By Giorgos Orfanakis / info@eurohoops.net
After a catastrophic season in which they didn’t manage to advance to the Top 16 of the Euroleague, Armani Milano want to present a different image and distinguish themselves in an extremely demanding tournament.
Their big budget allowed the team’s management to create a competitive roster with the aim of finishing in the top eight and playing in the playoffs, something that hasn’t happened since the 2013-14 season. The Mediolanum Forum is going to be a difficult away court for every opponent but at the same time Milano are going to have show consistency in their performance, an element they’ve been missing in recent years.
Signings
The Italian club made some dynamic moves in the transfer market of this year’s Euroleague and attracted top class players such as Miroslav Raduljica, Zoran Dragic and Ricky Hickman. The addition of these particular players took the team to a higher level since all of them have a lot of talent and experience in big tournaments.
Aside from them, Davide Pascolo is coming off a very good season with Trento and is going to be of great help in the ‘4’ position, while Abass, Fontecchio and La Torre add depth to the roster.
Coach
At 55 years of age, Jasmin Repesa has sat on the bench of quite a few European clubs and has some considerable successes on his resume regarding domestic leagues.
This season, however, he wants to make the extra step with Milano and carve out a substantial path in the Euroleague as well.
They will be satisfied if…
… they get in the playoffs. Winning the Italian championship is the minimum goal for Milano, who want to go the extra mile and get into the top eight. The odds are not in their favor but the Italian team wants to prove that it belongs in the elite of European basketball.
We are anxiously waiting to see…
… the cohesion Milano are going to have this season since for yet another year they have high quality units. The options that are available to Jasmin Repesa are many, but he’s going to have to create a team that will be able to stay focused and have endurance for the 40 minutes of the game.