No such thing as a tough or easy draw, says Greece talisman Bourousis

ATHENS (FIBA EuroBasket 2017) – Giannis Bourousis, who turned 33 years old on Thursday 17 November, is poised to join an extremely select club of legendary European players next summer by stepping out at his seventh consecutive FIBA EuroBasket tournament.

The veteran Greek center had debuted with the senior national team in the best possible fashion in 2005 as he helped his national team conquer the gold medal in the Final Round in Belgrade. He is now the last remaining member of that golden generation, following the recent retirement from international duty of his good friends Nikos Zisis and Vassilis Spanoulis.

"If you want to get somewhere far you have to face the strong teams, the strong rivals." - Bourousis

Through the years, Bourousis has evaluated his fair share of FIBA EuroBasket draw outcomes and has experienced the evolution of the competition's format. His distilled conclusion, as FIBA.com learnt in an interview with the big man, is that Greece should consider the draw which takes place on 22 November as merely the starting point of their logistical preparations for the summer's big event.

"Our goal will remain the same no matter where we play or who we face. We want to get as far as possible in this competition, it's a goal we haven’t reached and it’s something we really want. A lot!" - Bourousis

What is your preference for the group stage of the EuroBasket between Romania, Turkey, Finland and Israel? Do you prefer to play in Romania or Turkey to be close to Greece like in 2015 (Greece played in Zagreb) or is this aspect not so important in the group stage?

Honestly, I cannot say that I prefer one city over the other. Maybe I am leaning a little bit more towards Israel. It’s not that far, neither are Romania or Turkey for that matter, they know and love basketball and it’s also a place, along with Turkey, that is familiar to us, since we have played and travelled many times there with the national team, but mostly with our clubs. Anyway the 'where' is not so important, what it more important is the 'how'. I mean how we are going to be as a team, if we are going to be well and healthy, without any injured players.

Is it preferable to be drawn in a tough group where every game is a big one or in a group with theoretically weaker opponents where you will arrive as the top favourite? Do you have any specific teams you would rather avoid early on?

I will repeat that the most important thing is for us to be ok, to be in a good condition when the time comes. Also, I believe that to choose (opponents) is not the best thing you can do. Our intention is to be in a position to face any opponent that we will meet on our path, without thinking about the name of this opponent. In any case, if you want to get somewhere far, you have to face the strong teams, the strong rivals.

Will the result of the draw shape your view on Greece's chances at FIBA EuroBasket 2017? Will the draw affect to any degree the team's goals for the competition or ultimately those goals should be the same no matter who you get to play against?

The result of this draw, of any draw, just gives you a general view, an aspect of the competition relevant to the training camp, the trips, the game schedule. I believe that, in general, there is no such thing as a tough or an easy draw. Our goal will remain the same no matter where we play or who we face. We want to get as far as possible in the competition, it's a goal we haven’t reached and it’s something we really want. A lot! And this is what we are going to fight for at FIBA EuroBasket 2017.

FIBA