Gianmarco Pozzecco hugged Giannis Antetokounmpo in an emotional moment after Italy beat Serbia in the EuroBasket 2022 Round of 16 matchup.
Italy's national team head coach Gianmarco Pozzecco managed to involve even Giannis Antetokounmpo after his team's win against Serbia in the EuroBasket 2022 Round of 16 matchup.
| Player of the Game | |
|
EFF
27
|
| Marco Spissu | |
| Points | 22 |
| Accuracy | 7-11 |
| Rebounds | 4 |
| Assists | 6 |
After the victory, Pozzecco was running in the tunnel and ran into Antetokounmpo, giving the Greek star a big hug.
It appeared that Giannis didn't even know what was happening, but the Milwaukee Bucks superstar joined the celebration and held Pozzecco in his arms.
Basketball fans might think that coach Pozzecco is a little bit crazy. But Italian players adore him.
"He was a basketball player, so I think he wants to play that kind of games more than us. He knows what it means... He is emotional, but we really love him," Italian point guard Marco Spissu smiled.
"We need to protect his emotions. Sometimes it's impossible because he is behind the line," Spissu smiled again. "But nothing really happened when he got ejected. I'm really proud of this team, and I can't explain how happy I am."
"Gianmarco is unbelievable because he got this connection with the players. They play for him," the assistant coach Edoardo Casalone, who finished the game on the sidelines, spoke about Pozzecco.
"Being on his side is something you can't learn. You can't be like him. He's unbelievable," he added.
When Serbia was leading in the third quarter, Pozzecco was forced to leave the game.
The 49-year-old Italian specialist hugged his players and gave high-fives to his opponents with tears in his eyes before he left the floor for the second technical foul that his bench received.
Pozzecco also had technical in the first minutes of the game. All technical fouls were summed up, and the head coach could no longer navigate his team.
However, just before the final buzzer, Pozzecco came back to the court and celebrated the win with his players.
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