Dimitris Itoudis' proposal to FIBA: 'It's time for national teams to have 14 players' / News - Basketnews.com

Credit: Vangelis Stolis Credit Vangelis Stolis

In its second game for the Acropolis Tournament, the Greek national team struggled in the first half when Georgia was leading 37-34 but bounced back in the third quarter and thanks to significant help from the second unit, got another win (80-67).

Both Dimitris Itoudis and Ilias Zouros had the chance to draw some useful conclusions in view of their upcoming fixtures on Friday evening.

Greece (2-0 in the tournament) will face Turkey, six months after the two teams squared off in two back-to-back 2023 World Cup qualifying contests. Georgia (0-2), on the other hand, will play Poland, who come off a last-second win over Turkey after Furkan Korkmaz's layup came too late.

"It was a very good practice in an official friendly game against a good team," Itoudis told the media postgame.

"We weren't good offensively but we stayed in the match. My players turned it around. Our main goal is to become a team and have players who come off the bench and bring something new to both sides of the court," the Greek coach stressed before making special mentions to two players.

Thanasis Antetokounmpo was called his third personal foul with three minutes remaining in the first half, yet he managed to stop Georgia's offensive flow with two blocks and some hustle plays.

"Thanasis played with [Tornike] Shengelia's mind, sacrificed himself, and that's important," Itoudis commented.

On the other hand, Kostas Sloukas was the game's top scorer with 18 points, just 24 hours after making his summer debut with Greece vs. Poland. In that game, the 32-year-old guard logged only 4 points, 1 assist and 2 turnovers.

"He was good both offensively and defensively," Itoudis said about Olympiacos' point guard. "There were times when he could have been better in box-out situations, but we know who Kostas is," he added.

For the second time during their preparation period, Greece were deprived of Giannis Antetokounmpo's services - one of the reasons why the OAKA arena barely hosted 6,000 fans in the game against Georgia. Itoudis called it "a special occasion in order to see how we can play without Giannis", but Greece had gone through the process last week in Madrid vs. Spain.

As FIBA would have it, all EuroBasket participants will have to cut down their preliminary rosters to just 12 men. That's something Itoudis isn't particularly fond of.

"It's time for national teams to have 14 players. If FIBA wants to keep the rule of teams having 12 players, it's unfair for those who might have an injury to be left with 11 players. A solution can be found. It's an opportunity to open up the rosters.

We are in a period where there are different viruses, a high level of competitiveness in competitions and there are injuries and fatigue. FIBA is driven by the evolution of the sport. Back in 2000, we had 10 players on the squad. Then, we increased them to 12 and now I think it should be 14. I firmly believe I have a point here," the 51-year-old tactician pointed out.

Itoudis also provided a short comment about Turkey, whom he called "a high-quality team. They've got some very good scorers. They are a complete team and one of the favorites for something good. They also have got a great coach," he said.

Credit Vangelis Stolis

On the other hand, Ilias Zouros has been coaching Georgia for six years, but his team's last win over Greece was for the Acropolis Tournament held in 2017, before that year's EuroBasket. Zouros, 56, has coached several clubs (Buducnost, Peristeri, Promitheas Patras) in that span, in addition to having guided Greece in the 2011 EuroBasket and the 2012 Pre-Olympic Tournament.

"Congratulations to the Greek national team. They played better and deserved to win. Good luck to them. It's important for them to get as far as they can," the Greek coach initially said at the presser.

Referring to his team, Zouros said Georgia have "a lot of problems to solve. It is not the result that counts, but the performance. Today we were good in the first half while in the second, we didn't show the same quality. Some guys play in the local league and lack experience but I am optimistic about the official games," he added.

Credit Georgian BF

Asked about what changed in the second half, Zouros replied that his team lacked concentration and "almost fell apart."

"The guards didn't have a clear mind and it's an issue we have to sort out. I don't know if we can fix it, but that's our mission," he admitted. Georgia's obvious shortcoming often brings some very big lineups on the court.

"In this tournament, we started using three big guys together. We have athleticism and we are waiting to see if Goga Bitadze will join us," he concluded.

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