 Although he has been head coach for less than two months, Emanuele Molin of Real Madrid has helped shape some of the greatest basketball played over the past decade. As the top assistant coach and right-hand man to Ettore Messina for most of that time, Molin had a role in winning three Euroleague titles and just missing three others by a grand total of 10 points. This time, however, it's different. Since Messina resigned in early March and Molin was handed the reins at Madrid, he has not looked backwards. He led the Whites through a tough playoff series to the 2011 Turkish Airlines Euroleague Final Four, the clubs first in 15 years. The next goal is another Euroleague crown for the winningest team in European basketball history. His unique situation notwithstanding, Molin has it very clear who will be the protagonists next week in Barcelona. "Before you go to the Final Four, before the semifinal or the final, there is a great team, a great coach, a great organization. But when you are on the court, the players have to make the decisions and take the responsibility," Molin told Euroleague.net. "Many people work to reach this game, but when it starts, the players are the main actors."
Hello, Lele. You've been to Final Fours many times before. How different or special it is now to be going as your team's head coach?
"I think that the fact that Madrid, after a long time, is back in the Final Four is the most important thing. It's something we worked hard for all season long, and after a really difficult series with Valencia, we have this success. This is the most important thing. The other aspect, my being head coach, is only because the situation created an opportunity for me. I am just driving a car made by Ettore. When he went away, I got the opportunity. That gave me the chance to drive the club and coach this team. Everything is new for the team. For me, even if it's me eighth Final Four, it's my first as head coach. So, it's totally different."
What was the most difficult part of taking over the team between the Top 16 and the playoffs?
"I agree with Ettore when he said that the most difficult part of a Final Four for any team is to get there. It's a long season. It doesn't just depend on how strong a team is, what kind of quality or talent it has. A team can sometimes get to the Final Four without facing the best teams in Europe, or if they are unlucky, like Barcelona this season, not get there due to having to face one of the best teams in the playoffs. So, getting to the Final Four is tough. Once you are there, you need experience, you need personality and you need mental toughness for three days. It's a special moment, and anything can happen at that time. It's not easy to get the trophy, but in three days, many things can happen. It is possible to make a surprise at the Final Four. To get to the Final Four making a surprise is difficult."
After Ettore left following the Top 16, did you make any concrete adjustments for the playoffs series against Valencia?
"No. First of all, after working 10 years in a row with Ettore, our basketball ideas are the same. We shared a lot in that time and lived exciting moments together. Second, there was no time to make adjustments. When he left, we had 10 days to start the playoff and play a lot of big games. I tried to put my personality on the team, to get a different relationship with the team and the players. But speaking about basketball, first of all I completely agreed with what we were doing with Ettore. Second, I had no time to make any adjustments."
It was only playoff series to reach five games, the only that a team with homecourt advantage survived. What was the key to your team winning it?
"In my opinion, they were very tough games. Every game was close. We were under a big pressure because the desire to get to the Final Four was so big in Madrid. Over us was a real big pressure. The key to me was that the team understood that we could get to the Final Four even having some bad moments. By accepting and understanding well what are our limits, with that mental situation, we faced the last game with a pretty good attitude. I cannot say we faced it easily, without any pressure. But we played it thinking always that if were able to do two or three things right, we could beat Valencia – and we did."
Your team relies a lot on young players like Sergio Llull, Ante Tomic and Nikola Mirotic. What can that mean for the Final Four?
"Actually, I think that for Real Madrid, it's the most import thing. We cannot forget that Madrid is a historical team with a lot of success. This year, after 15 years, the club goes back to the Final Four with all these young guys. For Real Madrid, that not only means coming back now, but maybe it will have the opportunity in the future to become a regular team at the Final Four. That would mean going back to a time when Real Madrid was a powerful club in Europe. Are we only going to Barcelona to win the cup? No. This is just the first step. With all these young players, it is possible to look now and look ahead with hope, dreaming that Madrid can be back on top of European basketball."
Did reaching the Final Four take pressure off the team, making it easier to play in Barcelona?
"No. I don't think so. When you dress in the white shirt with Real Madrid on it, you cannot play without pressure. I hope we go there and we play with desire, like a young team going to a really important event and wanting to show everybody that they possess the quality for thinking and dreaming of the possibility to get, now or in the future, this title. This is, I hope, the thinking that my team goes to Barcelona with, that kind of aggressiveness to play without thinking of losing, but rather going to learn what we need to raise up the title. And if we are not able right now to raise it, to understand what we need for the future. As I said before, this is a young team, and we have to learn our way step by step to the top of European basketball. I also think that is what Real Madrid wants, for its history, to go back to a place where they were always at or near the top."
 Your semifinal opponent is Maccabi. What do you see when you look at them?
"For us, everything is new. Maccabi is a historical team but they have a new team for this kind of event. They also have players who have already played and won the Final Four. For different reasons, I think we and Maccabi are similar. We both wear an important uniform, and as such, we have to get important results. Which is the key for us, right now, I don't know. I think, however, that the most important thing for us is to show on the court our personality, even if we are young and inexperienced, everyone except for Pablo Prigioni and Felipe Reyes. I think we need to show our personality in a Final Four atmosphere, facing an important team like this Maccabi. If we are able to do this, I think we have a chance and we can think that we can win. If we don't put our personality out there, it will be difficult."
Your rebounding was key all season, can it be a major factor against Maccabi and their big man, Sofoklis Schortsanitis?
"Sure, they have Schortsanitis, who will be a factor, but he's not the only weapon that they have. For us, we will try to impose our style of play. We'll try to attack him with our big guys, with our wings. If we are able to play an emotional game, our style of basketball, we can create problems for Maccabi. I don't think that for us there is one player who is able to win the game. We are not a team like this. We need the support from the whole team. I think that we built our Euroleague season playing tough, strong defense and playing a lot with our big guys. As our idea and our basketball, these were the keys. If we can put those ideas to work in this Final Four situation, showing personality, I think we have a chance to play and beat Maccabi. I don't think one player should be able to get us to the final, though."
Will you consult with Ettore Messina, your long-time partner, about preparing for the Final Four?
"For sure, we are in contact. We are, first of all, friends, so we talk anyway. We talk about everything, not just basketball, and even in these days before going to Barcelona, we will have the opportunity to talk. Right now, however, since he left the team - even though we still talk and comment back and forth - he is taking a really outside position. He doesn't want to comment on what we're doing. And he's doing this out of respect. If I ask questions, he answer, but he doesn't want to influence me unless I ask. It's a sign of respect for what I am doing and my position."
You came to Madrid to revive a great club's winning tradition. What will be most important now to complete that process and win the trophy that Madrid has been waiting for?
"I think that before you go to the Final Four, before the semifinal or the final, there is a great team, a great coach, a great organization. But when you are on the court, the players have to make the decisions and take the responsibility. In this kind of game, it is necessary. If you don't have the personality or you are scared, you cannot play this kind of game. In all the Final Fours that I coached as an assistant, the players on the court were able to take the responsibility, to make the choices, even if sometimes they missed. But they showed heart and desire and will to be there. This, I think, is what's most important in the moment of the game. Many people work to reach this game, but when it starts, the players are the main actors."
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