Nick Calathes: 'I tried to imitate the way Dimitris Diamantidis played' / News - Basketnews.com

Credit: ZUMAPRESS.com-Scanpix Credit ZUMAPRESS.com-Scanpix

Nick Calathes rewrote EuroLeague history on Thursday night, as he surpassed Vassilis Spanoulis and became the all-time assists leader in the strongest continental league.

Nick Calathes

MIN:24.22PTS:7.69 (48.36%)REB:4.88As:5.38ST:1.25BL:0TO:2.19GM:16ProfileEuroLeague2021/2022

Speaking on a RAC1 radio station in Spain, he mentioned his development and the people he learned the most from.

"When I came to Europe in 2009, I did not even know where Serbia and Italy were on the map. Coming to Europe was a big change for me.

Zeljko Obradovic is a very important part of my success, especially if you consider the fact that I worked together with him and other great athletes like Vassilis Spanoulis, Sarunas Jasikevicius, Dimitris Diamantidis, Drew Nicholas, and Mike Batiste at the same time. I appreciate them all, they really helped me when I was young," the 33-year-old said.

Calathes also admitted that he tried to imitate the play of Diamantidis in his early days as a professional basketball player.

"In my first years with Panathinaikos, I copied Dimitris Diamantidis. I was trying to imitate the way he played. We are different, but while I was next to him I noticed a lot and followed in his footsteps," revealed FC Barcelona athlete.

Finally, asked about his latest record, Calathes did not distinguish the personal achievement.

"I have set a record, but what interests me the most is to win a few more EuroLeague titles. We have an amazing team and it's time to go one step further.

I don't care that the game did not stop when the record was set. What I wanted was to win and it happened. Recognition is something that comes and goes during the season," Calathes spoke on the radio.

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