By Evaggelos Papadimitriou / info@eurohoops.net
Cedi Osman talked to Eurohoops after Panathinaikos Aktor defeated his former team, Anadolu Efes in OAKA Altion on Thursday.
The 29-year-old Turkish forward went from his immediate reaction to the win in Round 26 of the 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Regular Season to remembering the devastating earthquakes hitting his home country in 2023.
“Besides basketball, it’s actually a very sad day for myself and my whole country, Turkiye, because two years ago on this day there was a devastating earthquake,” he shared, “I just want to say that we remember this day, and for all the people who lost their lives, may their souls rest in peace.”
The Greens, guided by Ergin Ataman, improved to 16-10 in the EuroLeague.
“Another good game by everybody,” Osman opened the interview, “We played very rough in the first half. They scored almost 50 points. In the second half, we did a much better job defensively. We were playing more aggressively. So, I think that’s what we need to do every time we step on the court, especially when we play home court.”
“We played against a very, very good team, a very talented team. And in the end, we did like a 24-9 run,” he added on Efes and a late sprint to break a tie early in the fourth quarter, at 80-80, “We were much better in defense. So, we got an important win.”
Osman, a veteran of 496 NBA games with the Cleveland Cavaliers and San Antonio Spurs, finished with 20 points, matching his season-high across all competitions,
“I feel great at this point,” he told Eurohoops, “Everything is going well for us. So, every game we play, we need to play the same way.”
“We have a great team. People will always talk, but our job is to get on the court and answer every time we play,” he countered earlier struggles and reaffirmed his faith in the team.