Feb 11, 2007, 8:01 pm
Andrea Bargnani and Danilo Gallinari are being counted on by Italy coach Carlo Recalcati to lead the national team into the Beijing Olympics.
That's what Recalcati confirmed to FIBA's Cindy Garcia-Bennett on Friday night in Bologna, where the veteran tactician was watching former team Montepaschi Siena in the Coppa Italia.
At the 2006 FIBA World Championship in Japan, Recalcati was deprived of Bargnani, who was concentrating on preparations for his rookie season in the NBA with the Toronto Raptors.
Recalcati has revealed what kept Italy's most exciting talent for decades from linking up with the Azzurri in Sapporro and Saitama.
FIBA: First of all, how does it feel watching the Coppa Italia from the stands as opposed to shouting instructions from the Montepaschi bench?
Recalcati: "I do miss coaching a Lega A team a little bit. Everything went okay until December, and now I miss a little bit not being in the gym on a day-to-day basis."
FIBA: Now you have a lot of spare time?
Recalcati: "In theory I have more time but the truth is that I work all over the country. Next week I will go to Puglia for three days, then to Sardinia and then to Sicily for the Federation. We have clinics, meetings and I don't have much time. It's an altogether different job that's going well and I think will continue to do well. But personally, I feel a little bit out of place."
FIBA: Montepaschi did not win a trophy last season. Were you under pressure to leave?
Recalcati: "It was my decision because I felt at the time that I needed to get back in touch with the whole territory and work with the youth teams as I did prior to my experience at Siena. In the three years I spent at Siena, I had no time to do this. The youngsters grew up and I didn't have a real awareness and vision of what was available out there. Now I have it."
FIBA: You have to be impressed with Montepaschi because they lead the league and could, judging from their performance on Friday night against holders Eldo Napoli, be the team to beat in the Coppa.
Recalcati: "Siena are playing very well, they have been one of the most consistent teams up to now in the Lega A and I think they are one of the favourites to win the title."
FIBA: We are really intrigued as to what the make-up of your team will be at EuroBasket 2007 in Spain. You left many of the veterans at home last summer, like captain Giacomo Galanda and Massimo Bulleri, and appear to have given yourself many more options on squad selection with Italy impressing and reaching the eight-finals in Saitama.
Recalcati: "The Italian team for the EuroBasket will change with respect to Japan. There will be more younger players but also more experienced players. I am considering Giacomo Galanda and Massimo Bulleri and obviously, Andrea Bargnani and Danilo Gallinari will be included. It's going to be a mix between youth and experience."
FIBA: Everyone knows about Bargnani, but what can you tell us about the Armani Jeans Milano guard Gallinari?
Recalcati: "Gallinari is showing a lot of maturity. He is 18 years old, but on the court he is a veteran."
FIBA: And what of Bargnani? Are you pleased with what you are seeing out of him in the NBA?
Recalcati: "At the beginning of the season, I went to see Bargnani in Toronto. Back then he was playing less. But I saw him very motivated and very calm. He knew he had to be patient and that has paid off. He is playing much more and he is doing very well. This is very important also for the national team."
FIBA: Last year, it seemed expectations were not that high in Japan. Presumably, you go to Spain hoping to win the gold medal?
Recalcati: "Our aim is always to go to the Olympics. We know that we have the possibility of getting there by finishing in the top two at the EuroBasket but we are also aware that a fourth to sixth placed finish would also be a comfortable result to play at the pre-Olympics (additional qualifying tournament)."
FIBA: We're intrigued about what you had to say about having more of a chance to get around the country and examine what the young players are doing. Can you tell us more about that?
Recalcati: "There is a generation that is not ready yet to make that leap to the senior team but there are generations that have lots of players. In the past, our main problem was not to have alternative players with the same generation. The future is positive for the Italian national team because we have interesting players in the under-18 and under-16 teams."
FIBA: One player who followed up a terrific 2005-06 season at Napoli with a strong showing in Japan was Mason Rocca. He's been doing well again this year, too. Is he expected to make the trip to Spain?
Recalcati: "Mason is a player that has the right characteristic for our group. He has heart and determination. He lacked international experience and he gained that at the World Championship. I think last year's experience has played in his favour. We have seen it in the Euroleague. I hope to have him this summer with much more experience under his belt that he had last summer."
FIBA: Even though he is in the press quite a bit, all of us truly want to know everything we can about Bargnani and how he fits in.
Recalcati: "We will be in a situation in which the squad will need to get used to Bargnani but also Gallinari. It is a new situation for the squad because for the past four years, we have worked to get a group identity, to have had to learn to suffer in order to overcome some lack of talent and worth ethic. Like last year, this is a time of transition for the national team. In Japan, we introduced (Climamio Bologna's Marco) Bellinelli and this year it's Bargnani and Gallinari. It's bringing in talent to a team that didn't have it. It will be very important that this message is picked up by the veteran players. These young players will not take anything away from them but will give them the possibility to play in a slightly different way and it will ease the pressure of responsibility on them."
FIBA: So there is the short-term implication of blending the players in, and also the long-term result that you are considering?
Recalcati: "It's clear that in the long term it will bear fruit and we hope that this will be the case this summer but we are talking about a national team that will be evolving over the next 10 years. It's a job that has to be done."
FIBA: The FIBA World Championship is our major competition and it was truly a spectacle, but also representative of the best basketball in the world with teams from all over, including Olympic champions Argentina, Team USA, Spain and Greece. What are your thoughts when you look back on Japan?
Recalcati: "The World Championship was very positive for us because it allowed for certain players to get experience with us. We have created the possibility to have alternatives. I want to have Bargnani but we have to be ready just like last summer to be able to deal with a situation that will not allow you to have a given player. I'm not talking about Bargnani but other players. We have created the basis to be competitive."
FIBA: What can you tell us about the Bargnani situation last summer, something which appears to have been handled very wisely by the federation. Was Toronto's assistant general manager, former Benetton GM Maurizio Gherardini, a help or a hindrance? Also, does Bargnani even want to play for Italy?
Recalcati: "When I went to see Bargnani at the start of the season, I spoke to him about the national team programmes and I included him as part of the national team. Gherardini didn't play in our favour last summer because Maurizio was new at Toronto and clearly he was under pressure and he needed to look at the interests of the club. Maurizio told me that they will have six players from their team who will go to the EuroBasket. We cannot forget about (Spain's) Garbajosa, Calderon, (Slovenia's) Slokar and hence, they have that thought that these players will play at the European Championship."
That's what Recalcati confirmed to FIBA's Cindy Garcia-Bennett on Friday night in Bologna, where the veteran tactician was watching former team Montepaschi Siena in the Coppa Italia.
At the 2006 FIBA World Championship in Japan, Recalcati was deprived of Bargnani, who was concentrating on preparations for his rookie season in the NBA with the Toronto Raptors.
Recalcati has revealed what kept Italy's most exciting talent for decades from linking up with the Azzurri in Sapporro and Saitama.
FIBA: First of all, how does it feel watching the Coppa Italia from the stands as opposed to shouting instructions from the Montepaschi bench?
Recalcati: "I do miss coaching a Lega A team a little bit. Everything went okay until December, and now I miss a little bit not being in the gym on a day-to-day basis."
FIBA: Now you have a lot of spare time?
Recalcati: "In theory I have more time but the truth is that I work all over the country. Next week I will go to Puglia for three days, then to Sardinia and then to Sicily for the Federation. We have clinics, meetings and I don't have much time. It's an altogether different job that's going well and I think will continue to do well. But personally, I feel a little bit out of place."
FIBA: Montepaschi did not win a trophy last season. Were you under pressure to leave?
Recalcati: "It was my decision because I felt at the time that I needed to get back in touch with the whole territory and work with the youth teams as I did prior to my experience at Siena. In the three years I spent at Siena, I had no time to do this. The youngsters grew up and I didn't have a real awareness and vision of what was available out there. Now I have it."
FIBA: You have to be impressed with Montepaschi because they lead the league and could, judging from their performance on Friday night against holders Eldo Napoli, be the team to beat in the Coppa.
Recalcati: "Siena are playing very well, they have been one of the most consistent teams up to now in the Lega A and I think they are one of the favourites to win the title."
FIBA: We are really intrigued as to what the make-up of your team will be at EuroBasket 2007 in Spain. You left many of the veterans at home last summer, like captain Giacomo Galanda and Massimo Bulleri, and appear to have given yourself many more options on squad selection with Italy impressing and reaching the eight-finals in Saitama.
Recalcati: "The Italian team for the EuroBasket will change with respect to Japan. There will be more younger players but also more experienced players. I am considering Giacomo Galanda and Massimo Bulleri and obviously, Andrea Bargnani and Danilo Gallinari will be included. It's going to be a mix between youth and experience."
FIBA: Everyone knows about Bargnani, but what can you tell us about the Armani Jeans Milano guard Gallinari?
Recalcati: "Gallinari is showing a lot of maturity. He is 18 years old, but on the court he is a veteran."
FIBA: And what of Bargnani? Are you pleased with what you are seeing out of him in the NBA?
Recalcati: "At the beginning of the season, I went to see Bargnani in Toronto. Back then he was playing less. But I saw him very motivated and very calm. He knew he had to be patient and that has paid off. He is playing much more and he is doing very well. This is very important also for the national team."
FIBA: Last year, it seemed expectations were not that high in Japan. Presumably, you go to Spain hoping to win the gold medal?
Recalcati: "Our aim is always to go to the Olympics. We know that we have the possibility of getting there by finishing in the top two at the EuroBasket but we are also aware that a fourth to sixth placed finish would also be a comfortable result to play at the pre-Olympics (additional qualifying tournament)."
FIBA: We're intrigued about what you had to say about having more of a chance to get around the country and examine what the young players are doing. Can you tell us more about that?
Recalcati: "There is a generation that is not ready yet to make that leap to the senior team but there are generations that have lots of players. In the past, our main problem was not to have alternative players with the same generation. The future is positive for the Italian national team because we have interesting players in the under-18 and under-16 teams."
FIBA: One player who followed up a terrific 2005-06 season at Napoli with a strong showing in Japan was Mason Rocca. He's been doing well again this year, too. Is he expected to make the trip to Spain?
Recalcati: "Mason is a player that has the right characteristic for our group. He has heart and determination. He lacked international experience and he gained that at the World Championship. I think last year's experience has played in his favour. We have seen it in the Euroleague. I hope to have him this summer with much more experience under his belt that he had last summer."
FIBA: Even though he is in the press quite a bit, all of us truly want to know everything we can about Bargnani and how he fits in.
Recalcati: "We will be in a situation in which the squad will need to get used to Bargnani but also Gallinari. It is a new situation for the squad because for the past four years, we have worked to get a group identity, to have had to learn to suffer in order to overcome some lack of talent and worth ethic. Like last year, this is a time of transition for the national team. In Japan, we introduced (Climamio Bologna's Marco) Bellinelli and this year it's Bargnani and Gallinari. It's bringing in talent to a team that didn't have it. It will be very important that this message is picked up by the veteran players. These young players will not take anything away from them but will give them the possibility to play in a slightly different way and it will ease the pressure of responsibility on them."
FIBA: So there is the short-term implication of blending the players in, and also the long-term result that you are considering?
Recalcati: "It's clear that in the long term it will bear fruit and we hope that this will be the case this summer but we are talking about a national team that will be evolving over the next 10 years. It's a job that has to be done."
FIBA: The FIBA World Championship is our major competition and it was truly a spectacle, but also representative of the best basketball in the world with teams from all over, including Olympic champions Argentina, Team USA, Spain and Greece. What are your thoughts when you look back on Japan?
Recalcati: "The World Championship was very positive for us because it allowed for certain players to get experience with us. We have created the possibility to have alternatives. I want to have Bargnani but we have to be ready just like last summer to be able to deal with a situation that will not allow you to have a given player. I'm not talking about Bargnani but other players. We have created the basis to be competitive."
FIBA: What can you tell us about the Bargnani situation last summer, something which appears to have been handled very wisely by the federation. Was Toronto's assistant general manager, former Benetton GM Maurizio Gherardini, a help or a hindrance? Also, does Bargnani even want to play for Italy?
Recalcati: "When I went to see Bargnani at the start of the season, I spoke to him about the national team programmes and I included him as part of the national team. Gherardini didn't play in our favour last summer because Maurizio was new at Toronto and clearly he was under pressure and he needed to look at the interests of the club. Maurizio told me that they will have six players from their team who will go to the EuroBasket. We cannot forget about (Spain's) Garbajosa, Calderon, (Slovenia's) Slokar and hence, they have that thought that these players will play at the European Championship."