FATIH SABOVIC / Yeniçağ
What were the factors that pushed Turkey out of this tournament, which it started with great hopes? We have compiled all the details for you…
We were on our way to EuroBasket 2022 with a generation that was very successful and did well in the NBA.
Coach Ergin Ataman and his highly experienced technical team prepared the National Team for the tournament very successfully; we even put forward high-level struggles in the preparation matches before the championship.
HARD ATMOSPHERE STARTED BEFORE THE TOURNAMENT
However, the accounts at home didn’t quite fit the market during EuroBasket 2022. Here is the path to Turkey’s tragic farewell, item by item.
1- Of the preparation matches played before the championship, especially the Greece match, it was in a very harsh atmosphere. The energy within the team led to tension from the very beginning.
HARD START, LOWER CONCENTRATION
2- In the tournament against Montenegro, Turkey managed to win, albeit with difficulty, but this struggle wore us out a little. Then came a different win against Bulgaria, but a little too much energy was put in against the weak opponent.
GEORGIANS SERIOUSLY MISSED THE TASTE
3- According to the format of the championship, 12 Giant Men, who were guests of his opponent in Tbilisi in the group match against Georgia, lost a lot of blood. Because the Georgians knew our weaknesses, they came to us harshly, and the tension they experienced with Furkan, and the fact that the events turned into a fight in the dressing room corridors, made the National Team mentally tense.
22 SECONDS PROBLEM AND WITHDRAWAL ANNOUNCEMENT
4- After the 22-second gap in the Georgia match, scandalous decisions and approaches came from FIBA. Even though Turkey objected to the lost match after 2 overtimes, saying “If necessary, we will withdraw from the tournament”, the application was rejected by saying “This time (22 seconds lost) cannot guarantee a situation that the score will change in favor of Turkey”. These events increased tensions.
WE HOLD WITH BELGIUM BUT…
5- Although Turkey somehow managed to stay psychologically in EuroBasket and overtake Belgium; In almost no match during the tournament, the momentum spread throughout the match could not be achieved. While our country is trying to progress on its own path; Heavy criticism from inside and harsh posts on social media also negatively affected the team.
WE WALKED WITH EMOTIONS AGAIN AND OUR END WAS THE SAME
6- Regardless of the branch, Turkish National Teams have always had mental or emotional difficulties in tournaments. Our national team profile, which is successful if it gets a wind behind it emotionally and disintegrates when it can’t find it, came into play for this championship as well. The defeat in the final seconds against Spain and the defeat that came after Larkin’s turnover to Alberto Diaz added to the difficulties we experienced.
ESPECIALLY GOING AGAINST EVERYTHING…
7- Despite losing to Spain, Turkey came 2nd in their group and matched with France, the 4th favorite of the tournament. The National Team, which could not gain an edge over its opponent at the beginning of the match, first caught the equality with Buğrahan’s unique performance in the 3rd quarter, and then made a magnificent breakthrough by taking the lead.
NEARLY THE SAME OF THE TOURNAMENT IN CHINA
8- In 2019, I followed the World Basketball Championship held in China on site. In the USA game, Doğuş and Cedi missed the critical free throws in a row, and Turkey lost the fight it could have won. The same scenario occurred in the EuroBasket match against France. Furkan was very comfortable in free throws in the last quarter, but Cedi Osman missed 2 free throws at the most critical moment, just like in the USA game. Cedi, who had problems with the ball on him, was the target after France came from behind and won the match when they fell into despair.
SOCIAL MEDIA IS THE BIGGEST DAMAGE!
9- In an interview with Mehmet Okur in the past, I asked Okur about the disadvantages of new generations. Okur said, “It is a good thing that social media did not exist in my time.” After the France match, the emotional statements made by Buğrahan, which, in my opinion, were made with pure intentions, were drawn to different places on social media. This situation, beyond our elimination from the tournament, dealt a serious blow to the healthy structure inside. We were tragically eliminated from the tournament in which we came out with hopes, believed and fought, and the blows we received brought us to a point where we could not stop. I hope we can take the lessons we need to learn from here and move forward in the next tournaments in a way that befits the value of this generation.
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