Check out what the coaches and players are saying ahead of Round 6 of the 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague season.
Pre-game quotes hub: 'I always take matchups personally'
Article
7 Mins read
Ahead of Round 6, 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 30
Zalgiris Kaunas vs. Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade (19:00 CEST)
Ioannis Sfairopoulos, Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade head coach
“We are playing against the team that is first in the standings, with four wins and the best defense so far. That means we have to play very well offensively, to read their defense. On the other hand, we need to play well defensively. If they get into a rhythm, they can be very dangerous. That's why we have to control the rhythm of the game."
Filip Petrusev, Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade center
"The loan to Crvena Zvezda was my wish. Now we have to work. I was with the team [before], played games, I just need to adapt to the systems and the coach. It will be difficult, especially since they play much better at home than on the road. We must play all 40 minutes with maximum concentration. I hope we can earn good result"
Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens vs. LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne (20:15 CEST)
Ergin Ataman, Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens head coach
So far we played four games on the road. Home court games are very very important, because there is a game you must win and you cannot underestimate any team. ASVEL lost in the last minute against Barcelona last week, they have a lot of scorers, they are experienced. We need to be ready to play an aggressive game. We only think about the next game, but after a two tough road games it is possible team relaxes a little bit. But with our fans, they will give us a motivation, so it will be important ou arena will be hot to motivate our players because ASVEL is a very dangerous team.
Jerian Grant, Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens guard
We are excited to be back home in front of our fans .wE wnt to go out there and play a good game. For us, the defense will always gonna be the key. Because we have so many scorers, offense is not going to be a problem, so if lock in on defense we will be fine. We always play great team defense as a team, but when I go out there I always take matchups personally.
Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade vs. AS Monaco (20:45 CEST)
Zeljko Obradovic, Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade head coach
"Monaco has kept its roster unchanged with Sasa Obradović on the bench, which is the most important. They’ve held onto their key players from last season while also adding several reinforcements. Over the past two years, their results have been outstanding, making it clear that we’re in for an extremely tough game. They’re solid across all positions, and we’ll need to perform at a high level if we want to win."
Isaac Bonga, Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade forward
"I expect a tough game; they’re an exceptional team. They play at a very fast pace, so we’ll work hard to contain their fast breaks. We also have to stay focused on rebounding and keep our concentration for the full 40 minutes."
Tuesday, October 29
Anadolu Efes Istanbul vs. FC Barcelona (18:30 CEST)
Tomislav Mijatovic, Anadolu Efes Istanbul head coach
"We are playing our next EuroLeague home game against a team that plays in high rhythm and high tempo so far this season. We are super excited to be back at our home court in front of our wonderful fans. And we hope that with their support for 40 minutes we have to, and we will present, our A-level game, both offensively and defensively because that is a requirement to play against FC Barcelona. We have to win the small battles and fight for every possession offensively and defensively and play one super organized game for 40 minutes in order to reach our goal which is to win the game.
Jordan Nwora, Anadolu Efes Istanbul forward
"As known, FC Barcelona is at the top of the standings right now with four wins and one loss. They are playing good basketball and they have a lot of great weapons. We have a team that can get the job done. It's just about implementing our game plan, continuing to come together as a team and just getting the job done."
ALBA Berlin vs. Paris Basketball (19:30 CEST)
Israel Gonzalez, ALBA Berlin head coach
"Our opponents are very active and fast on defense, clearly structured and are playing with a lot of confidence right now. Paris has already put in some impressive performances in the EuroLeague. TJ Shorts stands out from this well-functioning team. He pulls the strings on the offense, creates for his teammates and is always able to score one-on-one. It will be a tough challenge to match the speed and intensity of the Parisians."
Justin Bean, ALBA Berlin forward
"This game against Paris is going to be all about effort and playing free. We can’t overthink the last games too much and need to move forward as a team. We all trust each other and believe in each other so I hope that we bring the energy for our fans and get a win against a very good team from Paris."
Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul vs. Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv (19:30 CEST)
Sarunas Jasikevicius, Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul head coach
"Maccabi is always a very difficult task, especially with their transition game and offensive rebounds. Saben Lee is someone we really have to take care of, and he is already scoring a lot at the EuroLeague level. For sure it is going to be a difficult task."
Boban Marjanovic, Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul center
"It is basically a tough game. Every EuroLeague team is at their top level right now. We have two players from them, and they know how to bring players into the game. In basketball, there will not be any easy games. We will play like that in the Turkish League, too. We know that it is not going to be easy. We need to get ready. Obviously, we lost the last two home games. We just need to move forward."
Oded Kattash, Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv head coach
"First of all, we are really excited to meet Wade [Baldwin] and Bonzie [Colson], me personally and I am sure a lot of people miss them, and we love them. Basketball-wise, it is going to be a very challenging week. We are going to face maybe two of the best 4-5 teams in the EuroLeague, with great roster. We miss some players and just got Rokas [Jokubaitis] back and everybody is familiar with the situation with Saben [Lee]. So it can't be perfect for us, but we try to keep our heads up and be ready to fight, even though probably everything is against us right now."
Rokas Jokubaitis, Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv guard
"I think [Sarunas Jasikevicius and I] will have the same amount of fans because Lithuanians love basketball, so they don't choose between Lithuanians. But in general, I think it will be a nice game to watch. And I hope there will be a lot of Lithuanians supporting me and also supporting us. It was really tough. This few games where we could have won, or the team would need my help, or I could need my help. So it was really tough to watch these games and sit on the sideline. But now that I'm back, I'm really happy. These two weeks were too long, now I'm very happy to be back. We all understand the situation. It's not a secret that we have many injuries and not being all together at the practices, but this is the situation that we have. And everybody needs to step forward. Each one of us, and me especially, so it's a good challenge. I'm waiting for it, and I cannot wait for this double week. Of course, [Jasikevicius and I] know each other really well and I'm always happy to play against him. And I hope we will have a good matchup. [Saben Lee and I] didn't practice together or played together, so it's a little bit tough, but he is a great talent as we saw in these games, so I'm looking forward to share the court with him. And I hope we will have good minutes together on the court."
Olympiacos Piraeus vs. Real Madrid (20:15 CEST)
Georgios Bartzokas, Olympiacos Piraeus head coach
"I would say that we are talking about a team that is in good shape right now. They certainly played yesterday afternoon and spent much less energy than we did. And they are a team, that should we take out their performance against Baskonia, where they lost but playing without Campazzo, they have certain characteristics... a team that plays with high intensity, scores a lot and of course is the best team to not allow two-pointers, thanks to Tavares and Ibaka. On the other hand, they allow some other things and we are called to strike there. And of course, we must focus on the next day, because we lost the game last night [in the Greek League against Panathinaikos], we did not perform well and we have to play again in one day. That's life, you have to be ready to react in the next game."
Shaquielle McKissic, Olympiacos Piraeus guard
"Real Madrid has a very good team, they have impressive players, just like we do, I hope it's a fun game to watch and the atmosphere matches the quality of the game."
Chus Mateo, Real Madrid head coach
"Olympiacos is a team that has always been very solid, a club with special greatness that is usually there in the final stages of the EuroLeague. Due to its roster, tradition, history, playing level and coach, Olympiacos will be one of the teams that will be up there at the end of the season, and they require all of our attention. Right now, they are trying to get used to new players, very important players who have to adjust to the team's dynamics and that takes time. In any case, Olympiacos is a huge opponent that always make things hard for everyone. No matter in which moment they are right now, they will finish the season in the upper part of the EuroLeague standings."
Xavier Rathan-Mayes, Real Madrid guard
"We have a very demanding week ahead of us. We travel to Greece to play a really tough game in front of a special atmosphere. Olympiacos comes off consecutive losses in the EuroLeague but has one of the best rosters in the competition. We expect them to be ready and motivated to play against us. It will be a good test for us, as we haven't shown our best version yet in road games. We hope to make the most out of a new opportunity to win on the road. We improved our defense and that was the key in our last wins, as a good defense allows us to run on offense, which is one of our strongest points. We have to keep working in the same direction."
Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz vs. EA7 Emporio Armani Milan (20:30 CEST)
Mario Fioretti, EA7 Emporio Armani Milan assistant coach
"First order of merit for us is to produce a very aggressive game, on a traditionally difficult court. Defensively, getting back quickly and defending carefully in half court, especially against Howard, Luwawu-Cabarrot and Moneke will be essential. So far, Baskonia has had the second-best defense in the EuroLeague, and was able to defend intelligently and aggressively, taking away the opponent’s offensive flow. Against this kind of defense, we will have to play under control and use the passes correctly."
Fabien Causeur, EA7 Emporio Armani Milan guard
"It is a tough game for us, on the road and after a couple of EuroLeague losses. We are going to play on a difficult court that I know very well since I used to play there for four seasons. We need to stay focused for forty minutes. Baskonia is a tough team to beat on its home court and in front of their fans. Pablo Laso, I know him very well after spending five years playing for him in Madrid. They are very talented, with two great scorers like Markus Howard and Chima Moneke and some more guys who are doing really well, like Donta Hall, Ndiaye, Baldwin. It is a difficult game, but we have to stay together and try to come out with a win. I had some back problems that I'm solving, I returned to practice with the team, and I'm ready to help the team."
Virtus Segafredo Bologna vs. FC Bayern Munich (21:00 CEST)
Luca Banchi, Virtus Segafredo Bologna head coach
"Bayern Munich is a team that has already shown, in their first matches of the season, their full potential and offensively makes them the most prolific attack in the entire EuroLeague. We will have the task of getting the match into a rhythm that suits us, imposing concentration, physicality and fight to beat an opponent of such magnitude."
Toko Shengelia, Virtus Segafredo Bologna forward
"Right now Bayern is one of the toughest teams, they’re playing great, in every position. Offensively they are really dangerous and we have to put our attention on defense. We’ll share the ball and play as a team for 40 minutes. Hopefully the fans will help us and home court advantage is gonna be our advantage."
Gordon Herbert, FC Bayern Munich head coach
"We were significantly behind after the first quarter in both games in Athens and Belgrade; we simply need to start better, play 40 minutes of basketball. That’s the key to winning an away game in the EuroLeague."
Andreas Obst, FC Bayern Munich guard
"It’s always easy to say we have to get a ‘must-win,’ but in the EuroLeague, winning on the road is particularly challenging. Nonetheless, we want to bring something home, and we’ve shown in our home games that we can compete with any opponent."