“This atmosphere is the main threat for us. All those good words, ‘fabulous, marvelous, fantastic’ – this is the worst thing for us. Also, when the bad words come too, just like the good ones, we must stay in our bubble.”
That was Ibon Navarro speaking after Crvena Zvezda’s Round 9 win over Bayern Munich.
Since then, the Red and Whites have beaten reigning European champions Olympiacos on the road, raising expectations even further. Even EuroLeague legend Kyle Hines now believes Zvezda could reach the Final Four.
On top of that, Real Madrid are struggling with injuries – Theo Maledon and Facundo Campazzo are among those ruled out – and Zvezda fans are suddenly dreaming even bigger.
Navarro, meanwhile, is doing everything he can to keep expectations in check – both publicly and within the team.
“Teams like Real Madird have a culture, a tradition, a legacy. They always know how to compete, regardless of the problems they have. They have that DNA that makes them even more dangerous and competitive when they face adversity,” was the first thing Navarro said when previewing the clash with Real Madrid.
“No. We’re not thinking about expectations. We’re trying to control the things we can control. We can control showing up to practice every day, being fully committed to ourselves and our improvement, and preparing for the next game,” David Kramer said.
Kramer sounded remarkably like his coach. And he wasn’t finished:
“I know they’re dealing with injuries, but that’s exactly when they’re most dangerous, when their backs are against the wall. They’re still one of the best teams in the EuroLeague. Every single one of their players is extremely dangerous, and we have to be fully aware of that.”
Real Madrid Don’t Rely on Just One or Two Players
Zvezda won in Madrid during the pandemic-hit 2020-21 season, but their visits to the WiZink Center since then have been anything but pleasant.
In their next five games there, Zvezda managed to keep the losing margin to single digits just once. Late last season, Real cruised to a 103-82 victory, with the game effectively over by halftime – even though Zvezda were fighting tooth and nail for a playoff spot.
What’s more, Real have shown that, particularly in Pedro Martinez’s system, they don’t depend on one or two players – even when those players are the team’s engine, Campazzo, or arguably their best performer so far this season, Maledon.
Andres Feliz has long since proved he’s much more than the role player many thought he was. Timothe Luwawu is still working his way back to the form he showed at Baskonia and will have extra motivation with a bigger role, while Edy Tavares is aging like fine wine and will present Christian Koloko with his toughest test yet.
Real did lose to Panathinaikos in the previous round, but it was one of the highest-quality EuroLeague games of the season, if not the very best.
Make no mistake: despite all their problems, Real Madrid are still the favorites.
Dubai, Lyon, Athens… Madrid Next?
Zvezda have won seven of their last eight EuroLeague games. Three road trips, three wins: Dubai, Lyon and Athens.
“I think it’s a little easier for players to control their emotions on the road,” Navarro said.
“Yes, it’s easier to control the excitement, but that’s only temporary – we always want to play in front of our own fans,” the Spanish coach added with a smile.
Jonathan Motley stayed in Belgrade because of a virus, Christian Koloko will join the team on game day, and everyone in the squad is hoping nobody else catches it.
Sharing the Workload
The EuroLeague’s relentless schedule has changed the coaching job, too, forcing Navarro to lean heavily on his assistants.
“Considering the schedule, we have to divide the work. We have assistant coaches who can’t travel with us, so they stay here and do a very important job. They analyze our upcoming opponents and work with the players who don’t travel.
“Then we have coaches responsible for the opponents’ offense and our defense, as well as those who focus on the opponents’ defense and our offense.
“Their work is extremely important to me because, with a schedule like this, it’s impossible for one coach to prepare everything on his own.”
