RIGA (Latvia) - It wasn't just about winning the opener. It was about sending the message, and the rest of the continent received it, loud and clear: Türkiye are for real.
Coach Ergin Ataman's team not only defeated Latvia by 20, they also recoreded their largest FIBA EuroBasket win since dismantling Great Britan way back in 2011 by 29 points.
So, how did they do it?
Turkish offense as defense for Porzingis
The obvious thing when facing Latvia is how to deal with the tallest player of the EuroBasket. Kristaps Porzingis already has a history of torching Türkiye, he is the same man who went off for 28 points and 7 rebounds in just 29 minutes of work to stun the nation in Istanbul in 2017.
Ataman's idea was simple. You stop Porzingis' offense by making him work on the defensive end, as narrated by Shane Larkin after the game.
"It was a conscious effort to make him work on the defensive side," Larkin said.
"Obviously he's one of the best players in the world, so we had to make him work on both sides of the ball, getting the ball to Alperen (Sengun) in the post and making him work defensively, then also making him guard the pick-and-rolls, moving him around the court so that when he takes those long threes he doesn't have as many legs and he can't protect the rim as well."
The legs part was evident from the first row of the Xiaomi Arena in Riga. Each one of KP's five missed threes felt flat, while Ercan Osmani partially blocked one and it got nowhere near the rim.
At the same time, Larkin's isolation against Porzingis in the final minute of the second quarter showed the other part of the equation. Instead of settling for a three, Larkin drove right and found a difficult angle to make the layup, which probably would've been blocked on fresh legs.
Porzingis finished with 10 points, but also had 6 turnovers.
The Other Guys
We're not referencing the 2010 comedy with Will Ferrell and Mark Wahlberg. Or maybe we are, and you get to pick which one is Kenan Sipahi, and which one is Sehmus Hazer.
Latvia's assistant coach Janis Gailitis said before the game the key was to stop the big three of Larkin, Cedi Osman and Alperen Sengun. Luca Banchi, however, said another thing after the game:
"None of those three went 5-of-5."
He was alluding to Kenan Sipahi going crazy, knocking down FIBA EuroBasket career-highs with five triples and 19 points, and Türkiye were a +37 (!) team in his 28 minutes of work.
Sehmus Hazer had a similar impact off the bench, detonating for one of the biggest dunks of the event, while also going 2-of-2 from deep and doing that one bit that hurts the opponent the most.
For Türkiye to go deep, to show you why we placed them fourth in the first pre-event Smart Power Rankings, why more and more people are considering them favorites, The Other Guys will be key.
Because you know you'll get the usual contribution from the Big Three, so anything Osmani and Sipahi add as starters, and Hazer, Furkan Korkmaz or Adem Bona off the bench, is what could be that one key step which takes them from Top 3 contender in Group A to Top 3 contender in the entire tournament.
No fear
Listening to 11,000 people sing their national anthem a capella before tip-off, hearing the decibels spike on each made shot by the hosts, just looking at the size of the Latvian national team - it can get intimidating.
That's why coach Ataman wanted the right approach from tip-off, and he got it.
"Probably the first jump-ball showed that we weren't ready, I don't know why," Rihards Lomazs admitted.
Ercan Osmani dunking within the first couple of seconds of the game, and Türkiye did not look one bit fazed by the stands, just minding their business and staying focused, so much so, Alperen Sengun and Ergin Ataman insisted on a head coach challenge in the first quarter.
It was not a successful one, but it showed you how much every single possession mattered to them to start the game, that they were willing to burn a challenge early on.
With such an explosive start, Latvia were always stuck in traffic and could not get any air in their sails. Türkiye, meanwhile, played their best game against any FIBA EuroBasket host, ever.
It was their biggest ever win against a host nation (+20), and the 93 points scored were also their most ever against a host nation at the EuroBasket.
While all the players and coaches will tell you there are no easy games at an event like this, the reality is Türkiye are clear favorites in their next three games, against Czechia, Portugal and Estonia.
If they stick to their game plans, get contribution from the other guys and show no fear, they could enter the last Group A matchup with Serbia at 4-0.
Then we get to do another "how did they do it?" article, for sure.
FIBA