'We're not moving forward': Marius Grigonis and Arturas Gudaitis address PAO's issues / News - Basketnews.com

Marius Grigonis and Arturas Gudaitis, Panathinaikos Athens' Lithuanian duo, talk to BasketNews about why their team hasn't been able to rack up more than two EuroLeague wins so far.

Credit: Vangelis Stolis Credit Vangelis Stolis

Last Friday night, Panathinaikos Athens' game against Cazoo Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz at OAKA has just finished, and reporters are given the green light to enter the Greens' locker room.

Marius Grigonis

MIN:21.17PTS:10.57 (50%)REB:1.86As:1.71ST:0.43BL:0TO:1.71GM:7ProfileEuroLeague2022/2023

The Greek side geared up in the second half, overcoming another slow start in a EuroLeague game, but Marius Grigonis sounds like he's had enough of it.

"Maybe we played a little bit smarter, but still we're making some really stupid mistakes," the Lithuanian guard-forward told BasketNews.

"You can't do that in EuroLeague if you want to win. We have a lot of room to improve, but I'm happy we got our second win."

Panathinaikos blew out Baskonia 98-83, while Grigonis scored 13 points on 4/7 from the field and 3/4 free throws. That was his second-best performance with his new team after racking up 17 points in PAO's first win in the season, against Red Star in Belgrade.

However, the 28-year-old knows that one of the main reasons his team came close to the century mark on offense was because the guests are one of the league's most vulnerable squads when it comes to making stops.

"Baskonia aren't a good defensive team," Grigonis admitted.

"Basically, if you stop them, you win the game. But we must improve because it looks like we're not moving forward."

Credit Vangelis Stolis

After a night like that, when PAO fans saw several players step up, including Grigonis himself who woke up for good after hitting a buzzer-beater at the end of the third quarter, one would be curious why the Kaunas-born player isn't optimistic about his team's overall progress.

"Why? I have no idea," he replied.

"We're working a lot, but when the game starts, it looks like there's no soul inside us. We need to figure things out. I'm talking about the beginning of the game and the first minutes of the second half.

Marius Grigonis

Team:Panathinaikos AthensPosition:SGAge:28Height:198 cmWeight:93 kgBirth place:Kaunas, LithuaniaProfileNewsStatistics

It doesn't look good, you know? People come to the stadium to watch us, and we need to keep pushing ourselves and be better than that.Even though we were up in the first quarter, those two first minutes weren't right."

In fact, Panathinaikos had a terrible start in their home games vs. AS Monaco and Partizan Belgrade, where they had to overcome a huge deficit (13-29, 16-31) after the first ten minutes.

That's why before Baskonia, the six-time continental champs and their coach, Dejan Radonjic, were under pressure. Not only because they had lost five of the first six matches of the season but mainly because the initial statements for creating a team that will rage on defense had been refuted by the harsh reality.

Panathinaikos had no way to stop their opponents' main offensive weapon, whether it was Mike James (27 points), Lorenzo Brown (22 points), or Kevin Punter (29 points).

Although they seemingly did better against Markus Howard, the prolific scorer - arguably one of EuroLeague's finest- finished with 20 points in just over 22 minutes before getting fouled out.

"We knew that Baskonia are a good offensive team, but also that they're struggling defensively," Arturas Gudaitis, Panathinaikos' other Lithuanian player told BasketNews.

Gudaitis, who amassed six points vs. Baskonia on just 2/5 from the charity stripe, agrees that one of PAO's issues lies in their poor shooting, especially when unguarded. Considering that Radonjic's players visit the free-throw line more frequently than any other EuroLeague team, having attempted 171 shots so far, their 68.4% (the league's worst percentage) indicates their inability to capitalize on the chances they create for themselves.

"One of the things about missing free throws is that those are the easiest points in basketball," Gudaitis confirms.

Credit Seffi Magriso/Euroleague Basketball via Getty Images

"It's huge. We've lost games by 2-5 points, and every detail matters. We're a new team and need to figure things out, but I hope this win will help us be more positive for the future."

Gudaitis, 29, thinks that Panathinaikos' players should communicate with each other more.

"We have to be together, talk to each other more on offense and defense. Communication is part of a new team," he pointed out.

"Sometimes, if you're together for a long time, you don't need that as much. And now, you can see that our opponents have easy layups. That's on us; we must ensure it doesn't happen again."

A couple of hours before Panathinaikos locked horns with Baskonia, the Lithuanian NT was hosting France for the 2023 FIBA World Cup qualifiers. Without any EuroLeague players available, and with Victor Wembanyama stealing the show, the Baltic side stood no real chance of winning.

"They lost by many (65-90)," Gudaitis remarked. "In FIBA windows, you can't tell the teams' real strength. I'm not defending Lithuania, but that's not what teams can do," he added.

"I watched a little bit, but it wasn't pretty. So, I turned it off," Grigonis admitted.

The experienced guard, who defended his country's colors in the 2022 EuroBasket, said he didn't feel sorry he couldn't be with his NT teammates.

"No, I don't believe this whole system is smart. We're playing in the EuroLeague, and national teams are playing without their main guys. It's just weird. It's politics."

Grigonis thinks FIBA and EuroLeague "need to compromise and do what's right for players and fans."

Credit Vangelis Stolis

Gudaitis is hopeful that the new EuroLeague president Dejan Bodiroga, who met with PAO's management and attended Friday's game, is eager to promote a new agenda.

"I don't want to speculate too much about those issues. We'll see," he uttered.

"Sometimes, a new guy needs time to make some changes. You can't come here and change everything in a snap. Let's be optimistic."

Panathinaikos' Lithuanian duo (the Greens' second after Ramunas Siskauskas-Robertas Javtokas in 2006-2007) welcomed their Baskonia counterparts in Tadas Sedekerskis and Rokas Giedraitis.

Since the hosts came out victorious, there was no debate about who won the battle.

"It's fun to see familiar faces," Grigonis said. "I've known these guys for a while. I have Arturas in the locker room, with whom we can speak Lithuanian. The more Lithuanians are around, the better."

Gudaitis added another dimension to the issue.

"It's nice that we won so we can trash-talk them instead of the other way around. That's the good thing about winning."

It's a sensation that Panathinaikos are likely to taste again if they keep showing up at games the way they did in the second half last Friday.

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