Andreas Obst, a basketball player for Bayern Munich, in an interview with Basketball Sphere, talked about the upcoming game with Crvena Zvezda, their gold medal win at the FIBA World Cup, and the influence of Svetislav Pesic on German basketball.
Andreas Obst is one of those basketball players who spent almost his entire career in his home country. He had a brief stint in the Liga Endesa with Obradoiro but quickly returned to the Bundesliga, this time joining the Ulm team, where he made the most significant progress.
Before this season, there were significant changes in Munich. Pablo Laso took over as head coach and brought along some big names. Perhaps the most prominent of these is Serge Ibaka, an NBA veteran with a championship pedigree. However, as is often the case, the newly formed team is still searching for its proper form at the beginning of the season.
“We’re heading to Belgrade for the win”
The Bayern team is on a two-game losing streak in the EuroLeague, with a record of 2-3, while Crvena Zvezda has suffered four losses in the elite competition after their initial win against Asvel.
“I believe that Crvena Zvezda is under more pressure to win, but as a club, we also have high expectations for this season. We’re going to Belgrade for the win. We know it won’t be easy, we need to improve some aspects of our game and try to achieve success,” Obst emphasized.
The German guard praised this season’s roster of the Belgrade team and explained which aspects of the game Bayern must control if they want to secure a victory in the Serbian capital.
“They have a lot of talented players in the guard positions, and their frontcourt is of high quality as well. They are physically powerful and have players with top-tier athleticism. We will have to play tough defense and stop their one-on-one game because that’s where they are most dangerous.”
Of course, a discussion about playing in the Stark Arena wouldn’t be complete without mentioning the atmosphere in the stands.
“Such an atmosphere doesn’t exist anywhere else in Europe. It’s very intense, sometimes even astonishing, but at the same time, it’s very challenging to win in such an environment. I’ve watched the Belgrade derby, it’s a spectacle, always full of emotions and fire.”
“With Laso, you play more freely, with Trinchieri, it’s essential to follow the rules”
After spending years in the lower tier (Pro B league of Germany), Obst signed with Bamberg in the 2014/2015 season, where he was coached by Andrea Trinchieri. That year, Bamberg won the Bundesliga, earning them a place in the EuroLeague.
Following several seasons and Obst’s establishment in both the domestic league and the German national team, Trinchieri brought this elite shooter to Bayern in 2021. After a successful two-year collaboration with the Italian coach, the 27-year-old guard now has the opportunity to play under the guidance of Pablo Laso.
Andreas Obst talked to our portal about the differences in coaching philosophies between Trinchieri and Laso.
“Their styles are quite different. With Laso, you play more freely, the game is smoother and has a higher tempo, whereas with Trinchieri, it’s crucial to follow the rules. He insists on focusing on finding ‘mismatch’ situations and exploiting them in the offense. Andrea is more focused on defense, where nearly everything is based on switches. These would be some key differences,” Bayern’s basketball player stated.
“Gordon Herbert maximizes everyone’s strengths”
Nonetheless, Obst delivered his best performances with the German national team under Gordon Herbert. He “exploded” at the 2022 European Championship and was one of the main reasons why Germany achieved a podium finish.
At this year’s FIBA World Cup, he continued in the same rhythm. He was the standout player in his team during the historic win over the United States. In that semifinal match, Obst scored 24 points, including four three-pointers, one of which extinguished the last hope of the Americans. After this performance, the famous newspaper “Spiegel” featured the headline “Eat your fruits, USA,” making a playful reference to Andreas’s last name.
ANDREAS OBST.
— Gigantes del Basket (@GIGANTESbasket) September 8, 2023
ANDREAS OBST.
ANDREAS OBST.
ANDREAS OBST.
ANDREAS OBST.
ANDREAS OBST.#FIBAWC | #WinForAllpic.twitter.com/dnJfQqOETC
“National team basketball is different from club basketball, you have little time for preparation, and to achieve success, you must play as a team. In such a setup, Herbert tried to maximize everyone’s strengths. It all depends on the game-to-game situation. Sometimes I’ll create an advantage, sometimes Franz Wagner, sometimes Dennis Schröder, or someone else.”
“We analyzed the defense of Aleksa Avramovic before the game against Serbia”
In the final of the World Cup, Germany faced Pesic’s “Eagles,” who were on an upward trajectory in the knockout phase. Herbert and his players managed to halt Serbia’s rise and make the basketball nation wait a little longer for another gold medal.
“We knew we had to play smart on defense. Bogdan Bogdanovic had a very good tournament, and our main focus was to stop him. We also analyzed the defense of Aleksa Avramovic and how to attack him while preventing him from getting Dennis into trouble. Fortunately, Dennis played brilliantly both defensively and offensively,” emphasized Andreas Obst, adding:
“We didn’t neglect Serbia’s team defense, and we knew we had to have a completely different approach than in the semifinal against the Americans.”
“Germans are proud that a name like Svetislav Pesic is associated with German basketball”
The German national basketball team made history by winning the gold medal in the Philippines. However, even this achievement wasn’t enough to warrant a welcome reception similar to the one enjoyed by the Serbian national team in their homeland.
Only a few hundred Germans gathered in Frankfurt to welcome Obst and the “golden squad,” and the fact that the German public was uninterested even before the tournament began is evident from the fact that no television station with national coverage in Germany purchased the rights to broadcast the FIBA World Cup.
“I think some things are slowly changing for the better after this medal, but Germany is not a basketball nation like Serbia, and, of course, the reception was different. However, we were pleasantly surprised by the attendance of our fans at the World Cup, and I think that represents a step in the right direction.”
Just as German basketball wouldn’t be where it is today without Svetislav Pesic, an interview with a representative of this country cannot pass without mentioning the legendary Serbian coach.
“Pešić had a tremendous impact on German basketball; he won the EuroBasket with the national team in 1993. He coached teams in the Bundesliga for a long time, winning trophies. In Germany, he is highly respected, and it’s an honor for all of us that such a name is associated with German basketball,” concluded Andreas Obst in his interview with Basketball Sphere.