Basketball world champion Moritz Wagner expects a tough task for the German basketball team in the European Championship final against Turkey. They won very convincingly against Greece in the semifinals.
“It’s not going to be a walk in the park on Sunday. You have to earn that gold medal. The guys are very, very good,“ Wagner said in the ”Abteilung Basketball” podcast ahead of Sunday’s final in Riga (8 p.m./RTL and MagentaSport).
The Turks outclassed Greece 94-68 (49-31) in Friday’s semifinal. “It’s going to be an absolute blast on Sunday. What I find so interesting about the Turks is, first of all, their mentality. They seem like they don’t care about anything. They’re just completely ready for it. They also have a healthy arrogance. And they’re a bit unpredictable,” Wagner explained.
The 28-year-old also raved about the depth of the Turkish squad. In addition to NBA center Alperen Sengün of the Houston Rockets, the team’s top player, playmaker Shane Larkin and Ercan Osmani are also in the spotlight. Osmani scored 28 points against Greece and hit six of eight three-pointers.
Wagner impressed by Sengün
“Sengün is aggressive from the three-point line at this level, but also down low,” Wagner said. “At the same time, they have guards and wings who can play. Anyone can take a chance. These are all guys who are dangerous. You can’t focus on just one thing.“ Wagner noted that Sengün is probably the first opponent for the Germans in the tournament who is ”a real big man who plays at a high level.”
Moritz Wagner is missing the European Championship due to a cruciate ligament rupture and is analyzing the games as a TV expert at MagentaSport. His brother Franz, who like him is under contract with the Orlando Magic in the NBA, advanced to the final with the German national team on Friday with a 98-86 win over Finland.
