By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
Edgaras Ulanovas is a part of the biggest surprise in this Turkish Airlines EuroLeague season, Zalgiris Kaunas.
Most of the public seems to think they are the underdogs of the upcoming Final Four and in his interview with Euroleague.net Ulanovas agrees but also notes that Zalgiris will not give up and give their all in order to win: “We can be underdogs, that’s normal to think because we don’t have experience, it is our first Final Four. Fenerbahce, CSKA, Real Madrid are huge teams who have been at the Final Four for many years. But we got into the playoffs, we believed in ourselves, we fought like crazy and we kept thinking: ‘Why not? Why not?’ We are not one of those teams that will come and watch what others do. We are going to try our best and show what we can do. We will fight. We are not going to be spectators at the Final Four, that’s for sure”.
The Lithuanians finished sixth in the regular season and got matched up with Olympiacos Piraeus in the playoffs where they have proven their worth and earned the place among the four best teams in Europe.
The next obstacle they face will be the semifinal against Fenerbahce and here is the 26-year old’s opinion on the opponent:“I missed the first game in Istanbul, but played in the second one. That’s an amazing team, the biggest team in Europe. Everybody knows that they have a great coach, players and the entire roster. They also have a lot of sizes and are very good on defense and they have shown that. I think small details will be crucial, and sometimes, in the playoffs and in the Final Four, I think it is all about the effort. It is more about the effort, about the fight, how much you are going to give from your heart on the court. I think effort can be more important than the tactics and the basketball stuff.”
This has been the best all-around EuroLeague campaign for Ulanovas, who is playing in his fourth season with the club in the competition.
When asked about his individual success he shared a glimpse of his work this season: “I tried to do everything. Especially last summer, I worked out a lot. I went to the United States and that was a very good experience for me. I met a few NBA players and coaches, I saw everything from the other side, which was a very good experience. And I made my debut with the Lithuanian national team, too. But also, like you said, this was my fourth season. One more year of experience as every year you try to do better. And in the locker room, I have a bigger voice. That’s also good. I think experience is a very important thing and this helped me a lot. But, as I said, you can have bad days and you can have better days, but you cannot stop working. You cannot stop believing you can get better, and you can never stop because in basketball things change quickly. You can be losing by 10 or 15 points, but in three minutes you can make a run and everything changes. It is important for many reasons to never stop.”
And after all, Ulanovas believes that his team can repeat what Zalgiris did in 1999: “I remember the last time Zalgiris won, in 1999. It was amazing. Everyone in Lithuania was celebrating like crazy. It is a big thing, and to win the EuroLeague is every player’s dream, especially in Europe. And you never know, maybe you will have only one chance in your career to participate in the Final Four, so you have to do the best you can. But we cannot be thinking about winning it all. The only team we can be thinking about is Fenerbahce“.