After Game 5 against Monaco, Oded Ketch provided a statement that was widely referenced in Europe. "I'm not sure the better team won," Maccabi Tel Aviv's coach said after the loss – but it turns out that even senior people at the club don't necessarily agree with him.
"I always believe that in basketball, the better team wins. This time I allow myself to disagree with Oded," Blatt said in an interview with Italian Twitch channel AREA52 on Monday. Maccabi Tel Aviv's professional advisor explains that in his opinion, Monaco's experience made the difference. "The first time Maccabi Tel Aviv came with me as head coach to the Final Four, we lost in the semifinals to Panathinaikos, who was much more experienced than us both on the lines and on the court," Blatt recalls. "I think about it today, and realize that in real time I didn't realize how important it was. If you haven't been there and haven't gone through it, you won't understand. Monaco has a squad with a lot of experienced players who have already been in such positions. Their coach was already in Game <> of the Final Four. There's no doubt that experience was a deciding factor in this game."
Supports him, and also disagrees with a certain statement of his. Blatt next to Ketch (Photo: Bernie Ardov)
Blatt was asked a question about a number of Euroleague coaches who marched their teams to the playoffs, but have not yet received a promise that they will coach them next season - similar to Oded Katsch's situation at Maccabi Tel Aviv. Blatt's answer was a bit surprising. "I don't think any of these coaches will have a problem getting a contract next season, regardless of the decisions of their clubs. They are all great coaches, they have done a great job this season and also in previous seasons. In my opinion, if I were managing these teams, I would have made sure long ago that these coaches were signed for next season, because they deserve it. They deserve the peace of mind they need to work the way they know, and they deserve the security of their employers. I don't run these clubs, so I'm just expressing an opinion - but if I were in their shoes, signing these coaches to a new contract would be the first thing I would do. That's what you have to do with any winning team."
Of the guards who have become particularly dominant in the Euroleague, Blatt said: "Basketball today is dominated by guards all over the world. You can see it even in the Euroleague season fives. Four out of five players on the second team and three out of five on the first team are guards. Today, combo guards control the game more than anyone else. Players like Wade Baldwin, even Lorenzo Brown, these are guards, scorers, playmakers, players who positively impact the game at whatever position you put them, they are a great fit for today's positionless basketball. They illustrate what basketball looks like these days."
"Basketball today is dominated by players like them." Baldwin and Brown (Photo: Danny Maron)
On the issue of naturalized national teams: "If you naturalize a player, it is very worthwhile for him to be a player who has been playing for a significant time in that country, or is connected to it in a certain way. There are players who received citizenship from certain countries without being in the country for even one day. We have to find a middle ground, because what is happening now is not kosher, this conduct is not good. National team basketball is about to undergo a very big change, because of the high demands on the players, and because of the never-ending struggle between ULEB and FIBA. It can't go on like this - something big has to happen for national team basketball to continue."
On this weekend's Final Four: "Olympiacos and Barcelona were the two best teams during the season, but in the Final Four there are always surprises, and anything can happen. It is very difficult to gamble. The four teams are very different from each other, so it will be an exciting Final Four. This whole season in the Euroleague was outstanding."
- sport
- basketball
- Euroleague and European basketball
Tags
- David Blatt
- Maccabi Tel Aviv Basketball
