Before Virtus Segafredo Bologna and UNICS Kazan meet for a spot in the 2021 7DAYS EuroCup Finals, Kyle Weems of Virtus spoke to EuroCupBasketball.com about this do-or-die Game 3.
Kyle Weems, Virtus: 'It's all about winning'
Interviews
10 mins read
When Virtus Segafredo Bologna hosts UNICS Kazan on Wednesday in a do-or-die clash for a spot in the 7DAYS EuroCup Finals – and 2021-22 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague eligibility, the home team knows that small forward Kyle Weems is a player it can rely on under pressure. Weems reached the EuroCup Finals with Strasbourg in 2016 and wants to get there again. He is averaging 10.5 points on strong shooting percentages (67.0% 2FG, 41.3% 3FG, 83.3% FT), 3.3 rebounds and 1.1 steals in 20 EuroCup games this season. Weems hopes to take advantage of this opportunity and bring Virtus back to the EuroLeague, as he said in this EuroCupBasketball.com interview. "One of the main goals of this club, when I signed here two summers ago, was to was to be able to get this club to the EuroLeague, back where they wanted to be," Weems said. "And to be so close, there is only one way to do it: that is to come out with extreme energy, extreme focus and just be ready to go to battle for 40 minutes until the buzzer sounds. And when it does, hopefully, we will be on top."
Hello, Kyle. First of all, how does it feel to be part of such an amazing playoff series?
"It is awesome, especially because the body of work that we have had up until this point just kind of makes for a special stage. UNICS has a great team of great athletes, great shot-makers, great playmakers and a great coach, so we need to be focused, concentrate on our game plan, and play tough. And hopefully, we can get the job done tomorrow night."
How do you approach a do-or-die game like this, with the EuroCup season on the line?
"I think it's important to obviously understand the stakes of the game. I think everybody pretty much understands that from both teams, from both clubs. But I think as a player, it's important to keep your routine, keep your game day routine the same, kind of treat it as any old game and don't do anything out of the normal. Do all the things that have got you here to this point individually and collectively. And that's just going to be my own individual outlook on the game. Just treat it as another game. We have to go out and play physical. It's going to be a tough game. And like we have told ourselves all year long, we have to rely on our defense because we feel like we can score at any given time. But we need to rely on our defense and hopefully, that'll be enough to get the job done."
"We need to rely on our defense and hopefully, that'll be enough."
In Game 2, Virtus fought back from 18 points down to tie the game in the final minute. Despite the loss, is that a good sign going forward?
"For sure, because I think we kind of took the momentum back a little bit if that makes sense. I don't really believe in moral victories, but watching the game film and seeing the mistakes that we had, we had a lot of, I call them 'killing turnovers'. When we turned it over, they were able to score. They also had some really big offensive rebounds that hurt us as well. And also, we didn't shoot at our best. Obviously, Belinelli was fantastic, but Teodosic wasn't able to make a three and I wasn't able to make a three on my own attempt. These are just some things we have to look forward to and hold our head high about."
Game 1 was also really close. Were you a bit confident because of Virtus's amazing winning streak?
"I don't know if it's necessarily that we hadn't lost the game; I think we have just been in so many close games like battling back in Monaco earlier in the season, around Christmas time. A few weeks ago, we had a similar type of game down 7, I believe, under 2 minutes against Cedevita Olimpija. Then against Joventut Badalona, it was tied with about 7 minutes to go in Game 1, them battling back in Game 2 in Badalona and us being able to close it out. So we have seen those types of close games before. I thought we did a good job of kind of staying poised and just kind of staying in the moment. And like I said earlier, really focusing on defense. We were able to get some key stops and Teodosic had a huge bucket. We had some free throws late and we were able to close it out."
After two years playing with Teodosic, does he still surprise you sometimes?
"Honestly, nothing that he does anymore surprises me, just because he is such a great talent. His basketball IQ is out of this world, his passing ability, his courage, honestly, I think is one of his best attributes. I mean, the guy is never scared at the moment. Like in the last game, we get the jump ball and he immediately breaks it down and just goes right to the bucket for a layup. So just his courage, his talent and obviously his IQ is something that I have never seen before."
UNICS is a very physical team top to bottom. Is matching its physicality the biggest key to Game 3?
"For sure. You have to be ready physically, just like you need to be ready mentally for this series They hit, and we like to think that we play physical and hit, too. So it is just going to be who can hit in the smartest way without fouling, obviously, and not make bad fouls in the bonus. I think that has been key for both games. They dealt with some bad fouls in the bonus in Game 1, we dealt with some bad fouls in different quarters of Game 1. And just trying to keep them off the free-throw line, but playing smart and playing physical within the confines of the rules of basketball, I think is definitely going to be huge for this game."
You played the EuroCup Finals with Strasbourg in 2016. What do you remember about it?
"I think it's very similar in effect to Galatasaray. They were physical as well and had a great group of foreigners, of guys on a team similar to this UNICS team. They were athletic, liked to throw the ball inside and did a lot of switching. And that's kind of similar to what UNICS is doing now. So just being able to slow down, not panic, not rush, read the game, take as smart shots as possible and also keeping UNICS out of transition, similar to what my Strasbourg team needed to do with Galatasaray, with those athletic guys that they had. The atmosphere in Game 2 was amazing. There is nothing that tops that game. Even though we lost it, was a great game to be a part of something that I'll never forget, pulling up to the arena and walking down the tunnel. It was already sold out between 12,000 to 15,000, whatever that arena [Abdi Ipekci] held. I could hear the fans screaming over my headphones. I have noise-cancelling headphones and I could still hear them! But that's what you live for, and that's what this time of the season is all about. These are the type of games that you want to be a part of. I really wish that our fans could be a part of this season with us on a physical basis. They've been great support, always sending a lot of messages on Instagram and Twitter and all social media and following us. But them being there during the games would definitely help, as I believe it helped UNICS in Game 2 – and that game was also fun to be a part of. But we definitely wish our fans could be in Virtus Segafredo Arena with us for Game 3."
"You have to be ready physically, just like you need to be ready mentally."
You were really close to the EuroCup title once. Is that an extra motivation to try to go all the way in 2021?
"For sure. The only title that I've been able to win over here in my nine years is the EuroChallenge title with no disrespect to the competition. It was a great competition last season. I had a lot of fun playing in it. I have been in the EuroCup now for, I believe this is my fourth year, and with this type of team, we have to take advantage of this opportunity. But first things first, it's all about the team. You have known me for years, I don't like to bring any of my own individual thoughts or accolades or goals to the table. It's all about winning. So I just want our team to be successful and play one of our best games of the year on Wednesday. And whatever the future holds, it holds."
You played against Monaco earlier this season. Did you expect to see them in the Finals?
"I am not really too surprised. That other side of the [playoff] bracket, it could have been a crazy toss-up. I felt the same about Gran Canaria, I thought they could have got there. I felt even Paris [Boulogne Metropolitans 92] could have got there. They had been playing well up until that point. Even Buducnost was playing well towards the end of the Top 16. But I think for me, Monaco is very well-coached. We played them twice in those close games, last season in our group stage and also this season. So it doesn't really surprise me: the coach and that organization have done a good job up to this point, so congratulations to them. They won the games that were in front of them and they deserve to be in the finals."
Finally, the game has also become a do-or-die showdown to earn the right to play in the 2021-22 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague. Does it change anything, in terms of pressure?
"No, I don't think that it puts any more pressure to the game. I think that any time you have a chance to compete for a championship, that's all you could ask for. But obviously, one of the main goals of this club, when I signed here two summers ago, was to be able to get this club to the EuroLeague, back where they wanted to be. And to be so close, there is only one way to do it: that is to come out with extreme energy, extreme focus and just be ready to go to battle for 40 minutes until the buzzer sounds. And when it does, hopefully, we will be on top."