Isaac Bonga spoke about his decision to play for Panathinaikos, as well as his reunion with Željko Obradović and Silven Francisco. The German forward gave an interview to the official EuroLeague website, where he praised the Serbian coach, highlighted the atmosphere at the Telekom Center Athens, and addressed the fact that he is called a “veteran” at the age of 26.
In detail:
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“I always say this about him, but he’s a person who really pays tremendous attention to detail. He’s someone who always focuses on the fundamentals of the game, and those can sometimes be the boring parts, but I feel that if you manage to execute them at a high level, you definitely take your game to a whole new level beyond where it already is,” he said of Zeljko Obradović.
On his decision to play for Panathinaikos: “I was joining a team with a truly great history, where there are very high expectations and a lot of inspiration to win it all. Obviously, these are things I want to achieve as well, and I think that was definitely one of the reasons I came here.”
On Francisco: “We played together at Bayern. Obviously, you’ve played against the others so many times, so it’s like you start to get to know each other a little through those matches. There are so many people you see again and again, so it’s definitely nice.”
As for himself and the fact that people call him a “young veteran” at 26? “It’s a funny way to put it, because I really do feel like a young veteran. But time flies by so quickly. And I think it’s great to be in a position where you’re still learning so much about the game, about the EuroLeague, about basketball, and about so many other things,” he said. “At the same time, though, I’ve been through a great deal. I’ve already seen so many things at different levels. So I think that helps me on a daily basis to handle certain situations. So it’s definitely good to have that experience.”
He went on to talk about Panathinaikos’ home court: “I’m really excited, obviously, because instead of playing against them, I’ll now be playing for them. I truly believe it will be like an extra burst of energy. As soon as you step onto the court, you feel the entire arena practically vibrating,” he said. “Sometimes that gives you an extra step, as if it gives you an extra heart. Having played here as an opponent, you definitely know that this is a very tough place to play.”
He continued: “I always think that when people have high expectations of you, it means, on the other hand, that they also have great confidence in you—that you’re capable of succeeding. I see it as motivation, as a sign that people truly believe in us and say, ‘With the team you have, you really have the potential to win it all.’ So, going into this process with that mindset and truly believing—seeing every person, every member of the team, working every day toward what we have in mind—winning this EuroLeague title—is definitely a huge motivation.”
*photo source: KYPE
