**One of the pillars of the recent success of the Serbian powerhouse Partizan NIS Belgrade has been its forward Rade Zagorac. The 25-year old, who is in his third season with the club and in the competition, has been known to step up in big games and clutch moments. He is no stranger to big performances, scoring bursts and MVP of the Round performances, but he generally stands out as a do-it-all player who helps out wherever his team needs. The position on the floor he most often occupies, small forward, is the topic of his first blog for EuroCupBasketball.com.**

Hello everyone, it's Rade Zagorac from Partizan NIS Belgrade. First of all, I hope that everyone who reads this blog is well in these awkward times we are in and that you are managing to follow basketball with at least a similar level of passion as you have in previous years.

It is a great pleasure for me to have the opportunity to share some of my thoughts with fans of European basketball and my club in this blog on EuroCupBasketball.com. I have been thinking for a while about topics that could be interesting to cover from someone who is participating in this competition for the third year in a row and I decided to write about the role of the small forward in modern basketball. 

"A small forward must be at a very high level physically and ready to play a lot of minutes." 

Our sport changes from year to year, like everything does in various spheres of life. Teams and coaches adapt to each other and these changes are reflected in many ways, like the different selection of players in the creation of the team, or a different style and way of playing, in the physical characteristics of the players, also marketing, off-court activities, and many others. One of the changes that has become a trend in recent years, and which I will focus on, is the job, duties, and requirements asked from the players at the position of small forward.

At 2.06 meters, I belong to this group of players and even though I was often developed in four different positions during my time in youth selections, naturally, most coaches see me in positions '3' and '4'. Some of the players who have successfully competed in the EuroCup in that position in recent years, and against whom I had the opportunity to play, are Charles Kahudi, Sammy Mejia, Sam Dekker and Kyle Weems. Some of the players playing in the Euroleague at this position are Nikola Kalinic, Shavon Shields, Will Clyburn and Vladimir Micov.

I believe that fans who watch games in a bit of a superficial way, or in a fan-like way, tend to underestimate this role and this position. For sure, a small forward will rarely be the best scorer, have the most assists or lead his team in rebounds. If we talk about the stats, however, a small forward will likely be present in all these categories, but even more importantly, he will have an invaluable contribution to both his team's offense and defense.

Today's basketball (I know that generalization is not the smartest thing to do and there are always exceptions, but I will talk about most cases) does not require too much ball-handling or an excessive number of shots and possessions. Those are the jobs of playmakers and combo guards. It does not require a constant threat from the low post; that job belongs to power forwards and centers. And yet we find all of the players mentioned above in all of these situations, often as creators, often as low-post threats.

A small forward must be at a very high level physically and ready to play a lot of minutes while being very active in transition and in many cases the leader of his team in that area. Spacing in today's game also requires him to be able to shoot from behind the three-point stripe at a high percentage and more often than not he must be able to help his team both as a secondary ball-handler and as a low-post threat.

As a part of the above-mentioned change in the style of play, one of the main roles and demands of a small forward comes in the increasingly popular switching defense, the kind that Fenerbahce has developed to perfection in the EuroLeague in recent years. 

"A small forward must possess leadership skills because he is the link between his backcourt and frontcourt teammates." 

In particular, if we take those fantastic clashes we had against Virtus Segafredo Bologna last season. Playing under Coach Andrea Trinchieri, I often found myself in a situation where I defended point guards Milos Teodosic or Stefan Markovic, all with the idea that when Virtus plays pick-and-roll, I am the one switching to their big man, in this case, Julian Gamble.

An interesting comparison for a small forward would be with the goalkeeper in soccer; if a small forward successfully defends the low-post game of the opposing center, he will not receive credit equal to the critique which comes if he unsuccessfully defends that same center. Unsurprisingly, it makes being a small forward quite delicate. 

Another important element that a small forward must possess is leadership skills because he is practically the link between his backcourt and frontcourt teammates. All the players I mentioned above are guys with enviable leadership characteristics and very often a psychological backbone of their teams because they do not depend on any specific things, not even a bad shooting day at work. A small forward must also always be active on the offensive glass and thus largely the first defense against the opposing team's transition.

In the end, I think the players who play the small forward position in a way represent the driving force of their respective teams, its strength, engagement and commitment. It is difficult to grade the performance of these players solely through the box score because they bring intangibles that show why it is no wonder that all the successful coaches have been spending a significant part of their budgets and resources on this specific type of a player.

That's it for this first blog. I wish everyone good health, and here's to this season to be as exciting as any of the previous seasons and wishing to see basketball fans back in the arenas to create fiery atmospheres throughout Europe.

Partizan NIS Belgrade's small forward Rade Zagorac uses the first post on his EuroCupBasketball.com blog to discuss what is needed to be successful at his position, small forward, in modern basketball.

Blog: Rade Zagorac on playing small forward

Born in Kaunas, Lithuania, Paulius Valinskas is one of the many Lithuanian players to come out of Zalgiris's legendary youth system. A late bloomer, Valinskas took a step forwards in his career at age 19 while playing for Zalgiris's second squad and was promoted to Zalgiris's first team for the start of the 2016-17 season. He played there for two seasons and took part in 30 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague games before joining Lietkabelis Panevezys. After a brief stint with French side Entente Orleans 45, Valinskas returned to Lietkabelis to play alongside his brother Marius. The Valinskas brothers are making their 7DAYS EuroCup debut this season and wearing unusual uniform numbers, 66 and 99, too. Paulius will share his experiences right here all season long with his EuroCupBasketball.com blog.

What's up, EuroCup fans? First of all, I can say that I am excited to play in this very high-level competition for the first time. The EuroCup has very good teams, especially in our group, and in every game, we have to be 100% focused. But that is what we practice for, to play against great teams and all that stuff. We're happy to compete here but, you know, we didn't play basketball for six months, so it has been a tough start for me and my team, Lietkabelis Panevezys. We will bounce back fast and try to play better and show better basketball. That's what we're looking for, but so far, I am happy to play in this competition and to compete against some of the best teams in Europe. 

We are 0-2 right now and in both games, we competed really well in the first half, but things were different after the break. It is the first time in my time with Lietkabelis that we played against such good teams and we fell apart in the third quarter in both games. It is unbelievable; it is hard to understand. It is hard to explain why because we are trying to play at the same level all game long, but now, we are struggling so much in the third quarter, two games in a row, after two great quarters. So that is our main problem right now and we are watching a lot of videos, trying to look at our mistakes and what we did the last time, why we struggled so much in the third quarter. And we just have to be patient. We have to be focused 120% against such good teams and just do the basic things, like our coach is saying every day: box out, stop the fast breaks and just don't make stupid mistakes. That's our main goal right now.

We will face Lokomotiv Kuban at home next week. Loko has two very famous Lithuanian players, Mindaugas Kuzminskas and Mantas Kalnietis. When I was growing up, Kalnietis was the Lithuanian national team's point guard and he is still up there. I was a teenager, a kid when I started to watch how he plays. I am from Kaunas, he is from Kaunas. I played in Zalgiris... he played in Zalgiris! So he was like my role model: I saw how we played and he is a true legend here in Lithuania, one of the best point guards of all-time. For me, playing against him is another great competition and I am looking forward to it. But we have to show our best game against Loko and we will see what happens. Still, it is always good to play against these Lithuanian guys like Kuzminskas and Kalnietis. We're not the best friends, but we played a couple of games together with the national team in February. It was a very nice experience. He is a great guy and I am happy to see him again and play against him. 

One of the great things about this team is that I get to play with my brother, Marius. When we were younger, that was our dream, to play together on a high-level team, to practice every day together, to play together, to be together on the court. That was our dream and that dream came true. Of course, we went to reach even higher goals together. Now he's missing the start of the season because of an injury, but he will try to play, I think, in a couple of weeks, so I am waiting for him. The team is waiting for him, so the feeling to play with your brother and be on the same team is unbelievable, because this is a dream come true. I think that if you have a brother and you play basketball, playing with him at this level is an unbelievable feeling. 

"I would like to reach the best version of myself."

Some people ask me about my number, 66, which is not very common, so I will tell you why I wear it! At the start of my career, I was playing with No. 6, but in my second year with Zalgiris, Axel Toupane came to the team. He was coming from the NBA, is a great guy, and asked me to give him that number. I was a young player, so I decided to give him that number. I wanted to wear a similar number, so I picked No. 66, a not-so-traditional number. And then I started to play better that season so I decided to keep 66. Now, I really like the number and there are not a lot of players wearing 66! I am happy to have it, and I will stick with it. By the way, my brother Marius used to wear No. 9 and now he changed to 99. He is not telling me why he picked 99, but it is 66 upsides down, so maybe I would say there is a connection between us when it comes to jersey numbers. 

I am in a good situation with this team. First of all, I would like to reach the best version of myself and I feel that, until now, I haven't reached that level, because I want to improve more. I want to play at a high-level, on great teams and everything. When I was younger, no-one talked about me like I was ready. People thought that I didn't have so much potential, but I had my goals, my dreams, and just kept working. I told myself I will keep working and see what happens. So I don't know, maybe some people realized that I can play basketball and I'm trying to prove to everybody that I can be a good player.

We play our next two games at home. The situation is unclear with COVID-19; every day, things are changing, so we will see if we will be playing with fans or not. It is a little bit confusing but I can tell you this: when the gym is full of fans and they support you, they cheer for you, it's the best feeling. When you play against a very good team and you have your fans cheering for you, it's great. So we are looking forward to it. Safety is first these days, but home games are the best games! 

Lietkabelis Panevezys guard Paulius Valinskas lets fans know a little bit about himself ahead of a showdown against his former role model in his debut post on his EuroCupBasketball.com blog.

Paulius Valinskas: 'I want to improve more'

**Telenet Giants Antwerp has returned to the 7DAYS EuroCup for the first time since 2008 and a lot has changed in the organization, which now holds its games at the magnificent Lotto Arena. One of the players who has seen the club's growth is team captain Dave Dudzinski, who is in his fourth campaign with the Belgian powerhouse. He started his professional basketball career with Italian side Moncada Agrigento and also played for Siauliai of Lithuania and Steaua Bucharest of Romania before joining Antwerp in 2017. Dudzinski helped Antwerp win back-to-back Belgian Cups in 2019 and 2020 and led the team to a third-place finish in the 2018-19 Basketball Champions League. The club took a major step forwards by joining the EuroCup to compete against tougher opponents. Dudzinski will tell us about his and his team's first EuroCup experience in this EuroCupBasketball.com blog. Don't miss it!**

First of all, it is great to be in the EuroCup. It's definitely a big step up for the organization, Telenet Giants Antwerp, to get some respect in Europe because I feel like since I arrived a couple years ago, we really were building something, building up and building up, and now we got to a very big stage, the EuroCup. We just want to show that we belong and we can be competitive and make some noise in this big competition. Some people may think we are not experienced at this level. We maybe don't have the experience, but also, we don't have any fear. Some of our guys, like myself, we played Champions League for the last two years and made a deep playoff run. So we have played big games against big teams. Of course, the EuroCup is a little bit different because some of the teams here definitely have ambitions to win the whole thing and move to EuroLeague. That's something that we haven't had a chance to play against and we don't have experience against that. But I guess we are fearless when it comes to who we play. It's like all these teams are big and we know that we will be the underdog most nights, but you know, we don't fear anybody and I think that's a strength for us.

This is my fourth season with Antwerp. I have really enjoyed my time in Antwerp, but never thought I'd be here for four years! But you know, after the first two years I was here, they started to put a little bit more money in the club and also, we have fantastic facilities. We probably have one of the best practice facilities in Europe with a great weight room and a huge basketball court that is just for us. We have a fantastic arena with good organization and everything. The money is always on time, the city is fantastic, it is a great place to live, it is very comfortable to live in Antwerp. Whenever I go into the off-season, I look at other teams and it has to beat a lot of these things. This is a club that has a lot of good things and it is going forward. I think we are hopefully building it to be a good basketball destination in Europe.

We just played our game against Lokomotiv Kuban in Krasnodar. We were leading at halftime, but Lokomotiv beat us in the end. We came out and they really were trying to beat us up down low, but we were playing pretty well. The game was a little bit slow-paced in the beginning. We executed our plays very well for the first time being together at this level. In the second, we kind of made some really bad turnovers in the third quarter, allowed them to take the lead again, and once you give a team like that the lead, it is hard to recapture it, especially on the road. We have to be maybe a little bit tougher in those crucial moments of the game, but all in all, I think we showed that we do belong in this competition. They made a run at the end to make the score look a little bit worse than it was. I thought we were with them the whole game and just had a couple of turnovers: if we could have really kept the game close to the end, I think they would have been a little bit nervous.

It was great to play in front of fans, too. Honestly, this summer, there were times where you were wondering "hey, I don't know what's gonna happen this year. I don't know when I will be able to play a game again." It was training and training, but sometimes you have those moments where you are wondering if there would really even be basketball this year. So for me, I was even a little bit emotional to have the opportunity to play again in front of fans. I know that we will have fans in Belgium and it's just great to continue to give that back to the community, to have these opportunities to play in front of people and in these times, bring people together a little bit. It's really nice. I think that we have a good plan for our first home game, from what I understand, to bring a certain number of fans into the arena and keep everybody safe. And that's what's really important for us, because we want to share what we what we do with our city and our fans. It is really nice that we have the opportunity to do that this year.

"Our fans and the city will be ready to host this game." 

"Speedy" Smith had a good game in Krasnodar. He is maybe the fastest player in the EuroCup and for me, the way we saw him play in Belgium last year, it is no surprise; he can really play. He is a great guy off the court. I just met him because we only started our pre-season three weeks ago, but we get along very well and he's a really good guy. I think he's really going to be a key for us this year, especially in this competition, because he can play at a high level and runs the team really well. So far, he has been awesome to play with. I think people will naturally keep an eye on him because he's one of our top players and he is going to run the show for us. If we can get him going, it is going to help us in these high-level games.

Our next game is at home against MoraBanc Andorra. As I mentioned, it will be our first home game with fans in a long time. Every game we play is going to be a tough matchup. Andorra is a regular in the EuroCup and we are well-aware that they are a high-level team. It is going to be really fun; I already had several fans message me saying how excited they are to have a game back in Lotto Arena again. I think that our fans and the city will be ready to host this game. As far as Andorra, we have played against Spanish teams before and kind of know how their style of play is compared to other countries. We will prepare and see which advantages we can get. Obviously, we are very excited to be playing. So Antwerp fans, come watch us, we will put on a show on Tuesday!

Join Telenet Giants Antwerp team captain Dave Dudzinski as he blogs his way through his maiden 7DAYS EuroCup campaign.

Dave Dudzinski: 'We are fearless'

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."

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'

Bahcesehir Koleji Istanbul big man Deniz Kilicli is not yet 30 years of old, but he has already seen plenty in his basketball career on both sides of the Atlantic. This season is a special one for him as he makes his 7DAYS EuroCup debut with a special club and organization. Not only did his mother study at Bahcesehir, but Kilicli attended its high scool and played for its team too before heading to the United States. He will use this Eurocupbasketball.com blog to take us behind the scenes at Bahcesehir in its premier EuroCup campaign.

First of all, I have to say it feels great to be playing at this level, in the EuroCup. I was 23-24 years old when I last played the EuroLeague and I was on a very high-level team, which was Efes. It was different then. I had just graduated from college and I didn't have any kind of understanding of what was going on. I didn't know any of the coaches and I didn't know what they wanted from me. So it was a very big shock coming from college to become a member of a professional organization like Efes and to be able to adapt and play with many other great players. In my eyes, some of the guys that I played with were some of the best players that ever played the game in Europe. It was hard for me to adapt and understand what was going on, so it took me several seasons and a very, very terrible injury to before I saw what was going on, what people want from me and how I could help my team.

It is still a learning experience, but I am very curious to see what is going to happen this season with Bahcesehir because we have a great team: great characters and a good organization that is willing to give everything they have for the players on and off the court.

"I am very curious to see what is going to happen this year..."

I would like to introduce you to Bahcesehir, which is more than a regular basketball club. It is a private school located on the European side of Istanbul and known for its great educational values. I went to Bahcesehir for high school; I was a scholarshiplarship student there and played for its basketball team. We played at the high school world championships and stuff like that; these private schools have good teams. We had players from good teams such as Ulker before it merged with Fenerbahce. We also had some players from Efes.

Bahcesehir has been teaching since the late 1960s. It started as private classes to help prepare high school and university students for their exams. My mother studied there, also. Bahcesehir is very big in Turkey; it is the pinnacle of academics. If you want your kids to attend a nice school and get a great education, you pick Bahcesehir. Since then they have grown a lot. It has campuses all over the world: China, USA, England, Germany and several other countries. And it keeps growing, finding the best teachers so they can push its academic success further.

When I was there, I had a scholarship. Most of the time, especially in Europe - in the US it's different - as a young player, it is hard to go to school and then practice with the senior team. At some point, you have to miss some lessons at school. At Bahcesehir, the first thing they said was that school comes first. We had to worry about our grades, just like in the US. The classes I took taught us about what we should do as people: you should have an A-plan, a B-plan, even a C-plan. When I went to high school, they taught us to build ourselves and that helped me go to the United States in the end. Because I went to Bahcesehir and got good grades and was pushed academically, when I went to the US, I was already ahead of all of the students there because of this education.

Bahcesehir has a very important place in my life because as a basketball player, I also put academics first and athletics second because as I mentioned, I had a terrible injury. There are always things that can go wrong and in sports, it is a miracle that we make it as far as we do because we are always at risk of getting hurt. Some of the players who I played with when I was little can't find a job, especially in this COVID-19 economy. So they cannot find jobs and had to quit, so what you fall back on is your education, your diploma and how can carry yourself. Bahcesehir started this in me, that I should push for the academics first and then be a basketball player, which helped me - and still helps me - in my life.

Bahcesehir Koleji Istanbul big man Deniz Kilicli introduces us to his history at Bahcesehir as a high-school student and athlete in the first edition of his Eurocupbasketball.com.

Deniz Kilicli: 'Bahcesehir is up and coming'

There are not many happier people in basketball right now than Pau Ribas, who has returned with a long contract to finish his career in the club, Joventut Badalona, where he started playing basketball at age 5. His father, Jordi Ribas, had been a pro who helped La Penya, which is Joventut's nickname, win its second Spanish League title in 1978. Ribas is the only player ever to reach Joventut's first squad after playing for each and every youth team in the club, but he left in 2008 after lifting the 7DAYS EuroCup and Spanish Copa del Rey titles. In the 12 seasons since, Ribas played for Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz, Valencia Basket and FC Barcelona, become a European and World champion with the Spanish national team. He won a Spanish League with Baskonia, lifted the Copa del Rey twice with Barcelona, and claimed a second EuroCup crown with Valencia in 2014, hitting a critical shot in a legendary series against Khimki Moscow Region. Now, Ribas is thrilled to be back at Joventut and reading to play in the EuroCup again. "It was important for me to return to the team but stay at a good playing level. I want not just to retire here, but to compete," Ribas told EuroCupbasketball.com. "In that sense, returning to the EuroCup gives us a chance to reach high."

**Pau, welcome back to the EuroCup! How important has this competition been in your career?**

"Honestly, it brings back some of the best memories I've had in my career: winning titles. Of course, it was really special to win the EuroCup here at La Penya and also with Valencia. It was the only title I won with Valencia, so it was special, too."

**Having so much history with Joventut, did you always expected to finish your career where you started it?**

"Yes, I always had the idea of coming back, ever since I left. I knew I would be back; I just didn't know when. It happened now for various reasons. I looked for a more important role on a team, and La Penya offered me that. I know our coach and the people in the club well, and so it happened now. It was also important for me to return to the team but stay a good playing level. I want not just to retire here, but to compete. In that sense, returning to the EuroCup gives us a chance to reach high in this competition."

"I want not just to retire here, but to compete." 

**You won the 2008 EuroCup title in your first full season on the senior team. What do you remember about the Final Eight in Turin?**

"I remember that we played very well. We played very good basketball in all three games, dominating our opponents. Moreover, we played fun-to-watch basketball with young players. Pere Tomas, Ricky [Rubio] and I were the youngest, and even when we had tough opponents like Girona, led by Marc [Gasol], we had great momentum. I remember when we got back to Badalona, people were really excited to see the team back in the EuroLeague. The homecoming was great, celebrating it in the town hall. Rudy Fernandez, Demond Mallet, Lubos Barton... we had then what we try to have now: experienced players playing with young talents."

**Apart from lifting the trophy twice, your biggest EuroCup moment had to be your go-ahead jumper for Valencia to beat Khimki in the 2014 eighthfinals. How did that unfold?**

"We won by 16 in the first leg at home and Khimki led by 17 in the second leg, so they were ahead by a point in the series. We needed to score and get the defensive stop. In the final play, we run the classic 'Russian eights' play that [Coach Velimir Perasovic] liked, and I found a good shot. It was a little bit strange because it was a big shot in my career, but it only served to lose a game by 15 points. But that meant we advanced and it allowed us to win the EuroCup that season. It is one of the most important shots I've made."

**How great were those 2014 finals against UNICS Kazan?**

"The series against Khimki was almost like the Finals. We didn't have great group stages and had to face Khimki right away in the elimination rounds. Both teams were the favorites to win and eliminating them gave us a lot of confidence. We played first at home in each series and thrashed every opponent at La Fonteta. That allowed us to keep calm in the second leg of each series, including the finals against UNICS. We played really well and Justin Doellman was unstoppable. I have seen very few players do so well as Justin did in those finals."

**What's your take on Joventut's regular season group this season?**

"What a fun group! And the strongest group, in my opinion. We will play a lot of tough games, especially on the road, and I believe it is always important to be strong at home. Last season, this team won all its home games, lost all its road games, and was about to reach the playoffs. That means that if you win at home, you have a longer run in the competition. We will try to win on the road, but all the teams have top-level players, even Bahcesehir and Bourg. It will be tough to win games and you never know when it is best to face certain opponents: early in the season, in the middle of it, late..."

"Returning to Joventut brings extra excitement" 

**Joventut hosts Partizan in Round 1. Partizan beat Joventut in the 1992 EuroLeague title game. This will be your first game against Partizan in Joventut's jersey. How special is that?**

"It is special. I like Partizan because they are similar to us. They have a lot of tradition and very good youth teams. Partizan has had great moments, and its biggest one against us, of course. So both clubs are similar, and it is always fun to play against them in Belgrade, with great fans. We hope that, little by little, things get back to normal. Above all, we want to play at home because it looks like we will have some fans in EuroCup games. We are really looking forward to that. Imagine, I came back to the club after so many years, and not being able to play in front of our fans is a bit sad. I can't wait to feel our fans' support, no matter if there are 200, 500, 1,000 or 20,000 of them."

**As a player in your 30s, how much of an extra motivation is it to play for Joventut again?**

"Like you said, I have been playing basketball since I was 5 years old, and I love basketball, in general, whether is playing it, watching it, practicing... anytime, really. The excitement is always there, but it is true that returning to Joventut brings extra excitement. It is a little bit different to play for the team you are a fan of, the one you root for. It brings extra motivation, every day."

**You won the EuroCup twice and only your good friend Rafa Martinez has won more times. What would it mean to win three like him?**

"I played with Rafa and won the EuroCup together in 2014. He is a generous person who likes to share, and I am sure he would like to share that honor with me. I still have some years left to play here in Joventut, and winning the EuroCup again would mean we did things right and enjoyed ourselves a lot. In the end, I cannot ask for much more than what I have had. I have had a really successful career until now, winning titles with all the clubs I played for, and with the national team. I have been lucky, because winning titles is the most difficult thing to do. When you have won them, fighting for more titles and getting them are always welcome. It is what we like the most, playing to win. I hope I can be lucky enough to match Rafa's achievement!"

There are not many happier people in basketball right now than Pau Ribas, who has returned with a long contract to finish his career in the club, Joventut Badalona, where he started playing basketball at age 5.

Pau Ribas, Joventut: 'I knew I would be back'

Danilo Andjusic has already played for nine different teams in Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Italy, Spain, Poland, Russia and now France. Things have changed for him since he joined Bourg. Last season the 30-year-old was given great responsibilities on offense and that paid off nicely as he averaged 16.0 points on 45.5% three-point shooting in the French League. He made his EuroCup debut in the 2009-10 campaign as an up-and-coming talent with Hemofarm Vrsac. Andjusic spent the 2017-18 season as a three-point shooting specialist with UNICS Kazan. Now, Andjusic is back in the EuroCup to play a leading role with JL Bourg-en-Bresse in the club's first season in the competition. Follow his blog and get to know more about him and his team right here on EuroCupbasketball.com!

I have to start by saying that when Bourg made it to the EuroCup, I was really happy because I feel this club deserves to be in such a competition as the EuroCup. I have been here for one year only but the people I know in the club and everybody who works for the organization want to take the club to the next level. They do a really good job, so I was really happy when we qualified and that's one of the reasons why I stayed here after last season. I saw the club's potential and what they want to do in the future. I think it is going to be great for everybody and for the club. 

"I've felt really good since I came here." 

Everyone at the club has given me a lot of confidence which is also one of the reasons why I stayed here. Not only because of the club and the way they want to grow, but also I've felt really good since I came here. Everybody makes me feel really good on the court, Coach has believed in me since Day One, giving me a good role on the team in which I feel comfortable. Everybody believes in my basketball skills and what I can do on the court. I am just doing my job and feeling good and I am happy to start another season with Bourg-en-Bresse.

To be honest, I wanted to feel like an important player on a good team. I always wanted to find a role in which I would be one of the key players in my team. I feel really good in that role, I like it a lot, and this is the position in which I am now. Only in Perm have I had this situation and it was good, but not as good as here. Last season, we had very good results, the best in club's history, and that is really important for me. I'm ready to accept the same challenge this year too, just on a bigger stage such as EuroCup.

I think we have a pretty good team, although some of our players don't have experience in European competitions. But I think we have a good team. We have good chemistry. We have a lot of players who were here for a lot of years. Our system is based on that so, because of that, I think we can have good results even in the EuroCup. Some of our guys already played in European competition, like Alen [Omic], who won the EuroCup title with Unicaja. He knows how it feels and could help us to good results in Europe. Zack [Wright] and I already played it and we can help the team with our experience to have a good season together. Also, I think our team is stacked with other great players, such as our captain Peackoc who is one of the best PF's in the past few years in the French league. Newcomers Scrubb, Allen and Luka are great additions to our team as well. All together, we can do great things I'm sure of it.

Life is really nice in Bourg-en-Bresse. To be honest, I didn't expect life to be so good in France, because I didn't have any experience before. But when I came here and saw how hard the people in this club work... not just them, but everybody in France. They work hard and like sports. All of this was new to me and I was positively surprised by all these things. So I feel good here. It is a small city, but we are close to Lyon, which is a bigger city. It's nice for living and I think that many players who never played in France don't know what they can expect here. I can only say positive things, everything has been great since I came here and like you probably know, I have played in a lot of countries, so I know what that looks like. Here, I have only positive things to say.

There's a thing that is truly important for the players to know: in France, you don't need to think about other stuff, just basketball. You just need to do your job, play basketball and focus on that, and all the other things will come because like I said, everybody in the club takes care of you. They take care of all that side stuff so you don't need to be worried. So that's a nice thing. You can just chill, play basketball and do your job. 

"If we have a good start, then everything is open." 

I am excited because I will play against two of my former teams, Partizan and UNICS, in the EuroCup regular season. I am really looking forward to playing both teams. Partizan is my favorite team from Serbia. It is the team that I rooted for when I was a kid. I played for them twice and they have, for me, the best fans in Europe. It is always great to play against them. Now I will be on the other side, but it is always a nice feeling to come back to our city, maybe play in front of my friends and family. Then, of course, I was in Kazan for two years and have great memories from that city and from UNICS. I'm looking forward to meeting all the people there that I know; a lot of them still work for the club. I can't wait to see them again.

A strong start is always very important in the EuroCup and I think we have a good chance to do that. If we have a good start, then everything is open. I believe that we probably have the hardest regular season group, so it is going to be a tough job, but I still believe that we can make it. We can think about it and do well enough to go to the Top 16. I am ready for that challenge. I always want to compete against the best so that I can see where I am. I know I am ready, so I can't wait for the season to start.

Finally, a message to our fans. I want to ask them to stay with the team and keep supporting us like they have all these years. This season, for the first time, they have the opportunity to see some of the greatest teams in Europe, with a lot of history. They have to stay with us because we will give our best to make them happy again, to make them proud of us.

Danilo Andjusic has already played for nine different teams in Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Italy, Spain, Poland, Russia and now France. Follow his blog and get to know more about him and his team right here on EuroCupbasketball.com!

Danilo Andjusic: 'Ready for that challenge'

After six seasons in Gran Canaria, Oriol Pauli decided to make a change and moved north to play for MoraBanc Andorra. He brings experience - in the form of an appearance in the EuroCup FInals as well as a season in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague - plus his trusted dog Moxie to his new home in Andorra, where Pauli hopes to earn more playing time and have a central role on a EuroCup contender. He will periodically check in through his EuroCupbasketball.com blog to share his thoughts on the season. Here is his first post:

First of all, I have to say it will be a season full of changes for me. I played for Herbalife Gran Canaria for the last six years and believed it was the right time to do something different, to take that next step in my career. I decided to switch teams and leave Gran Canaria. MoraBanc Andorra was one of the clubs that showed a lot of confidence in me and believed I can give a lot to the team. They wanted me to be here and were sure that I would do great. They said I would get the playing time that maybe I didn't have the luck to get in Gran Canaria. It was a good option for me and I am excited to be here. I agreed to their proposal and am still waiting to make my official debut. I was injured in the preseason, but I will be ready for the start of season and I looking forward to showing what I can do with the playing time that I was missing.

"We have a great group of players and that is what can give us an edge."

I am back in the 7DAYS EuroCup, a competition I know well. I missed the EuroCup! Last season, Gran Canaria didn't play any European competitions and I truly missed that; playing two competitions gives more playing time to everyone, more minutes on court, more options for everyone. I always liked the EuroCup because I believe it has grown every season. There are a lot of good teams and everyone has a chance to reach the final stages. Playing the EuroCup with Andorra is a plus. This is a slightly different club because we represent a whole country. In a way, it is like playing for the Andorran national team! I can't wait to start the season. Our regular-season group is tough, but if we make it to the Top 16, we will have a good chance to reach even higher. We have to be focused from the very beginning, but also very confident. We have good options and will go for it.

The EuroCup is all about overcoming obstacles. There are small competitions in the EuroCup and that forces you to be focused in every game. First, you have to survive the regular season and then you start from scratch again in the Top 16. In the Spanish League and the EuroLeague, there is a bigger margin for error. If you play a bad game, you can always bounce back down the road. In the EuroCup, there is no room for such mistakes, especially in a group with such great teams. We have to be ready from Game 1 or it will be tough for us to advance. The team has had a great start of the season and we've worked well since pre-season. We have a great group of players and that is what can give us an edge. We have a core of players who did great last season, and us, the newcomers, have adjusted pretty fast, which is important on a basketball team. We have to play together and I think we will be able to do so.

One thing I like about Andorra is that I live a few meters away from the arena. Everything is close here and some of the players live in a building that also hosts the club's office, which is very close to the arena. I rented a flat so close to it that I would never be late to practices. In the end, it is very comfortable to be here. I like to be one of the first to arrive at practice and now I don't need to drive to the arena and avoid traffic. I am a few steps away and I hope that helps me have a great season. I was not allowed to live in the club's flats because I have a dog, but I am only a few meters away from them. I spend a lot of time with the guys living in those flats.

"I needed a change and only see the positive side of it."

We got our dog a couple of years ago. It is from Tarragona, but already lived in Gran Canaria and now in Andorra. It is a small dog that doesn't make much trouble. Maybe you saw him on social media; he goes everywhere with us. My girlfriend, Carla, loves him and wants to take him everywhere. His name is Moxi and he has its own Instagram account.

Pierre Oriola of FC Barcelona has the same breed of dog and also created an Instagram account for him. Pedro Martinez, the head coach, has another dog from the same breed. Go check him out!

Our first EuroCup game is against AS Monaco. These teams have faced each other on regular basis in the last three years. It happened in Gran Canaria, too; sometimes you play against the same opponents and that is a good thing because you know your opponents better and how to play against them. Our group also features Lokomotiv Kuban and Virtus Bologna, so it is a very tough one. We have to be focused, especially at home. From my own experience in the competition, home wins are critical and you have to win them all. That gives you more confidence on the road. Being focused at all times is the most critical issue and it is important to find a good rhythm to compete well in both competitions, the EuroCup and the Spanish League.

People may think I miss Gran Canaria's great weather, but I am really happy to be here. I had a good life in Gran Canaria, it is a very special place to be. It was great to live in Gran Canaria for so many years, but I also like it here in Andorra. I needed a change and only see the positive side of it. Coming to a new destination is great because it is my decision. I am adjusting to the team and the country as quickly as possible, and I hope we have a great season! Mai por!

After six seasons in Gran Canaria, Oriol Pauli decided to make a change and moved north to play for MoraBanc Andorra. He will blog on these pages periodically to share his thoughts on the season. Here is his first post.

Oriol Pauli: 'I missed the EuroCup!'

It is a do-or-die game for both teams: Darussafaka Tekfen Istanbul takes on Segafredo Virtus Bologna and only the winner advances to the 7DAYS EuroCup Quarterfinals and the loser goes home. In such games, having players who breathe the club's philosophy can make the difference and there is no player more identified with Darussafaka than Dogus Ozdemiroglu. Darussafaka first tipped off more than a century ago as part of the sports section at a school for orphans, set up to provide an education for boys who had lost their fathers and who had limited financial resources. Ozdemiroglu, who lost his father, was a student at the school throughout his childhood. Not only did he make it to the first team, but he was a member of its EuroCup-championship squad in 2018. A steals specialist, Ozdemiroglu believes that defense will be the key to this critical game, as he told EuroCupbasketball.com in this interview. "If we play with our identity, that will be the key to the game. When we play good defense, it is not about the other team, but about us," Ozdemiroglou said. "If we don't play good defense, they have a big chance to do it. We know that and will try to play good defense."

**Hello, Dogus. The 7DAYS EuroCup season comes down to one game against Segafredo Virtus Bologna. How is the atmosphere in the team before this important game?**

"As you said, this is the most important game of the season, the key game for us for the rest of the season: if we win, we will be in the playoffs. We won the EuroCup two years ago and our fans, our club, everybody is excited about the game. The atmosphere is good inside the team, we are all preparing for the game. Everybody is ready to fight because they beat us in Bologna and we want to take sporting revenge. Everybody wants to be in the playoffs - the players, the coaches, the fans, everyone."

**Only the winner will survive and that is added pressure for both teams. As a professional basketball player, how exciting is it to play this kind of game?**

"As a professional basketball player, I always like to play this kind of game because everybody is really focused on these games and everybody comes to watch them. People are coming to more games at the end of the season instead of watching on TV. Everybody remembers these kinds of games. If you want to be successful, you have to win these kinds of games and if you are able to play them well, as a team, everybody will remember that. It will be a full gym, everybody will talk about it, so I like these kinds of games." 

"This is the most important game of the season." 

**You will play a critical role in defense, particularly against Stefan Markovic and Milos Teodosic. How much have you studied them over the last few days?**

"Both of them are really great players. We already played against them and both Teodosic and Markovic are two of the smartest players in the EuroCup. I think we did a good job in the first game, but they shot more free throws and scored a lot. We now have to prepare for that, too. Before all games, we prepare against the key players of our opponent and this time we did the same, we are not overthinking it. If we stop both of them, our job will be easier. We will prepare well and we will see if we can do that or not."

**All your career, you have been a steals specialist. Is it something you can practice or is it a natural instinct of yours, to read the defense and get the steal?**

"It starts with instinct. I feel like I have something special when it comes to steals, but then you have to try to improve. At first, at the beginning of my career, I tried to steal every ball, but I have learned a lot and studied the opposing player. Everybody has a different, special move and strong skills. For instance, some players are better shooters or always go to the right side, others take one dribble left and shoot... It depends on their offense, on their skills and I watch a lot of games to learn the players before the game. So I still think it is getting better."

**Not a lot of people outside Turkey know how important you are for the Darussafaka family. Can you tell us a little bit about your story?**

"First of all, I want to start with the Darussafaka society, which provides equal opportunities for education. For me, as a child who had lost one of my parents, Darussafaka schools gave me access to education and pay extra attention to kids who want to play sports and are talented. I joined Darussafaka schools at age 9 and it was my physical education teacher who told me to play basketball. I actually wanted to play soccer because as you know, it is a popular sport in Turkey, but watching our basketball team and playing basketball with my close friends, I started to dream about becoming a part of this team. I was watching our professional club when I was a kid and my first dream was being a part of that team. When I finally did it, it was amazing."

**Of course, winning the EuroCup title must have been your highlight as a Darussafaka player. What do you remember about the 2018 Finals and the celebration?**

"I remember that as an amazing experience. We won the EuroCup with Darussafaka and celebrated in the locker room and later with all the fans and the people in the club. It was amazing. We wrote club history, it was Darussafaka's first European trophy and it was great for me to be a part of it. Of course, it motivates me to do it again. As a Darussafaka player, I want to win a lot of trophies with the club. We will see! But it motivates us a lot."

**Do those memories - lifting the trophy, the joy you felt, the celebration - inspire you to work even harder and try to win this critical game against Virtus?**

"Of course! Once you taste that feeling, you want to taste it again. It motivates me and the whole Darussafaka community. Everybody is focused on that game. We will see!" 

"Once you taste that feeling, you want to taste it again." 

**Generally speaking, what will be the biggest key to the game? Both teams have a lot of talent and rebound the ball really well.**

"As you said, Virtus rebounds the ball really well and has great players, but this season, 90% of the time, we did a great job on defense. We are one of the best defensive teams in the EuroCup and in the Turkish League. We also played very good defense in the Turkish Cup, but in the last two league games, we didn't play with the same identity and let them score a lot. If we play with our identity, that will be the key to the game. When we play good defense, it is not about the other team, but about us. If we don't play good defense, they have a big chance to do it. We know that and will try to play good defense."

**Darussafaka can join Tofas, which already qualified for the playoffs. What do you like about Tofas and how tough will it be to beat them in the next round?**

"Tofas head coach Orhun Ene was my first coach when I was playing for Darussafaka. I really like him and respect him a lot. Also, Tofas gained everyone's respect because they qualified for the playoffs after four rounds in the Top 16. We all know Tofas is a strong team, especially on offense. It has good local and foreign players and good chemistry. Everybody knows their identity and are playing in front of great fans in Bursa. It will hard to beat them there. I hope they get to the finals because it is good to see Turkish teams compete at the highest level in Europe. I like it when Turkish teams make the EuroCup playoffs."

**You are much more than a domestic player in Darussafaka, but a symbol of what's good about the team, on and off the court. Do you plan to retire in Darussafaka?**

"Of course, it is my plan. Darussafaka is my home, I have been here for 16 years. You never know in life, anything can happen. I could get injured or things could happen that I cannot control. Otherwise, I want to say in Darussafaka for many years and I hope I can retire here."

There is no player more identified with Darussafaka Tekfen Istanbul than Dogus Ozdemiroglu, which made him the right man to interview before his team's win-or-go-home clash against Segafredo Virtus Bologna.