Iceland will look to take the next step in Helsinki, says coach Pedersen

ISTANBUL (FIBA EuroBasket 2017) – To most Iceland players and coaching staff, the week they spent in Berlin in September 2015 will always occupy a special place in their heart.

"In 2015 it was interesting to see how long we could stick around in games, whether we would get blown right away, nobody really knew." - Pedersen

They represented their country in a major tournament for the first time in history, they faced off with superstars like Pau Gasol, Dirk Nowitzki and Milos Teodosic, they exhibited their gritty play and their amazing fanbase and gained the admiration of the basketball community all over Europe.

But when it was all said and done, they still returned home without a win to their name. Iceland head coach Craig Pedersen believes that, having consolidated their place in the upper echelon of European basketball through a successful qualifying campaign last summer, his team's mission statement for FIBA EuroBasket 2017 is crystal clear.

"Now we need to try and take the next step, to win a game and take it from there. Not to be greedy, but if we can win a game we can try to get a couple of wins." - Pedersen

"In 2015 it was interesting to see how long we could stick around in games, whether we would get blown right away, nobody really knew," Pedersen told FIBA.com in the wake of the FIBA EuroBasket 2017 Draw. "In that first game against Germany, once we sort of got the jitters out we came back into the game. Then we also played very well against Italy. We actually played well during stretches in all games.

"Now we need to try and take the next step, to win a game and take it from there. Not to be greedy, but if we can win a game we can try to get a couple of wins. It is going to be difficult, we are going to play against very good teams but I think what we need to do is go there and play good basketball. We might not get results in our favour, but that does not mean that we cannot play good ball and provide good entertainment."

"It is very exciting for our fans that it's an easy trip to Finland and what makes it even better is that at the same time as the FIBA EuroBasket the football national team will be playing in Helsinki as well." - Pedersen

There can be little doubt that Iceland will provide good entertainment in Group A in Helsinki, where they will do battle with France, Greece, Slovenia, Poland and of course hosts Finland. Especially when they are poised to inject some exciting young talent from the side that turned heads at the FIBA U20 European Championship Division B in the summer.

"We got a couple of countries that we played last summer in preparation games and a couple of countries that we have never played before, in Greece and France, so that is exciting," Pedersen said.

"There are some of those U20 players who will either be breaking into the senior team or are right on the edge of doing so. They are very talented and very smart players, considering their age.

"Tryggvi Hlinason, the big player (the young center stands at 2.16m) is inexperienced but picks things up extremely fast. Kari Jonsson who is playing over in the US for Drexel [University] has had a great start to the [NCAA] season, as well as Jon Axel Gudmundsson who is playing a lot of minutes for Davidson, that is a very well-respected programme in the States."

The on-court spectacle in Helsinki is sure to be well worth the price of admission, but Group A is to provide an extra sight to behold as the famously dedicated Finnish and Icelandic fanbases are to come together in the stands for the first time.

"I think it is very exciting for our fans that it's an easy trip to Finland and what makes it even better is that at the same time as FIBA EuroBasket, the football national team will be playing in Helsinki as well, so hopefully we'll get some carry over from some fans travelling to watch both teams," the Iceland coach said.

"The basketball community in Iceland had an extra push and excitement in the last years because we reached EuroBasket, but in general sport in Iceland has received a lot of attention thanks to the results of (the national teams of) football and basketball and obviously of handball before that, so it's very exciting to be a part of that."

So what is the secret behind Iceland's recent surge to the top level in both of the most popular sports which turned both their football and basketball national teams into the talking point of fans all over Europe?

"That's the million dollar question," the Canadian tactician answered jokingly. "This summer there were some film crews from Germany shooting documentaries on what is the secret of success, but it is really difficult to pin down.

"In the case of basketball I think it is important that the core of our team has been together for a long time, for an unusually long time. They have a togetherness and a chemistry that is oftentimes overlooked."

FIBA