Check out what the coaches and players are saying ahead of Round 2 of the 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague season
Pre-game quotes hub: 'We want to start well in front of our fans'
Article
13 Mins read
The second week of the 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague season is upon us, with two games on Wednesday, four on Thursday and three on Friday. Ahead of Round 2, we bring you the pre-game quotes from all the teams in one place. This page will be updated with the thoughts of the players and head coaches of all 18 teams.
Wednesday, October 9
AS Monaco vs. Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv (19:00 CEST)
Oded Kattash, Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv head coach
"We are facing a quality team that has a lot of tools, on a difficult court. We want to continue to improve and hope to get a W in a challenging away gym."
John DiBartolomeo, Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv guard
"The keys for us are obviously being defensively a challenge, slowing down their guards -- a lot of playmakers, a lot of guys who can make shots. That'll be the main focus for us defensively to be in the game."
Levi Randolph, Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv forward
"The key is to follow the game plan, be aggressive on defense, keep the flow on offense, and play together. We're stronger when we play together. We have a lot of great talent, a lot of great guys, so I think that's the key. Just play together, continue to play strong, and stay focused."
Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade vs. Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz (20:00 CEST)
Ioannis Sfairopoulos, Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade head coach
"We expect the big support of our fans. We are playing against a team that won in its opening game and comes here extra motivated. We have to follow our plan, defend against a good team, have different options in attack, read what they are trying to do and disrupt their game offensively. We have watched all of Baskonia's games, we know their strengths. We can play much better, but the most important thing is to win. Even when you're not playing your best, you have to win."
Dejan Davidovac, Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade forward
"It will be a tough game. Baskonia is a good team, which plays a lot in transition, more or less like every Spanish team. We need to pay attention to defensive transition and defense, they score a lot of points -- I think that will be the key."
Thursday, October 10
Anadolu Efes Istanbul vs. Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul (19:30 CEST)
Tomislav Mijatovic, Anadolu Efes Istanbul head coach
"Very exciting time for our team because we are opening up our first home game in the EuroLeague this season in our new arena. So of course, it's a very exciting and very good time for us. Of course, we have a very difficult inner-city rival, a very well-coached team, and we have to do absolutely everything defensively and offensively on the highest possible level in order to reach our goal, which is to win the game."
Rodrigue Beaubois, Anadolu Efes Istanbul guard
"Thursday is our first home game in the EuroLeague in our new arena. Games against Fenerbahce Beko are always exciting and competitive. It will definitely be a tough game, but we want to use the energy of our home crowd to go get that first win at home."
Sarunas Jasikevicius, Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul head coach
"It is a very difficult road game. Anadolu Efes started the season excellently, and it is always difficult to play on the road. We have to understand what we did not do well in the Turkish Super Cup and try to correct it. We need to understand that there will be difficult moments during the game that we have to really stay together as a team."
Bonzie Colson, Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul forward
"It is going to be a great game, a great atmosphere. We are excited -- obviously it is a rivalry between two teams in Istanbul. We need to continue our momentum that we had in the Olympiacos game and try to continue to get better."
LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne vs. Virtus Segafredo Bologna (20:00 CEST)
Luca Banchi, Virtus Segafredo Bologna head coach
“This first road game against ASVEL will force us to provide a careful and aggressive performance to curb their exuberance, amplified by the fact that we are playing our home debut, aware that we came close to winning against an accredited team like Maccabi. We arrive at this match determined to give a further sign of our progress, with the desire to put forth all the spirit it takes to achieve success against an opponent of this level.”
Ante Zizic, Virtus Segafredo Bologna center
“It will be the first EuroLeague game at ASVEL's home and that's why they will be pumped up. They come from a good game against Maccabi that was decided only in the final minutes and from the win with Monaco in the domestic league. From our side, it will take focus for 40 minutes. We want to play a serious game.”
Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens vs. FC Bayern Munich (20:15 CEST)
Ergin Ataman, Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens head coach
"Bayern showed their potential. I believe they have a vey good roster with very experienced players, like Voigtmann, Napier at point guard, Obst a great shooter, Lucic, Booker, Nick Weiler-Babb, Edwards. They have 10-11 very experienced players for the EuroLeague and they showed they have power to beat Real Madrid. It will be a tough game, our first in our new [renovated] arena, which is now very close to be the best arena in Europe. It just needs little bit more luxury in our locker room, then I will say it is the best arena in Europe.
"I am not satisfied with how we played so far this season. I hope with home-court advantage and big motivation in front of our fans, that we start to understand that the new EuroLeague has started, with new goals. Last season is finished, everybody is proud for the last year, but now the goal is the new season and we need the same motivation."
Juancho Hernangomez, Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens forward
"They are a great team. In the EuroLeague, every team can beat anyone. We got to get ready. We are here for a battle, we are not here for a party. The fans will surely enjoy, but we have to win first. We did what we did, it was great, it was one of the best seasons ever. We know that, but we want more. We are here for more, and we are working really hard to get more. Our mind is not just to be in the Final Four, but to win back-to-back. There will be ups and downs, we have to be strong when down and not be too excited when we are up. That is the only mentality."
Gordie Herbert, FC Bayern Munich head coach
"They had a great last year. Coach Ataman has done an outstanding job. They have an extremely talented team, playing really good basketball. This is a huge challenge, but as always, also an opportunity for us. Above all, we have to take away their second-chance opportunities and force them into a half-court game. They are extremely talented if they get fast-break points and get on the offensive glass, so we've got to neutralize that."
Danko Brankovic, FC Bayern Munich center
"It's going to be really tough because the atmosphere there is as good as anywhere else in the EuroLeague and they have a really good team. They also had a strong offseason after keeping many excellent players. Nevertheless, we are going there to win and not just to play against them."
Real Madrid vs. Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade (20:45 CEST)
Chus Mateo, Real Madrid head coach
“Any game in the EuroLeague is difficult and tomorrow we will try to improve on what we have shown so far because, by improving, we will have a chance to win. Everything happens by doing a good job on defense, by being able to make good choices on offense, to read the game well; in short, to play good basketball because when you play well, you are always more likely to win than when you play badly.
“Partizan is a physical team with very good one-on-one players on the perimeter and players known all over the world. It has a lot of pick-and-roll generators like Ntilikina, Carlik Jones, Sterling Brown, Lundberg and Marinkovic and, in addition, it has a very good inside game with Brandon Davis and Tyrique Jones. Partizan has built a good team, a physical and one-on-one team capable of overflowing and generating advantages. I think tomorrow we have to stop Partizan from doing a lot of things. We will have to be very attentive to our defensive balance and try to prevent them from generating too many advantages from the pick and roll. We have to be more solid in rebounding and also watch their low-post game."
Gaby Deck, Real Madrid forward
“Tomorrow we have a tough game, like every EuroLeague game. We are happy to play at home and we hope to do our best to try to get the win. Partizan has a great coach and a great roster, but we have to focus on ourselves and try to do our things well. We have to keep improving our collective game, our play as a team because this year we have had a lot of changes on the roster. We have to find ourselves, maintain a good dynamic and continue to improve."
Zeljko Obradovic, Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade head coach
"We know how good Real Madrid is, and we are aware of both their qualities and ours. We have prepared for this game and want to play the best game we can at this moment. We have spoken with the players and had three good training sessions in preparation for the game. We will try to play the way we did in the last [ABA League] game, as well as one in Vitoria where we lost. We will need more focus, which we lacked in the match against Baskonia."
Iffe Lundberg, Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade guard
"I expect a very good game. First and foremost, it will be a high-intensity match. Both teams are very competitive, and we’re both coming off tough losses in the EuroLeague. So, we need to get on the court and fight."
Friday, October 11
Olympiacos Piraeus vs. Zalgiris Kaunas (20:15 CEST)
Georgios Bartzokas, Olympiacos Piraeus head coach
“Zalgiris played very well against Barcelona, with great aggression on both sides and especially on defense. They had nine steals of the ball that ended up in transition. They put their hands on the ball, generally attacking the ball a lot, protecting their basket. They also have some top-level defensive players at the '4' and '5' and on the perimeter. So, what we have to do is to match their aggressiveness and their physicality. It's going to be a tough game. We have some problems… Petrusev did not feel well and did not practice today, but we hope that he will be fine tomorrow. On the other hand, McKissic is back. You ask me when what I have in mind for the team will start to show on the floor. The truth is that I can't put a time frame on it because first of all, it has to do with when our injured players will return. Right now, our practices are very intense but they can't be long. Yesterday was Fall's first training session. So far, we have only had two big men at practice. So, it has to do with that. When the whole team will practice together. Hopefully in the next few days Milutinov will come in and the competition will increase. The duration of training will increase and inevitably the duration of good performance in games will increase."
Moses Wright, Olympiacos Piraeus center
“As Coach says, it's important to play hard with physicality and be focused on defense. Zalgiris is a very good team. We analyzed the game plan and we are ready to follow it in order to get our first Euroleague win. Comparing to our first game against Fenerbahce tomorrow, we must do better on rebounding. If we do that and we play good defense, we can get the result we want."
FC Barcelona vs. ALBA Berlin (20:30 CEST)
Israel Gonzalez, ALBA Berlin head coach
"Like in the first game against Panathinaikos, we want to compete as best as we can on Friday. Our goal against Barcelona is to give our best, develop as a team and, above all, improve on the defensive end."
Jonas Mattisseck, ALBA Berlin guard
"We have to pick up where we left off in the first game against Panathinaikos. The task of facing Barcelona on the road is of course no easier. We want to get back into our rhythm and play with a lot of energy again."
EA7 Emporio Armani Milan vs. Paris Basketball (20:30 CEST)
Ettore Messina, EA7 Emporio Armani Milan head coach
"We face a team that has had an impressive growth in recent years, as a club and from a basketball standpoint, reaching deservedly the right to compete in the EuroLeague while maintaining a very specific style of play, made up of aggressiveness and speed. We want to start well in front of our fans, trying to play with the physical and mental toughness as well as the discipline necessary in any EuroLeague game, like we understood well in the first half at Monaco. The team has been preparing scrupulously since day one and will continue to develop, even if every now and then we are aware that there will be difficulties to overcome all together, both on and off the court."
Armoni Brooks, EA7 Emporio Armani Milan guard
"For us, it is important to play possession after possession, both ends of the floor, approach the game with strength and make sure we are always on the same page. For me, personally, it is an adjustment period: this league is tough and highly competitive. The difference is that at any possession there are multiple actions so defensively you need to stay alert all the time and offensively you are much more involves every time out."