Darío Brizuela heads back to Monaco with playoff ambition, respect for Mike James, and confidence despite injuries. The 'Basque Mamba' describes how he intends to make life tough for Monaco’s stars.
On Wednesday night, Darío Brizuela returns to a place where his EuroLeague story hit a high note: Monaco’s Gaston Medecin. It was there that the 'Basque Mamba' dropped a career-best 27 points earlier this season—a performance he later matched in Milan.
Now, he’s back—but under completely different circumstances.
For the second straight year, Brizuela enters the EuroLeague playoffs, but his role this time under FC Barcelona coach Joan Penarroya is anything but familiar. One thing hasn’t changed, though: his ambition.
As he told SPORT's Marc del Rio over the weekend:
“We’re focused on winning both games. We’ve had a strange season, and I’d sign for going in with all the injured players. We’re doing well, but these are significant losses, and it’s going to be tough. It is what it is; we’ve known how to compete and win games despite all the absences.”
He’s not just hungry—he’s laser-focused. “I’d sign for a 0-2 comeback,” Brizuela said. “We clearly intend to return from Monaco with two wins, leaving us just one victory away from securing a ticket to Abu Dhabi.”
But no one is underestimating the opponent, especially with Mike James on the other side.
“They invest heavily in their outside game. Mike James has made his mark in recent years in the EuroLeague with his style of play, his scoring ability, and his ability to lead his teams to wins,” he said.
“He's a role model for those of us who come behind him in his position and with his understanding of the game. It's a dream to play against him, but I love competing, and so do everyone else. We want to win, and we'll try to make his life miserable.”
That mentality will be crucial in a playoff series where, according to Brizuela, everything changes.
“The playoffs are completely different. They have a player they didn't have before (Daniel Theis), and we don't have some players. Every game is different, and we care about how it played and what we did to make them uncomfortable. We know Wednesday's game will be different from Friday's.”
One thing he doesn’t expect? A defensive slugfest.
“I don't think defense will prevail over offense. We're two high-scoring teams, and the key will be to make the opponent uncomfortable. We're both very good in transition, and the team that controls the opponent's strengths will control the series.”
As for last season’s tough playoff memory against Olympiacos, Brizuela is not dwelling on it.
“Last year's playoff is a long way off. It was a bad memory, and we're trying to forget it. Now we're focused on the first game. They're different from Olympiacos, and so are we, and if there were a fifth game, maybe we should look back.”
He’s even taking the Monaco atmosphere in stride.
“Compared to the Greeks, it's a friendlier environment. But once the game starts, you only focus on what's happening on the court; what's happening in the stands matters very little. We're focused on winning the game and don't think they'll be an easy opponent. Monaco is a tough team.”
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