La Laguna Tenerife’s coach, Jaka Lakovic, has warned of the challenge posed by the match against Reyer Venice, whom he considers one of the «best teams» in their group, and has emphasised the importance of securing wins to ensure qualification and aim for the best possible draw in the next round.
«They’re a great team, one of the best in our group, and it’ll be a huge challenge, so we need to prepare well to be able to cope with everything they have to offer,» said the Slovenian coach, who confirmed that the team are «in good physical shape» following their victory over Monbus Obradoiro, with López-Arostegui the only player whose availability is in doubt.
Lakovic emphasised that the black-and-gold side «has gained confidence» following a run of five consecutive wins, although he pointed out that they still «need to improve their team play and the individual performance of some players»; he therefore called for the team to maintain their daily standards and «not get complacent» because of their recent results.
La Laguna, Tenerife: Lakovic expects a tight qualifying battle
«We cannot assume that everything is wonderful right now; instead, we must focus on what lies ahead and give it our all,» said the manager, who pointed out that the group stage consists of fourteen matchdays and that, although he believes seven or eight wins could bring teams closer to the next group stage, he expects the race for qualification to be «very close».
Speaking about their next opponents, he explained that their attacking threat could vary depending on whether Kyle Wiltjer is available, as his participation is in doubt after he picked up an injury a week ago; he is noted both for his ability to «play close to the basket» and for «creating opportunities» from the perimeter.
Lakovic is confident that ball movement and shot selection will enable La Laguna Tenerife to create good scoring opportunities against a defence that may be aggressive, as accuracy from outside could prove decisive in capitalising on the quality of their shooters and thus getting the better of the Italians.
Finally, he explained that the administrative situation limiting TJ Bamba’s participation is affecting his competitive form, as the build-up of matches and travel is cutting into his training sessions; the club therefore considers it a priority to resolve this issue «as soon as possible» so that he can regain his form and enjoy greater continuity.
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