Nikola Milutinov, player of Olympiacos, spoke to ‘Eurohoops’ ahead of this year’s Euroleague Final Four.
The Euroleague Final Four begins on Friday, with the opponent of the Piraeus club being the current European champions and the biggest favorites to win the title, Real Madrid. The Serbian representative recalled the only Final Four played in his career so far and the defeat in the final against Fenerbahce in 2017.
“I feel great. I’m excited and looking forward to it. I can’t wait to start playing because I believe it’s the biggest basketball event in Europe. Everyone lives for these games. I’m excited and hope to have a different experience than I did with Olympiacos last time,” began the center of the Greek team.
Nikola Milutinov has had significant injury problems this season, but he managed to return and make himself available to coach Georgios Bartzokas for the most important part of the season.
“It was three really tough months for me. There were a lot of things I was going through. But luckily, I had people around me to support me and give me strength. Because I had a lot of ups and downs. It’s normal when you go through such a phase. I think I’m currently stronger than I was before. Because, as I’ve said many times, tough times make you stronger and better.”
Olympiacos now has three very quality centers, as alongside Milutinov, there are also Moustapha Fall and Moses Wright, who was brought in during the season.
“There’s healthy competition here. That’s Olympiacos’ strength. We have so many different options. The coach is lucky to have that, but he was the one who decided. He knew what he was doing. I love having them around. I want to give a big shoutout to Wright. It’s not easy to come into the Euroleague and play the way he did right away. He really showed what kind of quality player he is. Coming in mid-season, joining the team, and delivering such performances is extraordinary and tough. Especially at this level. He showed how good a player he is.”
Despite the Greek red-whites having a quality center lineup, the same can be said for their opponent in the semifinals, led by Walter Tavares.
“You have to give him credit, he’s been incredible for many years. They also have other great players you can’t forget. They possess a full roster, really quality and good players at every position.”
He also commented on perhaps the highest-quality segment of his team’s game, which is defense.
“I think our defense is really on another level. The type of basketball we can play, we showed it in the fifth game of the playoff series against Barcelona. We’ll do everything to win. It’s not necessary to play beautiful basketball or something similar. It’s just about doing everything necessary to get the job done successfully.”