February 08, 2012
NBA Europe Live presented by EA Sports press conference: Istanbul, Turkey
Comments by Euroleague CEO Jordi Bertomeu:

Jordi Bertomeu in Istanbul - NBA Europe Live 2007 "Good evening and thank you for coming. Euroleague Basketball feels extremely satisfied and proud for having the opportunity to celebrate this game. This is the first game, together with tonight's game in Rome, of the second edition of NBA Europe Live presented by EA Sports, as a consequence of the agreement we have with our friends from the NBA. The only basketball goal in this tournament is to promote the game in Europe. We believe that basketball is a very important sport in Europe but still needs to be promoted in all the ways that we can. Thanks to the cooperation that we have with the NBA, I think that we found the right way to achieve this important goal. This is the same statement that we made seven years ago when we made our first interview in Thessaloniki. We made the commitment to promote the game, to get it closer to fans and to increase the number of fans. And we are working in this way. There is no doubt that having the opportunity to play NBA teams against Euroleague teams in an excellent one to offer high-level basketball to our fans. I am sure that Turkish fans this year will enjoy the decision that we made to bring this event here. Istanbul is like a second home for Euroleague Basketball. We have two Istanbul teams in the Euroleaguie, two more in the ULEB Cup and we always feel close to the city. We hosted a Euroleague Basketball opening game here and also had a general assembly. We have many friends here and we hope to come back very soon for other events. This is the opportunity for fans in Istanbul to feel DEVOTION for basketball, with a game that everyone will enjoy. I would like thank both teams, Efes Pilsen and the Minnesota Timberwolves, and the sponsors and partners that made this event possible."

"We had just one game scheduled and I think we cannot ask the NBA to play against all our teams in Istanbul. This year we had conversations with both Euroleague teams and we decided to make the deal with Efes Pilsen. That doesn't mean that in the future, if we can organize games, it cannot be the time for Fenerbahce Ulker. We have nothing against Fenerbahce; we had one game, had to pick one team and Efes was the better prepared to host the game. Fenerbahce Ulker deserves a NBA game in the future, no question about that."

"This is a very special year for us, as we celebrate the 50 years of European club competitions. It is a very important point to recognize FIBA's vision when it came to this tournament. I want to announce that this year we will devote the whole season to commemorate this anniversary. It will all start wioth the Euroleague opening game, but also with the ULEB CUp opening game, as ASK Riga hosts Lukoil Academic, a rematch of the first-ever European final in 1958. We will finish the celebration with the Final Four in Madrid. Real Madrid is the team with more Euroepan titles. We will work hard all year to remember people and instituions that made this dream possible."
Saturday, October 06, 2007
Euroleague.net
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