By Manos Firogenis / info@eurohoops.net
Bringing Olympiacos up late in the game, recovering from a 10-point margin (69-59) when his personal show started, Giannoulis Larentzakis was the red-and-white hero in the thrilling OT victory against Partizan Belgrade at home, scoring 16 of his 19 total points in the fourth quarter.
Right after beating Zeljko Obradovic‘s team – which tied the game at the final buzzer with a clutch three-pointer by James Nunnally -, the 30-year-old guard spoke to Eurohoops, mentioning what he learned from Mike James, who praised him for his performance against the Serbian side.
“Say what you want about Larry’s skill level or importance on the team, but when it gets to the fourth quarter the man shows up. Brother’s got heart”, AS Monaco’s superstar said about his former teammate, with whom he shared part of the 2014-15 season before moving to the Basque Country.
Say what u want about Larry’s skill level or importance on the team but when it gets to fourth quarter brotha man shows up…. Bro got heart
— Mike James (@TheNatural_05) October 19, 2023
Talking about what he learned from the exciting American scorer, Larentzakis had nothing but good words. “We were together and teammates, I have taken things from him. I like to take responsibility, I have never hidden. You’ll win some, you’ll lose, that’s sports. At this level, your opponent hits every mistake you make”, he commented on the leadership he learned from the former CSKA Moscow guard.
At the end of the game, things got heated with Partizan Belgrade’s James Nunnally, an offensive force who caused tons of problems for Georgios Bartzokas’ team late in the clash. “We found each other in the end. I like this game, trash talking, I find motivation and energy from it”, he commented.
He also talked about his team’s recent performances, asking for patience. “We definitely persevered and have shown our character in recent years anyway. In the end, we also showed it with Partizan. We started off really slow and sluggish in the third quarter, but then we got the energy out and got a really big win. These victories build character and rally. People have to be a little patient because we still have a big year ahead of us. We haven’t all worked together yet. I don’t like excuses, but it’s the truth”, Giannoulis Larentzakis stated as well.