By Lefteris Moutis/ moutis@Eurohoops.net
BELGRADE – Sloukas did it as a member of Olympiacos and now he has the chance to do it again with Fenerbahce Dogus Istanbul.
However, it’s not going to be easy, as he said to Eurohoops. “It is very difficult to do the repeat in Euroleague. Not many teams have done it. We are very close to a huge goal. Our entire season, how hard we played, led us here. We deserve 100% to be here. Now we have the biggest, the decisive step to make”, said Sloukas who is always focused on the next game: “My sixth victory in a semifinal game isn’t on my mind, nor my chance for a fourth European title our. I’m trying to do my job. These things are for the journalists and the fans. Our first goal was to be at the Final Four, we did it. Our next goal was to play in the final. I can say that in recent years Fenerbahce is among the two best teams in Europe”.
The recipe for winning in a Final Four is simple according to the Greek guard: “I try to help my team as much as I can. I try to clear my mind and make the right decisions in these games. It is difficult to play a perfect match at this level. The important thing is to play 40 minutes hard. That’s what we did today. We are the team, which will play in the final. Obradovic always tells me to be more aggressive in both ends. I try to do what the coach asks me to do. Surely, his remarks the past three years helped me”.
As for the semifinal against Zalgiris Kaunas, Sloukas praised Sarunas Jasikevicius: “We saw all of Zalgiris games in the last two months in ten days. We knew it was a team that when it’s 10 or 12 points behind it makes big shots. With Sarunas strange plays. they made some very important shots. Sarunas has fresh ideas for basketball, he is an excellent coach, a true student of Obradovic“.
For more EuroLeague news, click here!