By Niki Bakouli/ bakouli@eurohoops.net
Ettore Messina was interviewed in the Spanish radio station “Cope” and to be exact in the program “showtime” and he didn’t hesitate to give the title of the favorite to win the Euroleague to the Spanish champions, Real Madrid.
After all, no one wants to be called the favorite and Messina was glad to avoid it: “I think so, I think Real Madrid is the favorite to win the Euroleague . If I say yes – that’s what I think – you would say that I ‘m putting pressure on the back of Madrid, and if I say no , I’m not telling the truth. So, I told the truth (laughs ). Of course in a league with play offs, like Liga Endesa is a much bigger favorite. Sooner or later someone has to win a game at Madrid. The defeat in Moscow came in handy for Real because sometimes it’s good to lose a game, it helps you take care of the details. When you win many games playing very well can happen to you. It was a wake up call to return to winning and playing well despite the injuries. I do not think we have taught anything to anyone”.
Messina was also asked about the addition of Lamar Odom to Laboral Kutxa’s roster: “From a technical point of view, it’s interesting. It’s not easy to integrate a player into a team now. This is one of the typical decisions that are not only about sports , it’s a mixture of sporting reasons , marketing, trying to give a message to the fans … It’s a decision that can be taken only by a coach. It’s a very interesting topic . We would have liked to have a man like him since the start of the season . What he can do on the court, it’s a mark of how good or bad is Euroleague”.
The main foal of Real Madrid is to be in Milan: “The main objective is to reach the Final Four , it’s the great goal each year and we work like crazy to be there. We are the club that has played in ten final fours the last eleven years. I do not think that is a failure to lose a final, for me it is a success to get. In the Russian cup, we were defeated in the quarterfinals. We have made the sin of superficiality. It was pretty ugly , it was pretty bad …Now, the team plays much more relaxed and with a little more confidence. The team is more complete this year , has players like Hines and Fridzon which are summer addition and they are really helpful. What happened last season was back to back to what happened in Istanbul and had greatly affected our team , we suffered, Now it’s important to get the home court advantage because this year’s playoff schedule is different: everything is concentrated in two weeks”.
Messina has also something to say about his captain, Viktor Khryapa: “He is the player who helps everyone feel better on the court, he is our captain and always gets some points, assists , rebounds… He defends. I do not think that he would want to play anywhere else and I think that he will end his career at CSKA”.