pretty much did the same thing last year when I was with Partizan, so I understand how those games go.”