Kevin Punter led Barcelona past Partizan with 25 points, emphasizing that true respect comes from playing hard against former teams. He praised Partizan’s competitiveness, backed them for the playoffs, and highlighted Carlik Jones’ impressive EuroLeague debut season.
Kevin Punter scored 25 points as FC Barcelona racked up an important win against his former team Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade 87-80.
| Player of the Game | |
|
EFF
29
|
| Kevin Punter | |
| Points | 25 |
| Accuracy | 7-11 |
| Rebounds | 0 |
| Assists | 4 |
It was Punter's first game after missing almost a month of action with an injury. This season KP is averaging 16.8 points and 3.2 assists per game for Barca.
In a conversation with Serbian media after the game, the American shooting guard explained how he behaves on the court even when facing the team he spent three seasons with.
"When you play against someone, people expect you not to play well or not to give your best. No! Respect is shown when you play hard, when you do your best to beat them," Punter told the Serbian outlets.
"After the game we can hug each other, because I really feel love for Partizan and for the coach. If I behaved differently, it would be fake, it would not be me. Basketball as a sport will not reward players who don't do their best to win, nor will they reward coaches who don't do their best for their team," Punter said.
"Partizan is a f--- great team," he further commented.
"Let's not talk like they're not an amazing team. They wanted to stop me tonight, they probably would have celebrated a big victory in the locker room, which is the most normal thing. We're here to compete against each other. Big respect and love. I'm a basketball player and that's it, I want to win and enjoy life."
Despite the loss that allowed Barca to improve to 16-13, Partizan are still in Play-in showdown contention at 15-14 with five more rounds to play.
"I said before the season that I expect them to be in the playoffs," Punter repeated.
"I think the same now. Look at how they play, how much they fight. I believe they will be in the playoffs."
Panther particularly liked one player from Partizan.
"I approached Carlik [Jones] after the game," he revealed.
"I congratulated him on a great game and season. He is a good player, this is his first season in the EuroLeague and he has already shown quality. That's something one must respect," he stressed.
Support BasketNews so we could make even better content.
