"We're going to be good. How good, I don't know - but good."

During the Bayern Basketball training camp in Bruneck, head coach Andrea Trinchieri and general manager Marko Pesic once again took time to answer questions from the media representatives who had traveled to the event. 

ANDREA TRINCHIERI on . . .

. . . Paul Zipser: "It's going to be a long process with him, but having him here is a gift. We are all happy about it. He's allowed to train individually now and we'll see in the next few weeks how it goes. He is super motivated, he infects us with that. To have a timetable for him would be unfair. Little things are big with him now. I will support him 100 percent and I am convinced he will come back."

. . . the development of the team: "We are missing some players again right now. Weiler-Babb just trained here for the first time and Rubit before that also never trained with the team. But everything is in flux, I'm learning and studying my team. I have a picture frame, but I haven't chosen the colors of the painting yet. Are we going Dutch? Or is it more Picasso? We'll see."

. . . the status of the squad: "We don't have dominant centers, but variable ones who can play multiple positions. Who's doing well is Andy (Obst), who I once left behind as a kid - and now he's a man. I think he has a lot of room to improve. Jaramaz is also doing very well, Walden too. But I've trained both of them before, so they know me and I know them. That's all we can say right now, we're navigating through this phase. We've swapped a lot of players, I have to look at all of that first. (...) Last year, our preparation was a horror. This time I'm taking my time."

"If not Claudia Schiffer, then Heidi!"

. . . the great upheaval: "A lot of contracts just expired. Our two best players were signed, Reynolds and Baldwin. We knew that beforehand and we can take it. We are lucky to have kept a very strong framework after a fantastic season: with Lucic, our leader, with Sisko, Babb, Paul and Leon. Babb is just coming back now and Leon and Paul are currently missing. Of course, that slows down the process. But I am confident. It will take time, but we will be good. How good, I don't know - but good."

. . . about numerous departures: "Do we want to go out with Claudia Schiffer? Sure. We can call her - but she won't take the call. So if you don't go out to dinner with Claudia, then maybe with . . . Tanja? Or Heidi! So you have to do what's possible. I wanted all the players back, but we knew that wasn't possible. I'm super happy to have Pauli, Sisko, Lucic, Leon and Babb back."

. . . the possibilities of the club: "This club makes efforts and yet is very stable. We will never take a step that is too far for our legs. A milestone for the club will be the new arena, the SAP Garden. Until then, we will do our best to have successful seasons, like last year. We will read what is happening on the court and react to it. (...)We finished last season with virtually no guards, all injured. This year, our guard rotation is bigger, including the Germans. Of those, Jason George is particularly impressive at the moment, he has played long and well in preseason so far. (...) The bigger selection is important because last season we simply had games that we couldn't win at all for physical and mental reasons."

. . . the leading figure, Othello Hunter: "Sometimes you realize after just three sentences that the other person unexpectedly has the same view right away. Othello is a leader, very experienced; he arrived very well prepared, in better shape than some younger guys, that tells me everything. He wants to win, I want to win, Lucca wants to win. They are our backbone."

. . relatively small centers: "We will defend a Tavarez with Hunter and Rubit already. We know we lack some length. But I hope we will compensate with energy, intensity and system. Defense will be the key of the system more than ever. My dream is to have to change a player only because he left everything on the court for however long."

"I hope for enthusiastic fans"

. . . Season goals: „

I've been thinking all summer about what I want to achieve. Last season we had an imperfect team, but they found a way to play almost perfectly, not talking about the basketball at all. The spirit was unparalleled. We had so many comebacks against such strong teams. I want to create that no-lose mentality again. That's more important than me teaching things. (...)
I see us in 18th place in the EuroLeague now, but I want to improve one position every day. All the teams are better now, the transfers, the names were incredible again this summer. So the goal now is to come up from the bottom again. We want to win every game, no matter who is tired or injured."

. . . the FCBB: "From the outside, I see a sleeping giant. Or like at a barbecue: After an hour, you see something super hot under the ashes. My job is to wake up the giant or just light a real fire. Munich is a fantastic city, I love every corner here. Unfortunately, I haven't experienced the fans yet. Last season we could have had 10,000 with us every time, because that was a show. Munich definitely needs something besides soccer. And for European basketball, this can become a very special club: A HUB where players are developed by winning games. The potential is there."

. . . the return of the fans „I hope that the team will have enthusiastic fans behind them. The team will always give everything, every game. We want to build a very close connection with the fans."

MARKO PESIC about . . .

. . . the transfer summer: "When it was clear early on that Andrea was staying, we again analyzed the season and then made a plan together with Mr. Hainer on how to get from A to B. It was already difficult because of the uncertain things like the return of fans and the budget. But we worked very well together and the squad now looks like it does. I think the coach is happy with how the team has turned out; I am, too, and so are the players who have stayed."

. . . the budget: "I don't know how we compare to the others. But compared to 2019, we obviously had a big financial cut last season. We are now slightly above last season - but far below what we invested in the team two years ago. So it's been a challenge, but it's been a lot of fun to put together. (...)
Certainly, the pandemic has an impact on the financial side for many clubs. But I do think that the way we played last season had an impact with the players and advisors. We didn't do financially crazy things, we 100 percent can't do that. We are certainly more interesting to players than we were two or three years ago. And now we have a coach who also plays a role in players coming, that's certainly the case. Some clubs continue to handle a lot of money, but that is no longer the sole criterion for many players. The pandemic has already made for different circumstances."

. . . Upheaval: "It turned out the way we planned and thought it would early on. Rather, nothing unexpected happened. We wanted to get players at the German positions who would take the fight. I think we improved where there was room for improvement. At the big positions and also with Andy, who is known internationally. Last year, the number of foreigners had to increase at short notice because of Danilo's departure, he had occupied two positions. And of course we realized after 90 games that we need to help the players with a little more depth. With quality and not just quantity. So we didn't analyze where the team was weak, because it wasn't, but where we can support them more."

"Want to stabilize internationally"

. . . Othello Hunter: "Othello not only has the quality of being a perfect fit with our guards, but he's also very important in the locker room with his experience and with his demeanor; similar to what James Gist was last season."

. . . the new Guard squad: "Wade Baldwin, of course, had an incredibly good season. But it's also a fact that with him we had a player who took on a lot of responsibility. We felt that we had to spread that over several shoulders. That's why we now have Walden, Hilliard, Jaramaz, plus Babb and Andy; that we can rotate more. If everything goes perfectly, you won't know if Lucic and Sisko are sitting out or Walden and Hilliard. That was the idea."

. . . Jaramaz: "We don't expect anything incredibly big from him this season either, although he has the potential. But we gave him a three-year contract because we believe he can form a guard axis with Sisko or even Walden in the longer term. He's someone who, much like Lucic was back in the day, is expected to take on a lot of responsibility in the long run. A lot of people don't know him, but I think he's going to play an important role quickly."

. . . Season Goal: "Of course, nationally we should constructively attack both titles this time, which wasn't quite possible last year. It's about repeating last season, especially nationally. Internationally, we already have some players who have never been in the EuroLeague and have not confirmed themselves at the level, like Jaramaz or Andy. The experience of Hilliard, Rubit or Othello is therefore very important."

. . . the 2021 playoffs as a benchmark: "It will be a big challenge to be back in the top 10, in the top eight. One thing will be eliminated: people underestimating us. In our development, this will be a particularly important year to see whether we can take the next step, namely to stabilize ourselves in international competition. In fact, I already said to myself in March: 'Crap, the team is awesome, but how to repeat that next year!' Still, I think it's possible with this group if we stay healthy and also have some luck. For that, we have to manage to adjust our mindset again so that we are again hunters and hungry to show that we were not a flash in the pan. That's why I think Andrea's attitude is good, to see ourselves as 18th for now."

"Not important if Paul plays or not".

. . . The return of the fans: "We won a couple of games away from home in particular where you felt that maybe the pressure of the home fans was missing. The teams were virtually naked, without the trappings. However, in Tel Aviv it will now be almost sold out, in Piraeus and Athens it should be 8,000, Fenerbahce is playing with some fans again and at Red Star the hall is certainly quite full. But we ourselves were the best home team and now our fans are coming back - if we could roughly repeat this record, we can surely make the playoffs. That's why we definitely need our fans."

. . . Zipser in the team circle: "I think it's good for Paul that he's back with the team. What he's doing individually now, I wouldn't have thought possible two months ago. There will be setbacks for sure, but the most important thing is not whether he will play or not. It's that he's healthy."

(c) Stickel