“I’m sad, but I’m proud of the team. They played a great match, small details decided. One or two defeats, a few whistles, a shot from a distance, but this is a real national team of Czech, as the fans know it,” said coach Ronen Ginzburg.
Captain Vojtěch Hruban supported the coach in his opinion. “We played against one of the best teams in the tournament and we kept up with them until the last minute. We gave everything. We fought in a way that gave us a chance to win. In the end it was just a little bit. Janis Adetokunbo showed what kind of player he is. Even though the tactic worked well for him, he gave up those baskets at the end,” he said.
“We did our best, we have nothing to be ashamed of. We made the Greeks suffer more than anyone expected, maybe not themselves,” Tomáš Satoranský said to the television camera. “If we have to finish, at least that way,” added Hruban. “I think we followed the promotion match in Israel, it was our best performance. Unfortunately, in the fourth quarter, we stopped creating a defensive wall that stopped Janis,” explained Satoranský.
In the round of 16 matches, he recorded a record seventeen assists at the European Championships. “The credit for that goes mostly to guys relaxing well, whether it’s in the box or on three-point shots. My athleticism is not 100% trusting myself to drive to the basket against such aggressive opponent, so I chose teammates,” explained the Czech point guard, who seriously injured his ankle three weeks ago during training. However, he did everything to help the national team.