Gigi Datome presents the big match on April 14th at the sports hall
SASSARI. «Sassari is another stage of our journey. The season is very long and we are approaching the moment when mistakes will no longer be forgiven ». Tomorrow evening 14 April at PalaSerradimigni Dinamo will face Olimpia Milano, in the umpteenth replica of a challenge that has animated the last decade of the top basketball league. With the Red Shoes, a Sardinian who challenges the Sardinians eight years after the last time, with Virtus Roma.
Gigi Datome, welcome back to Sardinia.
“Thank you. In reality I was stopped for a few days due to a physical problem, we will evaluate only in the next few hours if it will be appropriate to play or wait ».
You arrive at this confrontation after the defeat of Brindisi, which has reached and surpassed you at the top of the standings.
“We are certainly not going through a brilliant moment, recently we have lost several races in the championship and we have to worry about fixing some things”.
It certainly cannot be said that this is an unhappy year for you.
«Of course not: we have earned the Euroleague playoffs, we have put two trophies on the board and the season is very long, so we know that certain moments can happen. The fact remains that you have to believe in work and be lucid to understand where you need to improve ».
Tomorrow will be your official match number 70 …
“Yes, but we have to review several things that don’t necessarily have to do with fatigue; we need to rediscover the confidence and serenity that can come with a game done well, with a good victory. Here, we need this a little. “
In front of us there will be a Dinamo which in turn has some problems to solve.
«I don’t know this, I can say that Sassari is a team that plays with confidence in all its elements, as is normal with a coach like Pozzecco. They have many weapons: Spissu is playing a super season, he has the keys to the team in his hand and dictates the pace; Bilan is an important point of reference, Bendzius is doing great things and all the others, starting with Gentile and Burnell, play with confidence and personality and know when to take responsibility ».
After two years in the NBA and five in Turkey, how did you find the Italian championship?
«Serie A is partly different, there are fewer teams from the south and unfortunately I have not yet been able to see the arenas full of warmth and passion that I remember. At the time there was only one team that dominated and it was Siena, while in recent years in addition to Milan there have been realities such as Sassari and Venice, but also Cremona with the Italian Cup, which have shown that they can win even without necessarily having the budget higher”.
Are you saying that this year the favorite is not Milan?
“Certainly not. We are obviously the favorites but behind there are teams that play well, starting with Brindisi and Virtus Bologna, as well as Venice and Dinamo itself. The secret, like every year, will be to be ready at the moment ».
And from a personal point of view how are you doing?
«I had left Serie A as an MVP, but with a bitter taste in the mouth of a lost championship final. My goal, as I said from the start, was to come back and try to be a part of the team’s successes. For now I am helping out, waiting for the most important part of the season, both in the league and in the Euroleague. In this case we have achieved an important goal and we have the opportunity to do something very beautiful. Getting to the Final Four would be cool ».
Is Messina or Obradovic more demanding?
“Both, in different ways. Messina leaves nothing to chance, tries to do everything in its potential to make the team and staff work and run at their best. We have a very well organized car to face such a demanding season and he has great merit in this. He always demands the maximum, like Obradovic, there is no possession that he does not want to be executed perfectly. It’s not always possible, of course, but he pushes us anyway to get the maximum intensity ».
Will he return to play with the national team?
“If I’m physically all right, I’ll be there. After all, there is little, but a lot, in the sense that there are still many commitments before ».
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