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Euroleague.net interview: Juan Carlos Navarro, Barcelona
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 When the groups are as competitive as they have been this year in the Euroleague regular season, usually one team in each group finds things tougher than expected. In Group B, through the end of December, that team was Winterthur FC Barcelona. But since the new year, it has been a whole different story. Behind the leadership of the Euroleague's MVP for January, shooting star Juan Carlos Navarro, Barcelona has gone undefeated so far in 2006 and will go into the Top 16 looking like a team on the rise. As Navarro says in this Euroleague.net interview, getting through tough times already could pay off for Barcelona later on. "We had some problems reaching the Top 16, but we did the best we could," Navarro told Euroleague.net "This last month, we have gone full throttle and managed to overcome those problems and make the Top 16. When the chips were down, the team responded and that will definitely help us when tougher games arrive."
First of all, congratulations on being the January MVP. After spending most of December injured, how did it feel to get back on court and do what you do best again to start the new year?
"Well, as you said I went through a hard time first with an injury in my foot, then with gastroenteritis. Nobody likes to be in a situation like that, but when you come out of it, the only exit is hard work. I felt comfortable on court from the first moment I came back, and I got many minutes from the first game, too. I started well and I only hope the team and I continue with this trend the rest of the season."
Barcelona, to a lot of people's surprise, had a critical situation in Group B coming into 2006, but came on strong with four straight victories in January. Were you surprised at the situation, too, and what allowed you guys to come together right when you needed it most?
"We started playing inconsistently. We had injuries that never allowed the team to be complete. Now we have managed to be a full team together for the first time in the season. But our main problem was a lack of concentration. We had games in which we started losing by 10 points and then we came back. But that extra effort doesn't allow you to play the last minutes with enough strength, and against strong rivals such as the ones you find in the Euroleague, it's almost impossible to win under those circumstances. Now, we have improved our concentration and that shows in our results."
The departure of Dejan Bodiroga and the arrival of Dusko Ivanovic signaled big changes for Barcelona, but at 25, you have now have an even bigger role as the team's main offensive reference. How does even more responsibility as a team leader suit you?
"To be honest, I have always been an important player in the team. I have played here for several years now, but this new season arrived with important changes. A new coach, new players, I renewed my contract with the team and they let me know that I would become an even more important piece of the puzzle, so I have to try to live up to the expectations and do what is wanted from me."
With a new coach and several key new players, it was clear to start the season that the team would need some time to get used to each other. Is that adjustment period over now?
"I think we still have room to improve. We have started a better period for us, we start the games more concentrated and the team as a whole benefits from that. We have definitely improved. However, ahead of us there is a lot of work to do still. The Spanish King's Cup is around the corner and it is a very important trophy for us. In that tournament, only the best teams who arrive strongest are the ones who win in the end. Our aspirations are being at the top in every competition we take part in, so we must improve even more."
After winning almost every title available to you so far in your career, and coming off a spectacular Eurobasket 2005, do you feel you are starting the prime of your career?
"I'd say yes. I feel really good on the court and over the years, experience helps you a lot. Now I know how to approach complicated situations in tough games, and on the other side, the coaches I had were always there to give me confidence and minutes. I think I can still get better but I have reached a level at which I feel comfortable."
How much did having so much responsibility at a young age on such an important club as Barcelona help you to become the player you are today?
"Well, first of all, the responsibility forces you to be always playing at your best and playing to win it all. Even then I was on the junior national team for Spain, and we were also playing at the top level. In the end, you get used to the situation of playing under pressure at the highest level. If you are in FC Barcelona as a kid, and you want to get to the first team, you know you have to work hard from the beginning, and that is what I did."
You're signature shot, "La Bomba", is an unusual floating layup you try as often as you can. How did you come up with it, and what do you do to practice it?
"I made that one up in practice when I was a kid. I was always playing against guys bigger and better than me, and you could say it is a survival shot. I had to figure out a way to avoid my shot being blocked because nobody likes to see their shots blocked. After using it many times, I see that some other players use it from time to time, and I think it's funny because I made that one up as a survival shot, and now it can be seen in some other places."
Barcelona is obviously in a tough group in the Euroleague and suffered a bit to make the Top 16. Can that struggle early in the season help when you guys reach tougher games later?
"Yes, I think it can help us. As you said, we had some problems reaching the Top 16, but we did the best we could. This last month, we have gone full throttle and managed to overcome those problems and make the Top 16. When the chips were down, the team responded and that will definitely help us when tougher games arrive."
What are the main differences for you in the new Barcelona under Dusko Ivanovic, a coach you knew quite well from competing against his teams before this year?
"The main difference is that under the new coach we play much faster. With Svetislav Pesic, we played slow and trying to control the game at all times. Now we play fast, we look for the fastbreak, and that is also a big difference for me, because I am allowed to run, which is the style of game I like. And I also think it is better for the team because we are finally getting used to it and the results are starting to show."
Barcelona won its only Euroleague title in 2003 and since then has not returned to the Final Four. Does that make reaching Prague a priority of yours this season?
"The Euroleague is the competition that everybody wants to win. It was the one that Barca had not won and we managed to pull it off in 2003, and at home, which made it even more special. But now, we have to take things as they come, step by step. The first obstacle is the Spanish King's Cup, and after that we will have another one. However, it's clear that the Euroleague is a very attractive competition for all the players."
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Wednesday, February 01, 2006
Edu Roca, Euroleague.net
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