Juan Carlos Navarro still considers Jasikevicius an option for Barcelona's bench / News - Basketnews.com

Juan Carlos Navarro, FC Barcelona's technical director, spoke to the media in Kaunas about Sarunas Jasikevicius' future and whether other bench candidates are being considered for the job, and tried to explain the reasons behind another meltdown.

Credit: Erikas Ovčarenko/BNS Credit Erikas Ovčarenko/BNS

Juan Carlos Navarro, FC Barcelona's technical director, remains confident that Sarunas Jasikevicius can be the team's head coach next season.

Juan Carlos Navarro

Position:SGAge:42Height:192 cmWeight:79 kgBirth place:SpainProfileNewsStatistics

However, the 43-year-old retired player also stressed that the balance will be made at the end of the season.

"Saras? It's an option for the future but we'll talk at the end of the season," Navarro said this Saturday before the team's first practice session following the semi-final game against Real Madrid that saw Barca lose hope early in another Final Four.

"From tomorrow onwards, we will start focusing on the ACB league so as not to end up like last year. At the moment [Saras] is an option, we have not spoken with any other coaches," he clarified.

"We're going to evaluate things at the end of the season. He, like everyone else in the club after losing that game, is going through a bad moment," Navarro told BasketNews' Edvinas Jablonskis.

"But it's possible that he will continue. What we want to see is whether we're capable of bouncing back all together after that, and win the ACB," he repeated.

Navarro admits there's a big disappointment after another setback and apologized to the team's fans.

"First I want to apologize because it has been a long and expensive trip. And we have not lived up to it. The sensations are bad. We came with the aspiration to win the EuroLeague but we never got our rhythm of play and it's a pity," he stressed.

"The fact of reaching the Final Four three times in a row shouldn't be undermined-- and there's work behind it-- but it's been a hard blow. It's a sport and that's something that can happen. We thought we were arriving in good momentum, with eleven victories in a row, players with more experience... but we haven't been up to the task," he added.

Free throws this season

80%13,9Points made:13,9Accuracy:80,2%Place in standings:11Record max:23Record min:4Most made FTs:Nikola MiroticTeamEuroLeagueStatisticsSchedule

The Catalan technical director also touched on aspects of the game that were less than satisfactory.

"We came with more experienced players but we had a horrible second half, with a lot of mistakes and we couldn't cope against a team that knows how to play the right way," he said.

"I think mentally, the team hasn't been up to the level of a Final Four. We had done a very good job until that point, but we let it slip away from us in 20 minutes," he told BasketNews. "Starting today, we must work to get up again and improve ahead of the future."

The two-time EuroLeague winner as a player quoted Nikola Mirotic.

"As Niko said, we failed. He didn't play a good game and that can happen," Navarro commented on Barca's star player, who finished with only 3 points and 1/10 FG made.

"We have to help him and then take stock of the situation," he added when asked about the personality of the players.

In his words, Navarro did not want to specify plans for the future beyond the next month and a half that's still left in the season.

"We will make the balance at the end of the season. We have a month and a half left in which we have to be professional."

Asked about the possibilities of economic cuts in the new team project, Navarro wasn't any more specific.

"We are working to make the best possible team and the club trusts our work, which I think is very good. But it is true that we wanted this EuroLeague trophy and we came up short," he pointed out.

Thank you for reading us! Help us even more.