One word describes it: WOW!
Hello everyone! This is Dusko Savanovic of Power Electronics Valencia and as you know, we play against Real Madrid for a Final Four spot on Thursday. Are you going to miss the game? Not me, of course! I have to play (and win), but if I were a fan, I would not make plans that night! I would be lying if I didn't say we are nothing but 120% ready for the game. Everybody is feeling good and we know this will be one of the games of our lives. I can only speak for myself, but I guarantee everyone is ready to play this game. This is a historic game, nothing else, and especially for Power Electronics Valencia, which has never been in this situation before. It is a positive wait, the kind of tension that can help us.
Everybody is supporting us in Valencia! Take Game 4, for instance. We were down 1-2, had just lost at home and were with our backs to the wall and not only was the gym was full again, they gave us even better support. Everybody is ready to help us, from fans to everyone in the club. Whatever happens, happens, but they support us no matter what and that is team spirit. Everybody is fully aware that we may do something big - go to the Final Four! Speaking of Game 4, we had a great fourth quarter that allowed us to tie the series. We didn't repeat the same mistakes as in the previous game. We plan to be focused from the first to the last minute. It wouldn't have happened without the big support from our fans. All the journalists were talking after the game about the great basketball atmosphere, which had never been seen before at the Fonteta - or so they said. I cannot thank them enough for that. We have to win the game for us, the club and our great fans.
D'or Fischer won Game 3 for Real Madrid. He had an excellent game. I can guarantee it was his best game this season, for sure. I am not going to say he made some lucky shots - he didn't - but he handled every tough situation very well. I know he is an excellent mid-range shooter, maybe one of the best big men at that. We didn't guard him well and at some point we were focused on other things, allowing him to shoot and play pick-and-roll with Sergio Llull and Pablo Prigioni. Of course, Madrid is going to use any little, small advantage we give to them. We were more focused in Game 4 and smart enough to stop him in the fourth quarter. Again, we made fewer mistakes than in Game 3 and tied the series.
Check this out - we started 1-5 in the regular season, 1-3 in the Top 16 and 1-2 in the playoffs... and here we are, alive and kicking! We are fighters, definitely! We had no other way to get here but to fight harder than anyone. We are not a really experienced team like Panathinaikos - which used that against Barcelona to get to the Final Four - and are not the most athletic team in the competition. We are good, but not the best. A lot of our game depends on being tough and aggressive. We have to be ready to fight at all times. This is the one thing we cannot lose - we never give up the fight. Don't get me wrong - no team gets this far in the Euroleague without talent. Victor Claver will definitely be one of the best small forwards in the world, at all levels, and it is just an example of what you could find in this team. We have two experienced players - maybe three if you count me in, but remember, this is my first Euroleague season - in Omar Cook and Robertas Javtokas, but that's about it. We have to prove every day that we belong to the elite of European basketball.
In between Euroleague playoff games, I returned to Sevilla for the first time since I joined Power Electronics. It was a really, really emotional game for me. Believe it or not, it is the first time in my career that I played against one of my former teams. I have been playing professional basketball for 13 years but went from FMP in Serbia to Unics in Russia, and then to Cajasol in Spain. I never had the opportunity to play one of my old teams. I really had a great time in my two years in Sevilla and have a lot of friends there. I got to speak to a lot of people - including some Euroleague.net editors, in plural! - before and after the game. I was awarded a beautiful ovation during team introductions that I will never forget. As for the game, San Pablo Arena has become one of the toughest courts to play on the road in Europe. It was a close game until the last minute. We were without Nando De Colo and Serhiy Lishchuk did not finish the game, but Paul Davis and Earl Calloway did not play for Cajasol. We were patient enough to win.
Speaking of emotions, there is only one word to describe my first Euroleague season: WOW! It went so fast! This is the best season of my career! It feels like it was yesterday when it all started after the World Championships! We had a tough schedule all the way. One week you play against Panathinaikos, meet Madrid in the Spanish League that weekend, then travel to Moscow to face CSKA and go back to Spain to go against Barcelona... It is really full of quality games with no time to think about it. That is why time went by so fast. In the end, when I look back, it has been the best basketball times in my life. Playing the Euroleague and the Spanish League with this team is special - we feel we are making history! Going to the Final Four would be nothing but a dream come true. We overcame injuries and a horrible start by fighting and working hard. This is far from being over - we will go to battle against Madrid for a Final Four spot.
So here's a promise for you, Euroleague fans reading my blog. If we make it to the Final Four, I will wear a special haircut. I am not like Rafa Martinez, who shaves at least twice a day, and I once tried a moustache but it looks horrible. I am going to honor a three-time Euroleague winner who happens to be the tallest assistant coach in the business - my good friend Zan Tabak. I will copy his haircut! If it worked for him three times that he won the Euroleague with Jugoplastika Split, it must be good for me, too!
POSTED BY
DUSKO SAVANOVIC - VALENCIA, SPAIN
DATE:
Wednesday, April 06, 2011