One of the most popular Zalgiris Kaunas players for quite some time now 25-year-old Croat Marko Popovic gets a huge support from the fans. 185 cm guard also shines in European as well as Lithuanian press. M.Popovic had a magnificent month of December. He became the most valuable player of the month in SEB BBL averaging 18,3 points, 3,3 rebounds and 2,8 assists per game during it.
- Did you expect to become the MVP of December?
- No, I’m not chasing those titles, there’s nothing more important than my team’s victories and that’s not only words that I should say, that’s the way it is for me. I was really genuinely surprised when I became aware of this.
- What does it mean for you?
- It’s going to give me more confidence, motivation to work harder, also showcase my efforts and play better. I’m really happy to play in SEB BBL and being part of it is a great thing.
- You mentioned that the level of competition has grown. Do you feel it?
- Comparing it with the previous season teams are way stronger. We already lost to Ventspils. ASK Riga, Barons, Siauliai, Lietuvos Rytas are also stronger. That means in Elite division there are 5-6 strong clubs. No one can forecast the winner between these teams because a lot depends on various factors. It is not easy to play against them.
- Zalgiris has lost some of the last games. What happened?
- I think it’s not necessary to worry. It is tough to maintain a good shape and concentration during the whole season. We play a lot of games in Euroleague, Lithuanian and also Baltic league. We compete pretty got in the Euroleague and then we have to play another game on Saturday and it’s not always that easy to concentrate.
It feels that those leagues are getting stronger. We unexpectedly lost to Ventspils and Siauliai. Every team wants to appear as good as possible against Zalgiris and Lietuvos Rytas, so it’s tough to expect a positive result if you’re not ready to give 100 percent of your abilities.
- So it means that the main reason for those losses is lack of concentration?
- Undoubtedly. In basketball it is very important to be focused and ready to play. I think we lost because of lack of concentration, but we were also feeling fatigued after a tough game over Olimpija.
- Are you satisfied with your role in the team?
- The situation always can be better (laughs). We’ve won 5 straight games in the Euroleague and that’s a good achievement. Every single win is pleasant. I’m happy when we win, especially in our fulfilled sports hall.
- You are very emotional player. What gives you confidence?
- I’m not tall or very physically gifted player, so usually I’m more motivated than others. I’m not afraid to work hard, I play with fire and that’s my fuel. I try to play as good as possible but sometimes I succeed, sometimes not. I respect every opponent on the floor, so I never give up and fight till the end.
- Probably the fans also motivate you.
- Oh yeah! That’s the best thing that Kaunas has – the fans of Zalgiris. I’ve played in about 5-6 teams and I know what kind of fans there are. In here even if we aren’t playing well they never give up on their team and still support it at the most difficult time. The fans of Zalgiris love their team, their city and already for that they deserve the biggest respect from basketball players.
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