Olympiacos head coach Giorgos Bartzokas believes experience, health and continuity have positioned his team for another EuroLeague title run as the Reds prepare for Friday’s semifinal against Fenerbahce Beko in Athens.
Speaking during Thursday’s EuroLeague Final Four opening press conference at Telekom Center Athens, Bartzokas downplayed the idea that playing in Greece automatically gives Olympiacos an edge. Instead, the veteran coach focused on the difficulty of consistently reaching this stage of the competition.
“You never know. It depends on the result,” Bartzokas said when asked whether Athens creates extra pressure or an advantage. “For us it’s important to be a part of the Final Four which is something that a lot of people outside of basketball doesn’t understand how difficult it is.”
Olympiacos enters the Final Four as the No. 1 seed after finishing the regular season 26-12 with a league-best +262 point differential. The Greek club then swept AS Monaco in the playoffs, winning the series by an average margin of 24.7 points.
This marks the fifth consecutive EuroLeague Final Four appearance for Olympiacos, making the club only the third team in competition history to achieve that streak. Bartzokas said sustaining success over multiple seasons remains one of the organization’s biggest accomplishments.
“A lot of games, a lot of quality players, coaches, brand names, fantastic teams are outside of even the play-in tournament,” Bartzokas said. “We really appreciate that moment.”
The Olympiacos coach also pointed to roster stability and improved health compared to previous seasons. Bartzokas previously led the club to the EuroLeague title in 2013 alongside current captain Kostas Papanikolaou, and both are now trying to repeat that achievement 13 years later.
“It’s going to be a fantastic situation for both of us and basically for Olympiacos,” Bartzokas said. “This year somehow I see some same things. We have talent offensively. We had the best offense in the league. We finished first.”
Olympiacos scored 3,406 points during the regular season, the second-highest total in the EuroLeague behind Valencia Basket. Bartzokas also stressed that this year’s squad may be healthier entering the Final Four than some of his previous teams.
“I think right now we are more healthy than any other year and still motivated,” he said. “We have some guys that they can lead by example.”
Much of Thursday’s media session also centered around the location of the tournament. The Final Four returned to Athens for the first time since 2007, with Olympiacos set to play at OAKA, the longtime home arena of rival Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens.
When asked about the added motivation of potentially lifting the trophy in a rival arena, Bartzokas avoided fueling the rivalry narrative.
“Everybody understands the situation, right? There’s no reason to answer this,” Bartzokas said. “We are just here to have a good 40 minutes and hopefully to win the game and give ourselves a chance.”
Olympiacos will face a major challenge against a Fenerbahce team coached by Sarunas Jasikevicius and led by veteran guard Nando De Colo. The Turkish club finished fourth in the regular season before eliminating Zalgiris 3-1 in the playoffs.
The winner advances to Sunday’s EuroLeague championship game against either Valencia or Real Madrid.
