By Semih Tuna/ STuna@eurohoops.net
Panathinaikos head coach Ergin Ataman talked to Eurohoops about his beloved Galatasaray just before the Basketball Champions League Final.
Coach Ataman, who was present in the semifinal win against Tenerife, has only good things to say about his former team.
As he stated, “ I was very happy. I was happy that Galatasaray was in such a semi-final match-up and won it. I think they played very well. Galatasaray defended very well against Tenerife. The basis of this is Göksenin Köksal. Because Göksenin defended like a wall”.
Ataman also praised his former assistant coach and current head coach of Galatasaray, Yakup Sekizkök: “He had a very good plan. The most important weapon of the opponent was Marcelinho Huertas, and he could not control the game against Göksenin. When you look at it, Tenerife had a 14-game winning streak and was a big favorite. As befitting a semi-final match, Galatasaray played hard, used the right plays in the right place. Yakup Sekizkök also did a very good coaching during the game. He put Göksenin on Marcelinho Huertas and used Buğrahan when he was not there. In addition to these, I liked Will Cummings and Palmer also played effectively. The strategy was also perfect. I congratulate both Yakup Sekizkök and the Galatasaray players.”
On Sunday (11/5), Galatasaray will have the chance to compete for the Basketball Champions League trophy against defending champions Unicaja Malaga, and Ataman likes the chances of the Turkish team.
As he explained: “I couldn’t follow Malaga during the season, but as far as I know, they are a team on the same level as Tenerife. I know that Galatasaray beat Malaga in the regular season, but of course, this doesn’t mean anything. This is the final! If Galatasaray plays with the same mentality as they did against Tenerife without changing anything, they will be champions.”