By Can Bedel / info@eurohoops.net
When talking about Sasha Vezenkov’s future, his agent mentioned Olympiacos and Panathinaikos as potential options if he returns from the NBA.
Now, Panathinaikos’ head coach Ergin Ataman has also commented on the subject in a conversation with Eurohoops.
“Let me put it this way, all of Europe knows how great a player Vezenkov is. If Vezenkov decided to return to the EuroLeague today, he would receive offers from all 18 teams,” Ataman said.
He didn’t appreciate Vezenkov’s agent publicly discussing Panathinaikos.
“I don’t find what Vezenkov’s manager said strange, though I don’t particularly like agents constantly trying to get offers from all clubs. It might be correct from their business perspective, but there’s no need for them to come out publicly and say, ‘Panathinaikos made us an offer.’ In that case, I also know the clubs where you offered your own player, so should I come out and reveal them too? In fact, such an offer is made to all the big clubs in Europe. The important thing here is, will Sasha Vezenkov return to Europe? He will decide that himself. Secondly, which club and style of basketball does he want to play? His decision on this will be important.”
However, the Turkish coach admitted to having contacts with the Bulgarian forward.
“We haven’t made an official offer, but there are talks; everyone is talking to everyone. I think this is very natural. As I said, if you ask now, Vezenkov has probably been offered to many big clubs in Europe by his manager. The important thing here is the player’s decision,” Ergin Ataman concluded.