Greek NT for WC 2019

[fasoulaki]

Very boring game against Jordan. Lets see what the game against the Dominican Republic will be like. If I remember correctly they are an athletic and fast team.
EDIT: Seems Greece cant defend efficiently against fast teams.
EDIT: But very entertainng game at least. 1st quarter the used Antetokoumpos 1on1 abilities very efficiently. In the 2nd quarter they made use of their long center. But still very clumsy defense and Larentzakis were lacking maturity in some scences.
EDIT: Very elaborated decisions and very stabilizing influence from Mantzaris. It was a bad decision to send him home. Good that he is back. Hope he stays.

[EverGreen]

EDIT: Very elaborated decisions and very stabilizing influence from Mantzaris. It was a bad decision to send him home. Good that he is back. Hope he stays.

Koniaris was going to be cut for Athineou. I don't think Koniaris was the true 3rd pg option. He only cut Mantzaris because of his seniority.

[fasoulaki]

So then the final squad will look like the following if Sloukas comes back healthy:

Calathes, Sloukas
Mantzaris, Larentzakis
Papanikolaou, Papapetrou, Vasilopoulos
G. Antetokounmpo, T. Antetokounmpo, Printezis
Bourousis, Papagiannis

And Koniaris is out. However I would prefer to kick Vasilopoulos out and include Koniaris as the 5th guard. Especially because Giannis is also forseen to play 3. However considering Vasilopoulos contribution during the qualification I think this is very unlikely to happen. The best option would have been if Athinaiou and Mantzaris would be in and Vasilopoulos and Koniaris out I think.

[EverGreen]

I think Vasilopoulos inclusion has to do more with his leadership and that he's an inspiration to the team. He was out for 3 years. There were fears he might have trouble walking again. 2 spinal surgeries and a knee- reconstruction. Restarted playing local league (ESKANA - 4th division) basketball and worked his way up to top level basketball again. I salute him and I'm joyed he's in the squad.

Calathes and Sloukas will mostly play 28-30 mins. The rest of the time will be shared by Larentzakis and Mantzaris. I'm sure Larentzakis can play 15 mins at a good level.

[fasoulaki]

I think Vasilopoulos inclusion has to do more with his leadership and that he's an inspiration to the team. He was out for 3 years. There were fears he might have trouble walking again. 2 spinal surgeries and a knee- reconstruction. Restarted playing local league (ESKANA - 4th division) basketball and worked his way up to top level basketball again. I salute him and I'm joyed he's in the squad.

Calathes and Sloukas will mostly play 28-30 mins. The rest of the time will be shared by Larentzakis and Mantzaris. I'm sure Larentzakis can play 15 mins at a good level.

His return is a big accomplishment, I agree. Having Vasilopoulos in the roster can be justified on psychological and emotional level and indeed having a good team chemistry and a healthy locker room atmosphere is very important. However on pure competition level I would have chosen Athinaiou as 5th guard instead of Vasilopoulis as 6th forward. Since due to Athinaiou's injury this is no option any more you have to decide if you want to invest into the future by taking a young but inexperienced guard or if you would like to honor a "veteran" forward for his accomplishments. I have seen Vasilopoulos scoring crucial 3ths in national team games in 2007 or 2008 but I have also seen a guard getting injured by a Brasilian moron. Very likely Vasilopoulos will see more minutes than Koniaris if he joins the team.

Larentzakis reminds me a little bit of Zissis. However Zissis played much more mature than Larentzakis in his age.

EDIT: Giannis is not playing against Venezuela due pain in the knee

[fasoulaki]

What an ugly game against Venezuela.

[christodoulou76]

Mantzaris playing well. any chance he gets final spot over vasilopoulos?

[fasoulaki]

Mantzaris playing well. any chance he gets final spot over vasilopoulos?

Mantzaris and Vasilopoulos in and Koniaris out I would say.

[christodoulou76]

Mantzaris and Vasilopoulos in and Koniaris out I would say.

Yeah, Koniaris is a very nice player. he overdribbles sometimes, but I like his game.

[christodoulou76]

Yeah, Koniaris is a very nice player. he overdribbles sometimes, but I like his game.

I guess Vasilopoulos will be chosen for his locker room presence. I give Vasilopoulos 60%, Koniaris 35%, Mantzaris 5% chance of final spot.

[fasoulaki]

I guess Vasilopoulos will be chosen for his locker room presence. I give Vasilopoulos 60%, Koniaris 35%, Mantzaris 5% chance of final spot.

Vasilopoulos 50%, Mantzaris 30%, Koniaris 20%

[Victorious]

Koniaris looks good. A very solid player for his age. Though it was clear that Skourtopoulos will go for Mantzaris at the moment. His performance was very stable.

[EverGreen]

Koniaris looks good. A very solid player for his age. Though it was clear that Skourtopoulos will go for Mantzaris at the moment. His performance was very stable.

There are some rumors going around that Skourtopoulos might cut Papanikolaou who's looked really awful in all the games (bar Iran). He's so bad he's missing layups without pressure.

Koniaris did look good yesterday and the question is will Sloukas be fit on time. Can we risk only having 3 guards healthy guards in the squad?

[fasoulaki]

There are some rumors going around that Skourtopoulos might cut Papanikolaou who's looked really awful in all the games (bar Iran). He's so bad he's missing layups without pressure.

Koniaris did look good yesterday and the question is will Sloukas be fit on time. Can we risk only having 3 guards healthy guards in the squad?

For sure we have one forward too much in the roster. But cutting Papanikolaou to keep Vasiliopoulos... This will come back to Skirtopoulos if he fails. On the other hand he has nothing to loose. Worst case he coaches A2 teams or A1 teams which are relegated to A2 after one season of his coaching.

EDIT: Zissis yesterday mentioned that Skourtopoulos wants to put Papanikolaou to play on 2.

[EverGreen]

EDIT: Zissis yesterday mentioned that Skourtopoulos wants to put Papanikolaou to play on 2.

He has and we've been rubbish with Papanik playing there. Isn't it obvious? No passing game in offence and we struggle with perimeter defence.