The first competitor of “Žalgiris” – Olympiacos can reveal the shortcomings and advantages of the defense philosophy

The wait is over: the Kaunas “Žalgiris” team will appear on the floor again in the Euroleague fights after a 178-day break. The first opponent is the basketball players from Olympiacos in Piraeus.

During the Šarūnas Jasikevičius era, it was customary for OLY to be the opponent Žalgiris beat much more often than he lost, including 8 of the last 10 matches won. This was done once during the Euroleague quarter-final series, and once again in November last year, when the team was coached by Kęstutis Kemzūra.

However, in this case, the old and worn phrase that a new season is a new story applies. And this time it is necessary to say it not because it is tactical to say it, but because in fact “Žalgiris” has changed and is turning a new page of its era. An era in which Š.Jasikevičius is no longer the guarantor of victories and successful results.

Meanwhile, Olympiacos has been renewed in the player corps, 6 basketball players have arrived, of which at least 5 will play a really important role. Only Nikol Milutinov, one of the best centers in the Euroleague, should be highlighted for the loss of the Greek club, but Olympiacos have invited one of the best players, Costa Slouk, who has twice won the most prestigious tournament of the Old Man Continent with this team.

Newcomers arriving appear to have more potential than the late Wade Baldwin, Taylor Rochestie, Dwight Buycks, Augustine Rubit and Brandon Paul. Most importantly, Aaron Harrison, Livio Jean-Charles, Charles Jenkins, Hassan Martin, Giannoul Larentzakis, and the aforementioned K. Slouk came up with a clear idea and clicked.

It’s less worth talking about G. Larentzaki, who was invited from UCAM in Murcia because of his Greek passport and his ability to hit from afar. He is unlikely to play a major role in the Euroleague.

The whole of Europe knows Kloo’s skills: he is a true specialist in “two against two”. In this case, it is important to mention the fact that the Greek plays against Žalgiris better than his averages. Here are the 2018-2019. on the season he accumulated 14 points and 18 utility points against Kaunas residents, when his averages were 11.8 points and 15.2 utility points. Last year, he scored 13 points in the lone performance, had 9 assists and posted an efficiency of 25 points.

Georgios Bartzokas will have two very good “two-on-two” crosses to exploit Kloo’s skills: Octavius ​​Ellis, who made it to the end of last season, and H. Martin, a tournament rookie who moved from Podgorica to Budučnost. Both players “live” off the opportunities created by the player and work well on defense. These are not players of Milutinov’s caliber, but they do have their advantages. One of them is versatility, because with these players, Olympiacos will be able to exchange bold defenses on the floor. Another aspect is interesting here: how “Žalgiris” will manage to stop the picnic of the hosts on the pitch unchanged by defending and using the “lateral” defense, which we saw defending both in the Euroleague tournament in Kaunas and in the fights of the League of Lithuanian Basketball (Betsafe-LKL). Without a doubt, the Olympiacos test will show how heavy and seemingly inflexible the front line of Kaunas residents can fight the prevailing fashions in the Euroleague.

Georgios Printezis, who is already 35 but still a useful and important player, will continue to be the top heavyweight. He will be replaced by L.-Charles de Vilerbana ASVEL, who is not afraid of hard work on defense, fights well for the balls and knows how to play back to the basket perfectly: they are players of different styles.

In the chain of defense, G. Bartzok was obviously lacking in defense, so Jenkins, who scored only 3.4 points and the same utility score in the ranks of Crvena Zvezda in Belgrade in 18 minutes, was invited but not valued by his contribution to the attack, but for the good work in his. on the square side. It can be predicted that Jenkins will often be used in pairs with Vassilis Spanoulis, who needs to be “hidden” on defense, as opponents are constantly trying to use it. The veteran returns to the park after another serious injury that interrupted his season back in February. By the way, it’s interesting that the last Euroleague game was against Žalgiris.

Coming from Istanbul’s Galatasaray, Harrison is a great sniper who can punish his opponents with crazy shots and a meter from the three-point line. This American will definitely have his chance, especially when the passes will be distributed by K. Sloukas, when opponents will focus on him or how to avoid a successful two-on-two attack. Don’t forget that Shaquielle McKissic stayed from last season. This defender managed to play just three Euroleague games, but that was enough to convince him that he was worthy of the place. The American made a good impression when he collected points in Tel Aviv for his speed and physical qualities, where he scored as many as 22.

In the light edge chain, it is worth paying attention to Alexander Vezenkov, who already had the confidence of G. Bartzok last season and used it really well. The Bulgarian seemed to remain at the bottom of the bench, but had and will continue to have his role this season, where he will form a tandem with Kostu Papanikolaou, which has recently been extended until 2023.

Olympiacos will be only the first official meeting of the new season, which may turn out to be an advantage for Žalgiris, who played three games in the local championships and received lessons from Panevėžys Lietkabelis just before the start of the Euroleague. The OLYs played quite a few games and the last two were in Berlin against ALBA, where the Germans were beaten once and landed the next day. It’s true, then Olympiacos let 4 of their important players breathe. However, friendly matches and officials are something very different. History shows that during the first games of the season, teams have many problems and still lack real rhythm.

Bartzok recently told Eurohoops that playing in local championships is a real affliction and that it is very difficult to get players there, so it is better for him to spend time on quality training. It is a shame that Olympiacos’ tragic line-up, the changes that have taken place and the interruption of the Euroleague season have not allowed us to properly assess whether the withdrawal from the Greek league has been beneficial. This year, OLY looks like a much more interesting team and the pros and cons of a still unique solution among all participants can be seen more clearly.

Another factor on Žalgiris’ side is that the duel will take place in an empty arena. The Olympiacos fans really created a great atmosphere, so their absence will only make the work of the Žalgiris people easier. It will be very interesting to see how “Žalgiris” will manage to play according to a pre-established rotation, when the players change not according to the situation on the field, but according to a pre-established plan. It is even more interesting if M. Schiller will try to exploit the obvious loopholes of the opponents, such as the tragic defense of V. Spanoulis, which all the Euroleague teams are trying to use. The Piraeus meeting may not answer all the questions, but it will allow us to draw some conclusions and see if the exclamation points from a few weeks ago are really problematic places for the residents of Kaunas.

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