Interview of Rimas Kurtinaitis, head coach of Sabah basketball club, to Idman.biz
- Before your arrival, the team was on the 2nd place in the tournament table for some time. Which changes led you to the leadership?
- First of all, we changed the attitude towards work. As a newcomer, I was not satisfied with the training process and approach to training. But over time I started getting what I wanted from them. I feel that now they are taking training seriously and responsibly. Discipline always comes first for me. Everyone in the team is professional, they work at maximum 100% in training and we can already see the results of this in the games. But we still have enough points to work on. You should always strive to be better.
- You finished the regular race as the leader. Won't it be difficult to end the season as a champion?
- We are just doing our job. The first part of our job was to finish the regular season as the leader, which we managed to do. We will prepare for the playoffs with the same concentration. Our goal is to defend our title. We will do our best for this.
- How do you assess the level of the Azerbaijan Basketball League and competitors?
- Overall, the level of the league has increased in a short period of time. When I first came here, I was surprised in a good way. There are many interesting games. There is no sharp level difference between the teams. This increases the intrigue in the championship.
- What are your thoughts on the limit in the championship? Many want it to be 4+1. What do you think?
- There are two approaches to the limit. If we think about the development of club basketball and a more interesting, competitive league, 4+1 looks more attractive. At this time, the clubs can go to the European Cup more prepared. Because we see that the clubs that are currently ranked in the lower ranks are having trouble finding quality players. But if the goal is only the development of Azerbaijani basketball, then 3+2 is also a suitable option. I am an executive as a coach. In both cases, I will select players and prepare my team according to the decision.
- What changes do you think to make for Sabah participation in European Cups in the new season?
- It is too early to talk about the European Cups. Right now, our focus is on the playoffs.
Emin Aga
Idman.biz
