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F4 Interview: Ettore Messina, CSKA Moscow
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As one of just two Final Four participants who will be honored in Madrid among the 50 greatest contributors to the first half-century of European club basketball, CSKA Moscow head coach Ettore Messina is already on the short list of Europe’s best ever. With just two more wins in Madrid, however, he would find himself in even more exclusive company. Messina is shooting for his fourth Euroleague title – a feat accomplished by only four coaches to date - while he tries to lead CSKA's to its sixth trophy and second place on the all-time list for clubs. CSKA has overcome injuries to reach a record sixth straight Final Four – the third under Messina – and after a season in which other giants fell, he is cautiously confident about his team's chances in Madrid. "This year, we probably had more talent than ever before, but even more injuries than before," Messina told Euroleague.net. "We had to reshape our chemistry a couple times and we went through difficult moments. We were down to Roma at home in our first Top 16 game, and then obviously lost at home in our first playoff game with Olympiacos. I know that the way forward is difficult, but for sure I think that for us to have won the series with Olympiacos has given us some extra edge, I hope, for the Final Four."
First of all, congratulations on a another great season. How difficult was it to reach the Final Four this year as compared to others in your experience?
"I'd say that it has been very difficult. The first year I was here, we lost David Andersen in midseason and became overachievers. Last year, we were the defending champs and, after looking at what has happened this season, it was an incredible accomplishment coming back to the championship game. This year, we probably had more talent than ever before, but even more injuries than before. We had to reshape our chemistry a couple times and we went through difficult moments. We were down to Roma at home in our first Top 16 game, and then obviously lost at home in our first playoff game with Olympiacos. I know that the way forward is difficult, but for sure I think that for us to have won the series with Olympiacos has given us some extra edge, I hope, for the Final Four."
What does it say about the quality of the Euroleague as a competition when teams like Panathinaikos and Real Madrid can't get past the Top 16?
"It says a lot. i think that maybe the big issue now is that during the regular season we play too many games to cut a very limited number of teams. There is a lot of discussion about the first part of the season, whether we can do something to make it more dramatic for the fans. At the same time, the Top 16 has proven one more time to be one of the most exciting sports shows all over Europe. I don't see any other competition like this, not even the Champions League in football, that shows the quality of teams at the top level like the Top 16 does."
Let's talk about your team. CSKA extended its record Final Four streak to six in a row. What does that unprecedented consistency mean to you and the club?
"It says more about the club than maybe it does about the coaches and the players. If you look back at the history of those six years, there have been very few changes in CSKA in terms of the structure of the club. Even in the coaching staff, there have been only two changes in six years. That kind of continuity and stability is a big part of CSKA being so successful."
Was there a key turn of events this season that propelled the team forward on its way back to the Final Four?
"I think that the streak of wins we had between late November and through December and January, without Smodis, Siskauskas and Papaloukas for many games, and of course without Savrasenko at all, was very, very important to us. Thankfully, the remaining veterans carried the team in those difficult moments."
Two other Final Four teams were in CSKA's regular season group, Siena and Tau, your semifinal opponent, and you beat both twice. Does it mean anything now or is it a trap to look backwards? Are you glad now you played them and beat them, rather than losing or not playing at all?
"For sure, we can say that it was a very consistent group, because also Olympiacos was just a game away from the Final Four. As for having beat the other two Final Four teams twice, in these kinds of situations, everything goes back to balance one more time. For sure, the fact that we beat them twice, if you play the same teams again, means something because it remains in the minds of the coach and players in terms of confidence. On the other hand, we have to become balanced, because any superficiality or arrogance in this situation can hurt you. Mentally, then, what happened before can work both ways sometimes."
Talking about Tau specifically. They are experienced, though not as much as your team, and they are the closest thing to a home team at the Final Four. What are CSKA's key points when facing this Tau team, which is almost ?
"Tau is in a situation very similar to the one that CSKA was in when we went to Prague. They haven't won yet despite going a lot of times to the Final Four. If we let them be hungrier than us, they will win. I think this is more import than tactics or Xs and Os. They have a great, great desire to win in the Final Four in Spain. If we let them become more motivated than us, we will have trouble."
In recent months, you have also been the "teacher" in an innovative new on-line coaching clinic with the Euroleague Basketball Institute. How has it been for you to connect the European game with young coaches around the world?
"For me, it has been extremely impressive the quantity and quality of the questions that we have received - and that's even before the on-court clinic we are going to have in Barcelona at the end of June. I have been trying to keep up with the students, and I have been impressed with the way all of them are writing, asking questions and exchanging opinions. It's a nice experience and I am looking forward to meeting the students in Barcelona for a weekend of work on the court."
Euroleague Basketball is celebrating 50 Years of European Club basketball this season. You, along with your player Theo Papaloukas, are the only ones in the 50 contributors list that will be competing for the Euroleague title in Madrid. How special is that?
"We cannot forget that from CSKA also coach Aleksander Gomelskiy, even if he is not with us any longer, will also be honored. This is a special recognition for the club and for Russian basketball. For me, it's a tremendous honor. I was really moved by the nomination and by the fact of being chosen by some of the greatest people in our sport who were on the selection panel."
Most of those greatest-ever contributors to European club basketball will be in Madrid at the Final Four. What would it mean for you and the club to win again under those circumstances?
"It would be extra special, for sure, to win again, a great honor to do so during that celebration. But it will be special not for basketball reasons to see all those people for European basketball history there."
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Thursday, April 24, 2008
Euroleague.net
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