Point guard Nikola Ivanovic, who played a starring role for Buducnost VOLI Podgorica in its season-opening home win over Germani Brescia, is the subject of this week's Eurocupbasketball.com interview.
Nikola Ivanovic, Buducnost: 'The desire to play again was huge'
Interviews
10 mins read
When Buducnost VOLI Podgorica opened the season with a 93-81 home win over Germani Brescia, point guard Nikola Ivanovic played the starring role. The 26-year old scored 14 of his game-high 24 points in the fourth quarter, including 10 during a key 14-2 run. Thrilled to be playing an official basketball game after almost six months, the veteran – in his eighth season in the competition – stepped up at key moments to tilt the game Buducnost's way and get his team to a winning start. "It felt as if it took us three quarters to get an awareness that we are actually competing in a basketball game," Ivanovic told Eurocupbasketball.com. He also acknowledged that it is not often that defensive-minded Buducnost wins games when it scores in the 90s. "This season we simply have a lot more versatility on offense, but it does not mean we should be allowing 80 or more points, like we did against Brescia."
Nikola, congratulations on your season-opening victory. Basketball is back. What did it feel like to play an official basketball game again?
"In the lives of all of us players, especial those who also play for national teams, having such a long break from basketball is something unheard of and the opposite of what we are usually worried about, which is playing too much and too often. So, the desire to play again and to compete, to play a game, was huge. And it was especially nice to be able to again compete at a high level such as the EuroCup, playing against the teams from other countries, against high-level opponents. It is great to finally have that feeling back."
How important was winning the season opener and how much pressure did you feel playing that first game at home?
"Before the game, we did not have as much of that feeling of importance, which would have been the case in previous seasons, as much as we are aware of the importance of our victory now after we won. Because, in the days before the game, it almost felt unreal that we are actually going to finally play Round 1 of the EuroCup. But in the hours before the game, the familiar feeling returned. We entered the game nervous against Brescia, which is a serious team. We had our share of mistakes, but we won the game despite all of them and that is what's most important. We did not play in a while. We went through the preparation period, but there will still be plenty of things to fix and improve. The only thing that counts now is our win and it gives us even bigger enthusiasm and motivation for this season."
"This season we simply have a lot more versatility on offense."
Buducnost trailed for most of the first three quarters and then made a run to start the fourth. What was the key to those moments?
"It felt as if it took us three quarters to get an awareness that we are actually competing in a basketball game. It was the first game of the season, by no means a must-win, but you realize it does mean a lot. And you become aware of how much a loss would have turn things into an unwanted situation and put us in a hole, as opposed to how much good a victory brings. And I think that pushed us into stepping up on defense; it helped us grab 17 rebounds more than them. So, those details were important, and helped us pull away and eventually win comfortably by 12 points."
Brescia is a good defensive team, but you scored 93 points, which is not usually how Buducnost wins games. Is that something new about Buducnost? And how much did the new guys on the team help in that potential transformation?
"Brescia not only plays good defense, but they also visually look like a good defensive team. All their backcourt guys look big and athletic. But we did play well on offense and I think we have a lot of offensive quality this season. We are once again a guard-based team, but with the arrivals of centers Dragan Apic and Willie Reed, and also with Melvin Ejim and Rashad Vaughn, and with all of us who remained from last season, we have plenty of options on offense. We do play a lot of pick-and-rolls, but now we have more of an inside game, too. We use screens and we play a lot more in the open court. Besides, all of the guys who joined us are fantastic professionals. The way they respect the game, respect their teammates and the club, they are at the highest possible level. It makes each practice better and special, it gets you pumped to go and train. So, this season we simply have a lot more versatility on offense, but it does not mean we should be allowing 80 or more points like we did against Brescia. Still, I have to admit, it takes me time to think and remember when the last time was that we scored 90 or more points in a victory in the EuroCup."
"I actually enjoy my official title of backup point guard."
You came in off the bench, something that you have done throughout your career. In your 74 appearances in the EuroCup since 2011, you average 20 minutes per game, but have only made 11 starts. How did you learn to grow into that role?
"It is a role that really suits me. I even think that those 11 games I only started because our starting guard was injured; it must have been some situation like that for me to be a starter. Even in a season when I did not play in the EuroCup, when I played in Serbia with Mega and played 28 minutes per game, I was coming off the bench. I did have some problems earlier in my career when during the pre-game warm-ups I would reach my peak, and then sitting on the bench to start the game would bother me. But then I found a routine where I don't sit, rather keep standing behind the bench, I keep moving. Now, I am already so used to my role, it might even be strange for me to go to a team where I would be a starter. I actually enjoy my official title of backup point guard."
What are the advantages and what does coming off the bench allow you to do?
"As a point guard coming off the bench, I am often in that situation where teams have used their personal fouls. Playing with opponents in the bonus is my guilty pleasure. Those opening minutes are similar to watching game film, you use that time to see what is happening on the court. Unless you are an elite playmaker, it may be easier for a player to see the game from the sideline than to recognize what is going on while on the floor in the heat of the battle. Every game is different, of course, every game can go in a different direction, but it also allows you to recognize how other players are reacting, which one of your teammates you might want to feed to get him going, or who you want to attack when you come off the bench. There are many benefits in coming off the bench."
This season is the second of your backcourt partnership with Justin Cobbs. How important is the continuation and the understanding the two of you must have developed playing last season together?
"It is absolutely beneficial. However, none of it was the case last season, because last season I was not on the level I was supposed to be. Justin had to carry us on his own. He had fantastic statistics in the EuroCup, but we got eliminated in the regular season, which, I think, with all due respect to other teams, we should have managed to go through. But, so far this season, either when we are on the court together late in the games or when he is starting and I am come in as his backup, I feel as if we help unburden each other. And it is something I did not manage to do for him last season. So, by raising the level of how we complement each other, as I believe we are doing, it should reflect positively on the entire team, too, because the ball is in our hands most of the time, we are the ones making the calls. That's in addition to my needing to play better than I did last season."
"I believe everyone in and around the club would agree that not getting to the Top 16 would be a big disappointment."
Your next opponent is Boulogne Metropolitans 92. They have a head coach in Jure Zdovc who you played for in the past and who is very familiar with Buducnost. What do you know about them?
"What will be unusual for our next game is that the way our flights are, we have to travel on the morning of the game to Paris. But as far as their team goes, I watched one quarter of its game against Unicaja and it is obvious that Metropolitans has size and it is tough to play that team because you must match their players' physicality. I think that David Michineau and Brandon Brown are their main strengths in the backcourt. Michineau is a great defensive player in addition to what he does on offense. But what will most likely decide the outcome is being able to have an answer for their physical play."
You played against Brescia and you are getting to know Metropolitans. What do you think of your Group B that also features Unicaja, ratiopharm Ulm and your Montenegrin rivals Mornar Bar?
"I think Unicaja is the most stable team, maybe in the entire competition. And having Mornar, our rivals, in our group is very sweet for me. I started my career there and have always liked that club and have been their fan. I was very happy when they came into the EuroCup. They are a specific team and can play at an extremely high level as they did in the first half against Ulm, but as they have their ups, they also have their downs. It will be the first time two Montenegrin teams play each other in the EuroCup, historic games. Ulm also plays very interesting basketball, as witnessed in the opening round. They have a big man Ostekowski who does everything, including sinking shots out of the pick-and-pop, which is their big advantage. I think Unicaja is the favorite in the group and the rest of us will be battling for the Top 16."
What can we expect from Buducnost the rest of the way? How high are you guys aiming?
"The season just started, but we hope it will be better than last season, which means getting to the Top 16. At least to the Top 16. Or, to put it differently, I believe everyone in and around the club would agree that not getting to the Top 16 would be a big disappointment. That is also how I look at it. But it would be difficult to look past that, because we don't know what the season will bring, or if we do make it to the next phase, who our opponents will be. But I can safely say that our first goal is to reach the Top 16."