Olympiacos is full of players and has a level hand

Olympiacos’ third successive win came relatively more easily, although Zalgiris is not one of the teams to give up. However, 30 years ago, the “Red and White” played great basketball, shooting 52% of three-pointers, dishing out 23 assists and committing only 6 turnovers. As much as the Lithuanians wanted to get closer, it was not easy for them.

The “red and whites” did a good job, they worked perfectly and the score of 6-4 in the first ten games in the Euroleague is a fact.

But above all, Barzoukas is slowly being replenished, who was happy to have Milutinov back, McKissic joining the starting line-up, and Brazdeikis-Sekma playing their own role in the team’s system. The coach was especially happy after the final +17.

Obviously, more difficult matches will come from what happened in the SEF against the “Greens” in Kaunas. Olympiacos will be waiting several times next week for Monaco’s Mike James, who yesterday won the double in Vitoria and against Baskonia.

However, it is clear that the Piraeus team is not only well on its feet, but is gradually improving all aspects of its game, believing that it can only play better in the near future.

Let’s not forget that they will soon have a plus solution on the perimeter (Metro Long), while there is always the possibility of adding another long solution (Petrusev).

Rhythm of Lithuanians

Olympiacos started numbly, or if you prefer, very difficult or Zalgiris, who was particularly combative anyway. A team that breaks screens, goes for rebounds, and wants to trap each opponent in their own rhythm. The Lithuanians tried the same thing at the beginning of the match, as they put pressure on Olympiacos, and put their hands on the circulation of the ball, in order to prevent free shots from the hosts.

The Lithuanian defense was pressuring Olympiacos with last-second attempts. Meanwhile, as many free three-throwers as the “red and white” found iron (1/7 in total), while the visitors had 3/4 but controlled the tempo, except for the first phase where Val Canaan’s pass found while moving towards the basket, the coach’s players did not allow Excellent Maxvetis allowed Olympiacos to play their game at almost no time in the first half.

Bartzukas went into a wide rotation, with Milutinov and Lontzis giving Fall-Walkup breathing space, and Kanan was replaced by fighter Laretzakis, Brazdeikis of Papanikolaou. In the end, Sikma came on instead of Peters, who played consecutively for the first fourteen minutes.

Olympiacos’ defense, which had been doing well since the first half anyway, started to tighten up Zalgiris’ efforts even more, Evans was trapped, others couldn’t see the basket and the home team started shooting from long range (4/8 three-pointers in the second quarter). In the opening score as well.

Four minutes before half-time, Hayes was reduced to one point, but the 14-0 run that Olympiacos built on three-pointers from Walkup and Brazdeikis and great Kanan defending on Dypsa, was eventually ended by a goal error. (The Lithuanian coach received a technical penalty) SEF lifted on his leg, as the handicap at the end of the first half was at +12.

The score could have been greater if Brazdeikis had hit the 3-pointer from the top of the goal, after a well-planned attack from Barzoukas’ 8-inch pad.

Vale Olympiacos and Canaan

With a double-digit lead, Olympiacos now has the field free…to play the ball on their court. Fall, with his unique ability to pass well, made two three-point free throws (Wacoob-Canaan). He could have scored more assists if Papanikolaou had not made a mistake, because he usually does it with his eyes closed.

Olympiacos is another player. It has nothing to do with Villerpin or the French national team. Well, his height has remained the same, but his role with the ‘red and white’ is a big part of the team’s game.

Even opponents know it, dropping doubles and triples on him to block his field of vision. Not to prevent him from getting close to the basket (if he gets there he will “knock it down” with a great shot) but to prevent him from making the pass in the first place.

Meanwhile, Kanaan scored two more shots, moving him up to +17 and raising the decibel level on SEF. His name was heard from the podium, and not without reason. The American, who you may remember hearing about at the beginning of last season, continues a series of great performances.

This time he set a personal high in points (25) on 4/6 three-pointers, in another fun night where his arm worked perfectly. But it’s not just that. Izaya presses the ball well, and despite his height, no one passes him easily, and he is at his best with Olympiacos.

And he wasn’t alone. Brazdeikis also scored from 6.75 m, and Peters himself and Olympiacos, who started with 1/7 in the first quarter, got 6/10 in the third half, with a total of 15/29 (51.7%), in thirty minutes, that is, after 10, and the “red and white” scored 14/ 22, which led to complete chaos in the defense of Zalgiris who could not help but submit to his fate.

And… Alico logo

We also wrote about it last week. Alec Peters is the attraction at Olympiacos this year and he has stepped into Sasha Vezenkov’s shoes. Obviously they are not the same players, but the way the Americans play, soon the team world will “forget” last year’s MVP and deify him…this year.

Against Zalgiris, Alekos was impressive. He took a break from Luke Sikma who played center for the first time, and in the 30 minutes he played he managed to score 22 points on 4/5 three-pointers and received the highest score in the rating system for this game as well.

In two matches (with Asteras and Zalgiris) Peters has scored… 50 points. In between, he managed to put 25 more inside Marosi. He is enjoying the best season of his career and Olympiacos has his incredible accuracy.

Little by little we see it completely.

The people of Olympiacos insisted. Wait till you see us in its entirety, was their chant. Little by little, this year’s ‘red and white’ team is revealed to us. Milutinov’s return has become a reality, with the Serb having played for almost two weeks. His coexistence with Vale automatically means the presence of two giants on the pitch, with distinctive abilities, new and particularly difficult to deal with by any other position.

As far as I know, we will also see Shaquille McKissic again, who clearly needs more time after missing than anyone else. With his arsenal full, Bartzukas is feeling much better, while he saw Brazdeikis provide significant help off the bench against Zalgiris while Lountzis keeps the very good Tomas Walkup, who played just under 28 minutes.

The Piraeus side have built on their strength at home and will hope to do the same next, with three big games in the SEF against Real Madrid, Bayern and Valencia after the trip to the principality to face Monaco.