November 15, 2024

Valley Post

Read Latest News on Sports, Business, Entertainment, Blogs and Opinions from leading columnists.

Barzoca ordered the last time and signaled to Calathes

Barzoca ordered the last time and signaled to Calathes

Olympic




Maropoulos Alexandros/Intime Sports

Olympiacos needed Isaiah Kannan's run and brilliant defending before the end of extra time to beat Fenerbahce. But for the second, there was a reason. Read the details.

Olympiacos finished the EuroLeague regular season with a victory, thanks to the orgy of Isaiah Canaan (27 points on 8/10 shooting and 6/7 shooting), especially in overtime. In addition to what he did on the front end of the floor, there were also those (great things) he did on defense. With the highlight being Nick Calathes' steal on Fenerbahce's last possession in overtime.

But the aggression with which he came out on the ball and the intention to steal it was not a coincidence. This is because in the previous time-out, Giorgos Barzoukas's order was clear and indicated a fierce attack on Nick Kalatis, as long as he had possession of the ball and organized the Turkish attack.

To be precise, what the 58-year-old coach asked for (with a difference of +2 for Olympiacos) was a foul on the international goalkeeper. Not a coincidence, since Nick Calathes isn't exactly known for his consistency personally – he finished the regular season with a 43.5% (10/23) shooting percentage.

So Isaiah Kanaan went to the ball in an aggressive manner, and instead of committing a foul he made a steal and thus sealed the victory for Olympiacos. The best player in everything!