By Niki Bakouli/ bakouli@eurohoops.net
Fotis Katsikaris has probably the best years of his coaching career in Bilbao and the best is yet to come. After getting the award of coach of the year in Eurocup, he is preparing for the final of the competition in Charleroi, Belgium, against Lokomotiv Kuban.
It’s a game in which the winner takes it all and that means also the ticket to next season’s Euroleague. We had the chance to speak with him about all that, he didn’t hesitate the give the title of the favorite to his opponent, but of course don’t necessary bet against Bilbao.
– This is your greatest opportunity and your first chance to add your name on the list with Eurocup winners. And it’s not just a trophy, since with that comes along a spot at next year’s Euroleague…
“There is no doubt is a huge chance. It’s my first time at a European final, with a team which is really special for me. It’s not my first single final overall; it’s not my first knock out game since in Greece I had the opportunity to play to a cup’s final with AEK (against Panathinaikos). I know all about the distinctive circumstances, all about the mental preparation you need to have and of course all the plans you need to get ready, plus the alternatives for every single plan”.
– Uxua Bilbao’s fans have demands, after they are spoiled with everything the team offered to them the last years. You are anything BUT the underdogs…
“There are expectations and even though Lokomotiv Kuban is the favorite –the truth is at every final one team has few more chances than the other- we prepare ourselves, in the court, in our minds, from our desire point of view, in a way that will allow us to get this trophy”.
– Lokomotiv Kuban, like Bilbao, has too many experienced players, with many titles in their careers. In a do or die game, what can be a key point?
“The answer is like the question! Both of us have players with experiences at the top level, in Euroleague, in Euroleague’s Final Fours, in domestic leagues’ finals, with too many titles, so we will prepare our teams the same way we did our job all season. We will focus on making our advantages even better. The key point in every basketball game is the day our players will be. Every little detail, our free throws percentage, if it will be a close game these are few things that will decide the outcome”.
– Both of you have great personalities on your rosters, who always emerge at games like this one..
“Other than the self-confidence and the experience every player gets from everywhere he has been, from everything he has fought for, the coolness, the composure; is also always important, in every crucial moment which can tilt the scales in favor of one or the other team”.
– Obviously, both teams want the trophy after it’s easier to get a ticket for Euroleague via Eurocup than via your national leagues…
“This is our reality. Both Spanish and Russian leagues are strong, among the toughest of all Europe, and with the current situation in Liga Endesa, with the four guaranteed contracts, every other team has two choices in order to get a Euroleague spot: through Eurocup, like Valencia did or to get to Liga Endesa’s finals, like we did two years ago. I have to say that this year’s Europe was really competitive, I think it was more competitive than ever since they brought back a single final instead of a final four, plus many teams built Euroleague rosters, like Galatasaray, Unics Kazan, Valencia, Kuban and us, with players with a huge knowledge from top level. And like always happens, in the course some other teams rise, like Ulm, like Budivelnik, like Riga. There were the pleasant surprises of the tournament”.
– Coach Pashutin has the know-how, after he did that with Unics. Is this an advantage for the Russian team?
“When you have the experience of a certain situation, like this final which sends a team in Euroleague, is always important. Like all experiences in life, gives you an advantage. But from the other hand, there is a totally different scenario. No final is the same, no game is the same”.
– Which were the signs that helped you understand you could reach the final?
“The first game, against Buducnost. They were leading by 10 points, 3 minutes to the end. It seemed like a lost game for us, but we got the win! Then, when the Last 16 started, we dealt with few problems, from the number of the games and the travels we had to do. We had games on Sunday mornings and then on Tuesday evenings, we had some straight road games and we got into Last16 with two defeats (from Nymburk on our court and from Riga on the road) which got us with 1 ½ feet outside of the competition. At the third game, against Valencia, we played good and we won. And then there was Kostas’s (Vasiliadis) shoot at Valencia which was like we got an injection on our psychology. It was our first do or die game”.
– Pashutin thinks really high of you and your team. What do you have to say about him and his team?
“Zenia is a really good coach. He made the right steps as a player and later as a coach. He worked with Ivkovic and with Messina. I could say his progress was like mine. The thing he knows how to do it best is to take from every one of his players the 100%.He knows really well their abilities and he brings them to their maximum. He has a really dangerous, well balanced team and after the three additions they got during the season, they got an even more quality team, among the best in Europe this season. His game is simple and at the same time really creative and effective”.
– If you have to choose, would you prefer Eurocup or the Liga Endesa’s title?
“Both! Each one has its own beauty. The challenges are different. At one hand you have a title with a qualification to Euroleague –it’s like you get two trophies-, the whole Europe is watching you to play against a foreign team. There is a different glamor to it. At the other hand, you have a league dominated by three teams (Barcelona, Real and Caja Laboral) and to be able to get in the middle, it’s a huge challenge”.
– Can Bilbao be the third most dominant team in Spain by getting Caja Laboral’s role? Can you do what you did during 2010-2011 season?
“If we look at the history of the league, because the tradition has always its merit to the future, Caja Laboral is at the foreground for 20 years, in Spain and in Europe. It’s a team which can be a model, an example, for clubs which don’t have a tradition in any other sport. That applies to many basketball clubs. Our goal is to be a team which will be able to get into the elite, with the strongest teams, like Unicaja or Valencia. And it’s always important when you reach the top, to stay over there. The continuance is the most important thing and we made the steps towards to it”.
– You have one more year in your contract with Bilbao and you are also the coach of the Russian NT. What will happen next season?
“Bilbao is a special part of my career. This team has an important piece of my heart. All professionals are looking the results, but during all these years I am a Bilbao’s member, my relationship with this club got better and better, my love became bigger and bigger. You are coming to the point where you feel a part of this team, proud, responsible. Bilbao became a separate part of me. And to be honest, now I am thinking only about this final. For the first time, in history, an Euskadi’s team is competing for a title (ed. note: actually is the second time after the Euroleague final of 2005 in Moscow when Tau Ceramica lost to Maccabi Tel Aviv). As you understand, this is an important challenge. Actually, it’s a dream to become a member of Euskadi’s first European title! After that, I’m going to shit down with the people I respect, with whom I have an excellent relationship, and we will talk about the future”.