Demis Cavina: “At the playoffs on the pitch as Lions. For us and for our people"
Before training on Thursday, coach Demis Cavina met with journalists at a press conference to introduce the playoff series that Derthona will face from Monday against Dinamica Generale Mantova: “This year there has been a lot of talk about our victories – said the head coach black and white - without ever praising the exceptional work carried out at all levels by this Club. For this reason I would like to mention the corporate staff, partially renewed but which immediately managed to bring a lot to the team, the technical staff and the medical staff, who This year too he had his work cut out for us to solve our physical problems. Thanks also to the club and the players: everyone passed the exam that this season represented for them, both as individuals and as a group. We improved individually and as a team, facing every obstacle with the fundamental hunger to overcome it.”
The coach's gaze is focused on the playoffs: “We are approaching the second phase of the season with great determination. I'm very involved from an emotional point of view, but I can't help but highlight the regret of not being able to compete in them, however things will go, with Giampaolo Ricci at 100% form. His use in race 1 will be decided by Dr. Camagna after a further x-ray scheduled for Sunday morning; we are very sorry for this, because each of us deserved to play these playoffs with the team that played a great return round at full strength and in full shape. We can say many things about Mantova: he has talent, physicality, can count on an expert coach and has played many of these matches. In September, the forecast for a series like this would have been clearly in Mantua's favor; however, our team was able to build an excellent present and bring Mantua's value closer during the championship. We feel sorry for Giampaolo's situation, but I am sure that we will also be able to count on a great ability to react to the difficulties of this group: we are convinced that the most important aspect will be given by the intensity and pace that we will be able to put on the pitch .
Coach Cavina then answered the journalists' questions. When asked about the risk of starting from scratch in the playoffs after a great season, the Castel San Pietro coach responded as follows: “One of the greatest strengths of this environment is the thirst for results, despite the awareness of one's own value. Whatever our opponent in these playoffs, a new challenge begins for us, more difficult than the previous one and which does not ignore the result. Setting ourselves the limit of fear of failure is a negative weight that we don't want to have on our shoulders. For us this is a challenge that we find in front of us and that we face with the idea of overcoming it, because in the playoffs we play to win and not to make a good impression. We are aware that the initial objective was different and that we are not built to go all the way, as evidenced by the fact that we did not add any elements along the way; but our idea of taking the field as the Lions is what the Tortona public has always asked of us and is what allowed us to enter the playoffs. With this idea, I am sure we will be able to play at our best.”
Responding to those who asked about the value of the field factor in the playoffs for a Derthona team which has the best away record in the whole of A2, coach Cavina specified that "in the past season the field factor was not so decisive, as demonstrated by our success in Trieste or that of Fortitudo, who reached the final without ever having this advantage. The depth of the roster and the physical and mental presence with which each team will take the field will count more. This group has endured great workloads, has cemented itself and is fueled by its ambition on a daily basis. I am convinced that he will be able to assert himself this time too"
Outlining the opponents, “Mantova is a team of great offensive talent, with two internal players like Candussi and Bryan and two highly experienced playmakers like Giachetti and Gergati. Without going into detail, the roster is of great quality and, with the three victories that closed the regular season, Dinamica has regained a ranking position that is decidedly more in keeping with its value."
On the "Coach of the Year" award from the Gazzetta dello Sport, coach Cavina wanted to share the merits with the staff: "It is nice to read the opinion of colleagues, such as that of a great coach and commentator like Marco Crespi, also and especially when basketball is seen differently. I believe I have done a good job, but that this is part of a system in which everyone has done their part. I prefer to consider the entire three-year period and not just this last season. There have been many protagonists, but the modus operandi that has always distinguished us has never disappeared. Last week we talked about my first approach to Tortona, which took place on a campsite in Cervia in swimsuit and flip-flops; since then this reality has grown a lot. I'm proud of it, but as part of a system.”
Responding to what the team's next step in growth could be in the playoffs, “I believe that the step forward to be taken could be mental. For many players this will be the first time at this level and I am curious to know their reactions. Regardless of the result, it will be pleasant to evaluate how much this team can improve and hold on a mental level in a series against Mantua, making an emotional effort previously unseen."
On the possibility of inventiveness of the individual, Demis Cavina has clear ideas: “Playing outside the box doesn't come close to my idea of basketball. It's true that the team is built with two Americans who can find shots in broken plays, but our strength must be found in the execution of the schemes. Just think of the last match against Treviglio, in which we suffered not so much from a physical point of view, but because we agreed to play one on one with our opponents. I hope that in these playoffs everything comes to us 100%: that we respect the game plan, that we do everything we are preparing, and that each of us can continue to have fun."
