Gianmarco Pozzecco spoke ahead of the 12th round match of the EuroLeague in which his team plays against Maccabi Tel Aviv.
Asvel is currently at the bottom of the EuroLeague table along with Alba. Both teams have two victories each, with the French team having played one game less. On Wednesday night, they will host Maccabi Tel Aviv.
“I have great respect for them. It’s a pleasure to cheer for Ketch (Oded Kattash), who is one of the best players I ever played against. They are going through many difficulties because of what is happening in Israel. It’s very tough for them, but they are doing a great job and winning games. They have a lot of talent, can run, so we’ll have to control the pace. We come to win like any other game,” said Gianmarco Pozzecco to Izrael Hayom.
Pozzecco, as a player in 2004, lost the EuroLeague final with Skipper Bologna to Maccabi by 44 points.
“How to forget. Maccabi was brilliant. Anthony Parker is one of the greatest I’ve seen in Europe, that Arras is a winner, and Vujcic was a monster. In Tel Aviv, with their audience, we didn’t stand a chance.”
Pozzecco is considered the most vivid coach in the EuroLeague. He doesn’t distance himself from players and moves on the sidelines like lava erupting from a volcano.
“I think it’s because of the way I did it – it’s not a normal way for a basketball player. Until I was 17, I played football. Later, I played basketball in the fifth league, and then they saw me in a scrimmage, and I signed for Udine in the second league.
As a professional, I started playing at 19, and my salary was 50 euros per month. It’s completely different than today when every 15-year-old player has an agent and a family involved. I never thought I would be a professional. So, my whole approach is different. I am the same as I was when I was a teenager.”
There are those who admire you for your emotions. Some say it’s too much.
“I know there are those who say I’m crazy because of emotions, and some say I’m a clown. That’s me. I hide nothing and don’t hide my feelings. I am the most honest… My passion will not change. I am always positive, and no one will be able to say anything bad about me. I know it’s divided in two: either they really love me or they don’t.
Where is the distancing, as you celebrate with players and jump onto the court?
“I constantly show them that I am with them. They know they have someone to trust and that I am there for them.”