Director Marco Picchi: «The Board of Directors made a heartfelt choice»
After announcing that Derthona Basket will be joining the A2 league next season, general manager Marco Picchi took stock of the situation. "The Derthona Basket board of directors made a heartfelt decision, putting their love for the team and the black and white colors first. However, the budget for building the team hasn't yet been fully finalized. We've given ourselves two to three weeks to clarify the budget and meet with our key partners with the goal of reaching a sufficient amount to ensure we can build a competitive team. In recent years, from C2 to A, Derthona has always played top-level seasons. I believe we've had over ten years of seasons ending with playoffs and a winning percentage above 50%. We're not building a team just to compete; that's not our calling, even though we know we can't compete for the championship. We want to show our colors with great sporting dignity." The first step will be to speak with coach Demis Cavina. "As always, we start with the coach, who is the first step. It means sitting down and talking with Demis. We don't see the end of a cycle; the relationship between him and Derthona rests on very solid foundations, and we'd like to continue to achieve further success. Derthona and Cavina are a perfect match. We've taken this week to understand Demis's wishes, ambitions, and legitimate aspirations. Only if an agreement isn't reached will we consider a Plan B, which isn't on our minds right now." Picchi then commented on the work done by the technical and medical staff who have worked with Cavina this year, from sporting director Miro De Giuli to the rest of the team. "The same goes for Miro and the entire staff. They've done well in their roles, so for us they're first choice and should expect a call from me," Picchi commented, explaining how the club will proceed to assemble the new roster. "Ricci and Garri have an option on their contracts for next year and are important players. If we're in a position to build a competitive team, it would be natural to start with their contracts. The American market is unique: we've almost always made the choice to change, partly because players who have stood out, like Cosey, are inclined to consider other destinations, both in terms of category and salary. We'd like the idea of rejuvenating the squad; we have a number of young players under our ownership. I'd love to have a Tortona native like Flavio Gay, born in 1998, who has stood out and developed his career at Derthona, wear the black and white jersey.
