Gallinari banking on home support to propel Azzurri to EuroBasket success

MILAN (Italy) - Danilo Gallinari is looking forward to competing at FIBA EuroBasket 2022 with the added allure of playing in front of passionate home support.

Milan is one of four host cities for the initial group phase with Europe's flagship event being held in Italy for the first time since 1991, when the Azzurri  finished as runners-up.

"KNOWING THE ARENA IS GOING TO BE PACKED, IT IS SUCH A GREAT OPPORTUNITY TO HAVE A GREAT TOURNAMENT."

Gallinari, who was born in a town just outside Milan, hopes that familiar surroundings can have a similar knock-on effect for the Italians as they target a successful tournament.

"I am really looking forward to play at home in Milan and feel the love and support from our fans," Gallinari told fiba.basketball. "It's going to be an incredible experience, and knowing that the arena is going to be packed rooting for us, that is such a great chance, such a great opportunity to have a great tournament and to share great moments with our fans.

"Playing at home is always fantastic, and we all know that people back home are also looking forward to this summer and to be cheering for the Azzurri.

"We want to have a great tournament and we are ambitious. It’s still too early and many teams can reach the podium, but we never start a tournament without wanting to win and have a great campaign. The goal is to make our fans proud, and to be very competitive."

Gallinari first competed at EuroBasket in 2011 before a second appearance came four years later with averages of 17.9 points, 6.9 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game in the 2015 tournament as Italy finished in sixth place.

The Atlanta Hawks forward played at the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019 and was also part of the Italian squad at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, where they made it to the Quarter-Finals stage.

Alongside the established stars have emerged the next generation of talent on Italy's senior team with the likes of young talents Nico Mannion and Alessandro Pajola making their mark.

"They have been doing very well for the national team, and to be honest with you, that shows that the present and the future of Italy’s national team is bright and full of great talents. They were able to show their best at the highest level, and it’s not always easy to do so you know.

"They are showing their potential in our team, and they are turning into very important elements for us, which is great. They have the same goal, which is help the team win and be the most competitive we can, and the love for representing Italy and make our fans proud is 100 percent. Those guys can play very well, it’s so great to have teammates like this."

There is also growing excitement for another young talent to throw into the mix with rising college star Paolo Banchero. The 2002-born forward excelled during a freshman year at Duke with multiple awards off the back of 17.2 points and 7.8 rebounds per game for the Blue Devils.

And, Banchero's performances have caught the eye of Gallinari with a glowing endorsement for the future of Italian basketball.

"I have seen him play and he is a fantastic talent, that is for sure. He can play at multiple position and he has a great potential, and he would be a great addition to the national team," he stated.

"Paolo can help us, he can score, he can grab rebounds, he really has a tremendous potential to become a top class player. He had great games during March Madness, and I am happy to see guys like him, who have a link with Italy, show their pride of being Italian and wanting to be an Azzuri.

"Between the guys that play overseas, in college or even in our academies in Italy, we have many talented players coming up. The academies back home have been doing a great job and many, many young guys are coming up, that is a great sign for the future of Italian basketball."

Italy's sporting prowess has gone from strength to strength in recent times. The men's football team celebrated a dramatic triumph at Euro 2020, there was dual success at the Men's and Women's Volleyball European Championships, Marcel Jacobs won 100-meter dash gold at the Tokyo Olympics and Matteo Berrettini was a Wimbledon men's finalist all in the space of a year.

Motivation, indeed, for Gallinari and his teammates to step up their own pursuit to achieve success.

"The wave of great results was fantastic," he concluded. "That gives more confidence to Italian athletes and to the fans. "We had a great year in 2021, and we are all working hard to have a great year of 2022, too.

"It was fantastic to see what our fellow compatriots achieved in 2021, and it gave us a lot of enthusiasm, and more confidence to keep competing and try to win. I felt this back home, the love from the fans and the support they did show to our athletes was fantastic.

"We all want to have, to experience great winning moments like this we had last year, and hopefully for the basketball national team, too."

Italy begin their quest for glory when they take on Estonia in their opening Group C game on September 2, 2022 with ensuing encounters with Greece, Ukraine, Croatia and Great Britain.

FIBA