David Blatt: I hope the basketball in the Balkans keeps on moving forward

David Blatt, the head coach of one of the finalists in the 2011 Euroleague Final Four - Maccabi Electra Tel-Aviv took some of his time to talk to us about the upcoming final and about the basketball in the Balkan area.
 
Q: Just hours from now is maybe the most important game of the season for your squad. Are you and the team ready to face Panathinaikos?
 
Well, to be honest, I think we are. The regular season is over, the Top 16 is in the past, the semifinals are also history, so if we aren′t ready now, I don′t know where we′ll be.
 
Q: Did you expect such a convincing win against Real Madrid in the semifinals (82:63)?
 
No, I haven′t expected a win with such a big difference. But I think we had a good chance of winning, and things developed in such a way, that we were able to go ahead by such a big margin. It doesn′t happen often in this stage of the Euroleague, but after all we were victorious.
 
Q: Chuck Eidson and Jeremy Pargo maybe made the difference in the semifinal. Are you prepared to put the ball more in the hands of other players in case Panathinaikos has a plan to shut Eidson and Pargo down?
 
We aren′t a team that relies only on one or two players to carry us out in the games. All season long we have been sharing the ball well, moved good on the court, played good as a team and I sure expect to see more of the same tomorrow.
 
Q: And maybe you want to say something to your fans in Bulgaria and in the Balkans?
 
Well what I want to say is that I hope that the basketball in Bulgaria and in the Balkans keeps on developing and keeps on moving forward. I hope that people keep on supporting sports in general, and coaches and players develop in order to get better and better.