Tomas Satoransky shares the unfamiliar feeling he sensed in Piraeus, reveals he's been following Vassilis Spanoulis' coaching career and comments on Jan Vesely's extension with Barcelona. The point guard also reflects on Real Madrid's dominant season.
Last Friday night's visit to the Peace and Friendship Stadium provided Tomas Satoransky with a whole different sensation from the one he was accustomed to experiencing when playing in Greece.
| Player of the Game | |
|
EFF
25
|
| Thomas Walkup | |
| Points | 16 |
| Accuracy | 7-15 |
| Rebounds | 8 |
| Assists | 8 |
"The atmosphere was very friendly, to be honest, compared to what we usually get when we play against Olympiacos," he pointed out with a smile on his face.
"But it's obviously a beautiful gym and the atmosphere was great. It was full and someone told me that Greece hadn't played here for over 25 years. It's really amazing for everyone to be able to play here."
However, as the leading man of the Czech Republic noticed, not all the moments were nice in terms of basketball. His team finished with 18 turnovers, 12 of which ended up in steals for the home side. Even though Greece were struggling offensively in the first half, they managed to win the 2025 EuroBasket Qualifiers opener (72-64) in convincing fashion.
Satoransky relished the chance to play for his country in the FIBA windows for the very first time, but saw Thomas Walkup walk away with the win and a near-triple-double (16 points, 8 rebounds, 8 assists). The guard of FC Barcelona didn't lag far behind, as he recorded 9 points, 7 rebounds and 6 assists, but was also responsible for 4 of his team's turnovers.
"We had a lot of turnovers, but Greece showed that they're tactically a little bit better and maybe more experienced from playing the World Cup together," he further commented.
"They were also much more physical than us on offensive rebounds."
The tactical side Satoransky referred to is inextricably linked to Greece's new head coach, Vassilis Spanoulis, and also to Diego Ocampo, the Spanish tactician who has taken over the Czech squad after Ronen Ginzburg stepped down.
"Vassilis Spanoulis is obviously
