Tarik Black relishes Olympiacos' winning ride, stays away from EuroLeague awards' hype / News - Basketnews.com

Tarik Black explained to BasketNews how Olympiacos team members' perception of their high-flying season is different than fans' opinion and was genuinely surprised when he heard Kostas Sloukas is among the EuroLeague MVP candidates.

Credit: Olympiacos BC Credit Olympiacos BC

A few moments after Olympiacos Piraeus downed Panathinaikos Athens 81-65 to seal their pass to the Greek Cup final, where they will be taking on Peristeri Athens, Tarik Black paid a visit to the mixed zone where the media had been expecting him.

2-pointers this season

60%20,2Points made:20,2Accuracy:59,6%Place in standings:7Record max:29Record min:11Most made 2FGs:Aleksandr VezenkovTeamEuroLeagueStatisticsSchedule

Before any camera or journalist could get hold of him, Olympiacos fans - including the Heraklion arena staff and security- were asking the player to approach for a couple of selfies. For the experienced big man, that would have been another day on the job if the scenery wasn't staged in Crete, the biggest Greek island that's still very far from Piraeus.

The atmosphere in the arena called 'Dyo Aorakia' didn't resemble the vibes at the Peace and Friendship Stadium when Olympiacos play against archrivals Panathinaikos Athens, or any other EuroLeague team. There was a family atmosphere that Black in particular got to enjoy a lot.

"It's a beautiful thing man!" an ecstatic Black told BasketNews.

"We have awesome fans. We love them! This support is amazing. We respect it and we appreciate it. It's been a really fun ride. We're enjoying it."

The ride has been very fun indeed this season for the Reds and their fans, as the team coached by Giorgos Bartzokas leads the EuroLeague standings with a 17-7 record, has beaten Panathinaikos 11 times in a row over a 14-month period, and is yet to lose a domestic game since November 2021.

Right now, Olympiacos are arguably the team to beat; not only in Greece, but all around Europe. Black thinks his team's dominance isn't to be taken for granted.

"It's not easy, it's not automatic," he notes.

"I can't understand what the news outlets are saying because it's all in Greek, but coach talks to us about it sometimes, or Greek players communicate it to us," he reveals.

Tarik Black

MIN:9.21PTS:4.33 (68.83%)REB:1.44As:0.39ST:0.67BL:0.28TO:0.67GM:18ProfileEuroLeague2022/2023

"Some media or people are saying that we're going to just win, but it doesn't go this way.I don't necessarily understand if we look at it as much as other people see us that way. We're a talented team amongst a lot of talent in Europe right now."

Black and Olympiacos saw Panathinaikos lead by five points (40-35) at half-time, before the Greek champs stormed into the third quarter on the back of a 17-0 run that essentially decided the winner. Black finished with five points and two rebounds in less than 10 minutes of playing time.

"We're playing great teams. Panathinaikos are a great, well-coached and well-comprised team, with a lot of talent. It's not easy at all," the 31-year-old former NBA player points out.

"But our game plan is to win. We come into practice and games, putting in the work."

As Olympiacos have been winning by an average margin that almost reaches double-digits, some people tend to normalize the situation and undervalue certain opponents' ability to resist. That was the case with Peristeri, for instance, who came close to handing the EuroLeague side their first loss after 42 straight domestic wins, but Thomas Walkup's pull-up jumper prevented the upset from taking place.

Black thinks Peristeri are "a well-coached team" and stresses that Olympiacos take Vassilis Spanoulis' squad "very seriously."

"Tournaments like this are very difficult," he adds. That's something Bartzokas implied in his postgame speech to his players in the locker room. Olympiacos' impressive streak will amount to nothing if the Reds fail to rack up a third win in as many days against the team coached by their former legend.

Most of the time, people tend to normalize what Olympiacos have been doing this season, without taking some of their early problems into account. For quite some time, the Piraeus-based team presented a worrisome disparity between their first and second-half performances. One need only recall how games like the one in Lyon against LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne were lost.

Black definitely isn't the kind of person who forgets. But with the passage of time, Olympiacos have taken on the role of the comeback team in a development that can be a potential game-changer for the Greek squad.

"We lost some games when we were up handily and teams came back and beat us," the American center recalls.

"I hope we've sorted that out. It looks like we're on the path to understanding how important it is to close teams out. We just have to understand the importance of playing the whole game."

Olympiacos played a near-perfect second part against PAO in Crete, outscoring their opponents by 46-25. Giorgos Bartzokas asked his players to curb their enthusiasm because another important game is just around the corner.

The way the 57-year-old tactician has been managing and guiding his team through ups and downs, wins and losses, has allowed it to flourish. However, the same goes for his players.

"He's done an amazing job with this group," Black opines.

"A lot of people have talent on their team, but it's difficult to manage different emotions, career paths, families, and ideologies. He's done one of the best jobs I've seen in Europe, having a team comprised like this; partnering with us, really caring about each one of us, coaching games and managing minutes, and pushing us forward."

The Memphis-born center credits Bartzokas for getting the best out of all his players.

"That's great too. I commend him heavily and I love him as a coach. He's amazing," he says with sheer appreciation.

Credit Olympiacos BC

Of course, Bartzokas is leading a group of athletes who have suffered fewer defeats than any other team in Europe. Sasha Vezenkov and Kostas Sloukas are up for EuroLeague MVP, while Thomas Walkup is among the seven candidates for DPOY.

"Sloukas is up for EuroLeague MVP?" Black asks, looking surprised. It was obvious that he hadn't caught up to the news yet.

"That's amazing!"

"We want that too. We want our guys to be recognized as well. If all those players play for one team, then it's probably a very good team. We're cheering for each other to reach those accolades because it's a piece of a puzzle.

Thomas Walkup is an amazing defender, one of the best in the EuroLeague. So, of course, you want him to be up for DPOY. Sasha and Sloukas, who was EuroLeague champion before, are both amazing basketball talents."

Black admits he had "no clue" who's up for what.

"I didn't know even Thomas was there. So many years in at this point, I really don't pay attention."

Apart from being a professional basketball player, Black says he's a family man when his on-court job is done.

"I go home, and I have two kids and a wife. I'm doing homework. I'm not studying who's winning what. I'm doing math with my son, who's five years old and I'm teaching him how to write. I'm teaching my daughter how to talk. That's what I do," he describes.

Luckily for him, Olympiacos have done their homework as a team. So much so that a few weeks ago, Shaquielle McKissick said they're the best team in the world outside the NBA.

"Well, that's confidence. You're supposed to say that. If you don't say that, it's kind of an issue," Black comments on his teammate's quote.

So, where does Olympiacos rank among the teams Black has played for?

"That's a tricky question to answer because I love to death all the teammates and the coaches I've played with and for. My Maccabi team was No.1 at one point during the pandemic year (2019-20), while Zenit went to the playoffs and took the No.1 seed (FC Barcelona, in 2021), losing in five games.

My experience in Europe has been mind-blowing," the veteran big man replies.

In the previous three EuroLeague seasons Black got to play, the pattern was invariably similar. From one point on, it was clear who'd be the first, second, or third seed and which teams weren't destined to make the playoffs.

"This is probably the first season where you don't know how this thing will pan out," Black observes.

"In our locker room, we're saying that we're one among a conglomerate of a great league. Because we haven't been the No.1 seed all season, right? It's been flip-flopping a bit."

If Olympiacos end up winning another trophy on Sunday night, last year's FIBA Europe Cup champion will sense a different feeling when he wears his flip-flops and looks at how to solve the next equation that comes his son's way.

Thank you for being with us! Subscribe to BN+ and browse ad-free.