Pablo Laso spoke to Basketball Sphere about his arrival at Anadolu Efes, Zeljko Obradovic and Sasa Obradovic, the idea of NBA Europe, and the future of basketball on the Old Continent.
With numerous signings this past summer and high ambitions, Anadolu Efes entered the new EuroLeague season full of expectations. Igor Kokoskov was handed the keys to a team from which a lot was expected.
However, a wave of injuries and a series of unexpected defeats ultimately cost the Serbian coach his job. In search of a new head coach, the Istanbul side turned to a legendary Spanish tactician. Pablo Laso arrived, but from the very beginning, he was faced with numerous challenges.
“OK, for me, coming in the middle of the season is always very difficult, because you carry a little bit of situations from the past. And with the calendar that we have now, going to more than 80 games, playing almost 10 games a month, it’s not easy, because as a coach you cannot change much. You don’t have time to practice with all these games.”
Claim Now Despite having a very strong team on paper, the reality was different — mainly due to injuries.
“When I arrived, I had the feeling that we had a good base and that we were going to recover players who were injured at that point. My worst point is that it actually went a little bit the other way. We lost more players than what we got. PJ Dozier just got hurt, so he needed some time out to recover well.
Shane Larkin was out a little bit longer than we expected. Vincent Poirier came back, but then he was injured again. Georgios Papagiannis is out for the whole year. Isaia Cordinier is playing with pain in his knees. So in the end, it became a situation that is difficult to handle because we had a lot of problems and, for sure, for me as a coach, it is a big challenge.
But if you only focus on the bad situations, results still have to be better, and this has to be something to learn from for the future. The good thing, I would say, is that the team is able to compete and continue fighting day by day, game by game, despite not getting the results that we would like to have.” Pablo Laso said.
The number of games, the pressure, the budgets… A lot of things in the EuroLeague change from season to season, and one ‘trend’ that has stood out this year is the high number of coaching changes. As many as nine clubs have decided to make that move – but what is the reason behind it?
“Well, probably everybody is a little bit stressed because of the calendar. That says something, good or bad, about coaching, because in one or two weeks you can play five games. If you lose five games in a week, it looks like everything is bad. If somebody sprains his ankle — back in my days, you would miss one or two games. Here, maybe you sprain your ankle and you miss eight games.
So everything is very stressful, and that also becomes a problem for coaches, because in the end you have to coach games, but you don’t have time to establish the system or the culture that you would like to. This creates a feeling, also for the management, that they need to bring in somebody new, some fresh blood. And a lot of times, it’s not easy to just change players, so what they do is go for the easy solution. In Spain, we say it’s easier to cut the coach than the whole roster.
So we have to understand that we are in a period where the system works like this, and as coaches we have to adjust in order to create what we want, regardless of winning or losing — while knowing that, of course, you have to be competitive and that management wants to win. That’s something you have to understand from day one.” said Pablo Laso.
One of the coaches who did not remain in the same position is the legendary Zeljko Obradovic. The highly decorated coach decided, for the first time in his career, to resign and leave Partizan.
Pablo Laso has known him for a long time, going back to his playing days when he was developing under Obradovic’s guidance at Real Madrid.
“Well, I have a lot of respect for Zeljko, for sure. I was lucky that he coached me 30 years ago, so I have a very good personal relationship with him. And probably this decision comes from a long time ago, not just from what happened in the last games or anything recent. I don’t know if I’m the one to comment on this situation, because I think it’s more of a personal matter for the club. But for sure, he had his own reasons.”
Soon after his resignation, fans’ reactions were unprecedented. From the airport welcome to chants echoing through the stands of Belgrade Arena, these moments made headlines across Europe.
“The reaction from the fans, for me, was very normal. I think every Partizan fan felt that with Zeljko they were in good hands, and this feeling made Zeljko a big name in Europe for many years. Even though it was a bit of a shock at the beginning, I think Joan Penarroya is doing a good job with the team. They certainly made smart moves in the market, and they are finishing strong.
But, given the situation with Zeljko, this season is probably a little bit disappointing. Let’s wait until the ABA League finishes, but for sure, Partizan fans always expect the best from the players and the coaching staff, and with Zeljko, they knew they were in good hands.”
Recently, Anadolu Efes visited Crvena Zvezda in Belgrade. The Belgrade team celebrated the victory back then under the guidance of Sasa Obradovic, whose return to Mali Kalemegdan was anticipated in coaching circles.
“I think the arrival of Sasa Obradovic was something that could have been expected – it was only a question of timing: whether it would happen in the middle of the season or after it ended. Sasa Obradovic is, let’s say, a Crvena Zvezda man. It was probably difficult for him because that was not his roster. Still, the squad has quality at every position, as well as a large number of athletic players in various roles.”
What are the expectations for the Crvena Zvezda?
“It’s difficult to give a precise assessment, because the competition will be very tight. If they have to go through the play-in, it will be decisive. Last year they played in the play-in but didn’t manage to reach the playoffs.
Again, if they find themselves in the play-in without home-court advantage, it will be very tough for them. However, if they secure home-court advantage, or somehow manage to finish among the top four, I think they could be an extremely tough opponent for anyone. In that case, they could even make it to the Final Four.”
In recent months, the arrival of the NBA in Europe has been one of the most discussed topics on the continent. From the formation of the new competition and the recruitment of clubs from Europe’s top tournaments, to the so-called “triple pact” between the EuroLeague, the NBA, and FIBA… In the midst of information that changes every day, it is not easy to say what the right move for European basketball is.
“It’s hard to say what the right move is, because if I knew what the right move was, it would be much simpler. I think we need to work a bit on the calendar, understand the culture of European basketball better, and make this great spectacle that basketball is sustainable.
I know I’m asking for a lot of things that are probably not easy to achieve. What certainly doesn’t seem sustainable is the current situation, where we have four competitions – EuroLeague, EuroCup, FIBA Champions League, and FIBA Europe Cup. If we were to add NBA Europe, that would make five competitions, plus the domestic leagues.
Honestly, I think this confuses the fans, because in the end you don’t even know when the most important things will come. At the same time, EuroCup semifinals are being played, EuroLeague games are happening, FIBA Champions League matches are ongoing, NBA Europe is coming…”
What is certain, however, is that a joint effort from the basketball governing bodies is definitely needed.
“All of this feels like one big mix. Maybe I’m a little romantic, but I think it’s very important to have a clear picture of what we’re playing and to work on this together – because it can be good for basketball. In the end, as a coach and a former player, I want what’s best for the sport.”
However, no matter which teams, cities, or markets NBA Europe has mentioned, Belgrade has not appeared in their plans. It is not the only one, but it seems that this ambitious project does not take some of the traditional European basketball centers into account, focusing much more on profit.
“As I said, I don’t think it’s a good idea to just bring, let’s say, the NBA to Europe. Would it work? I don’t know, but I have the feeling that European basketball has a huge reputation behind it. For example, I come from Vitoria, which has had a team at the very top of European basketball for almost 25 years. That is something that must be understood. Of course, markets should be considered, but the identity of European basketball cannot be lost.
Belgrade is special to me. Not just because of Crvena Zvezda and Partizan, but because of the basketball culture of the entire Serbian nation. That’s what I was talking about in the previous question too – a model must be found that works for everyone. For instance, if we were to create a competition without Serbian clubs, I don’t know if that would be good, because anyone who cares about basketball in Europe has to take things like that into account.
For the good of the sport, you can’t just come and, as we say in Spain, ‘Try something new and it will work.’ We’ll see how everything develops. It’s clear that basketball is growing all over the world and becoming increasingly important – we can see it in places like Japan and China. But Europe has its own culture, its own identity, and I think Belgrade is an important part of that identity.” – concluded Pablo Laso in his conversation with Basketball Sphere.
