Olimpia Milano privateer in Venice, but one aspect doesn’t sit well with Peppe Poeta
Olimpia Milano managed to win in Venice with a score of 85-90, beating Reyer, which tried in vain to make a comeback in the final game. It was a great result for the meneghina team, although Peppe Poeta admitted that he would like to see more continuity from his team, which is third in the standings due to the seven losses that have accompanied the 19 victories collected this year in Serie A.
“We played a serious and solid game, unfortunately, however, we are not able to be as consistent as we would like for all 40 minutes,” Poeta stressed to ‘LBA TV’. “Against a strong and physical team like Reyer Venezia, which made a lot of baskets, even difficult ones, I perhaps saw in flashes Olimpia Milano’s best game in the league. We were also good at not disuniting when they came back down. At that point we also scored some team baskets.”
“Venice played a great game, so I’m especially happy to have won on such a difficult court,” Poeta added in the press room. “We were able to dominate in rebounding, against a very physical team. I am proud of Olimpia Milano, even if there are sore sides like the blackouts we take and that complicate our lives. Today, however, I prefer to focus on the positive notes. In the season we have too often had to face comebacks from our opponents, but this time we did not break down.”
The victory on Reyer’s court takes on even more significance when considering the overall moment Olimpia experienced. The European season ended without access to the Euroleague post-season for the fourth year in a row, with Poeta, who after the last defeat in Piraeus against Olympiacos had nonetheless wanted to downplay the magnitude of the result: “I took the team on the run and I can’t answer for other seasons. However, the map of the Euroleague has changed and it is not a failure not to make it to the play-in, although we tried and we will try again next year.” Thus, the championship represents the only stage left, and the red-and-whites seem intent on making the most of it.
On the game front, Poeta also has clear ideas ahead of the playoffs. After the bombastic 125-point victory over Napoli – a season record and a score not seen since way back in 1990 – the coach had already mapped out the group’s hierarchies: “This is a set-up that gives us solidity, however, it’s not certain that it can change. All the guys know they have to be ready. We have clear hierarchies.” In this context, Miloš Bolmaro has emerged as an indispensable element of the red and white chessboard: “When he has not been there he has been missed tremendously. He is crucial for us,” the coach emphasized.
In the meantime, the market is already working towards next season. One of the hottest topics concerns the future of Armoni Brooks, MVP of the Italian Cup won last February against Tortona. Sports director Daniele Baiesi publicly admitted that the time to negotiate the renewal was too long: “Circumstances led me to be able to reason about his contract only from January onward. And this, in retrospect, was a mistake. And for this mistake I personally take all responsibility.” Despite the competition from clubs such as Olympiacos and Partizan Belgrade, the dialogue between the parties has never stopped and Brooks has repeatedly expressed his desire to remain in the red and white.
On the arrivals front, instead, a European big shot is looming: Alec Peters, an American big forward with Bosnian citizenship who starred with Olympiacos in the Euroleague, is reportedly close to a two-year deal with Olimpia, preferred over other major destinations such as Barcelona. A profile that Ettore Messina had already indicated as a dangerous opponent in February 2022, explicitly recognizing its qualities. Clear signals of how the Milanese club is already working with ambition to build the roster for the future, with this season’s Scudetto playoffs as the first and immediate goal to be achieved.
