By Eurohoops team / info@eurohoops.net
Finland coach Lassi Tuovi was asked about how working in different countries and cultures has helped him throughout his career and influenced him in building this version of the “Susijengi.”
“Every country teaches you so much,” Tuovi said, some minutes after leading Finland to the EuroBasket semifinals for the first time ever with a win over Georgia. “The main thing is that you need to understand the culture. Why people behave that way or why they are that way. t’s different to be after a lost game in Besiktas or Bologna compared to Yokohama. It tells you a lot about the next day in your life or practice. I hope that the secret of the coaches and most of the coaches – the best coaches – are saying is that the players think that you trust them and you want to help them.”
“At the end of the day, you may win some medals, trophies or have good seasons,” Tuovi added. “But I’d like to see my players coming after 20 years saying that at least I helped them and I was working for their career. That’s why I think the group plays well.”
“It’s the way he builds the culture,” Finland swingman Mikael Jantunen commented. “He knows he has a group that is very close and that the players are very close. He does a great job of knowing when he need to give us more freedom and way he gives us, let’s say, less freedom. The way he controls the culture and the players is special. It all starts with the head coach and you have to give him a lot of credit for that.”
Finland will now face either Slovenia or Germany in the semifinals for the historic opportunity of making the gold medal game.
“I haven’t talked about it,” Tuovi said about the prospect of even winning the EuroBasket. “But I’m extremely excited to play knockout games with this group. It has been fun and it’s going to be fun on Friday. We’re taking it step by step.”