Hello again, Eurocup fans! This is Javi Salgado, team captain of Bizkaia Bilbao Basket. You cannot begin to imagine the great atmosphere in Bilbao these days! The press is all over us, and of course our fans. People just can't wait for the Eurocup Finals, and to go to Vitoria and support the team. They are all looking forward to seeing us win the title but we have to keep our feet in the ground. We are a young club that doesn't get the chance to play for a European title very often. Not only can we win a title, the first-ever for the club, but we can double the reward by playing the Euroleague next season. A local newspaper, El Correo, took a team picture of us "riding" Harley-Davidsons, all of us in sunglasses, looking like bad boys! It was great fun, even though I am not into motorbikes much. Some of my teammates like Harleys, however, and it was fun to sit on one even if when we didn't ride them. But who knows? Vitoria is so close to Bilbao, maybe...on second thought, maybe not.

Of course, all we care about right now is the game against Alba Berlin. My teammate Javi Rodriguez missed a Spanish League game, but will be back to help us. He will make an effort to play, for sure, because he is the kind of player that gives everything for the team. Javi is very unselfish on and off the court, so he will be back to help us. Alba is a very solid team, without major weaknesses, very tough to play against. They are a physical team on defense, using their hands a lot, very aggressive - it will be difficult to have a good offensive flow against them. They have great pick-and-roll defense. They also have great offensive players like Derrick Byars, Julius Jenkins and Blagota Sekulic. They can damage any opponent... more

BLAKNEY VIDEO

Well, the Eurocup Finals are finally here. I'm not counting the days anymore, but the hours. It won't be long before we're on the court in Vitoria for our semifinal against Power Electronics Valencia. Before I talk about the game, I would like to mention that this is a big moment for many of us who have been in this sport a long time and always kept working for an opportunity like we have this weekend to play against the best and try to lift a major trophy. In my own case, my pro career started far from all this, in the Dominican Republic. I thought when I first got there it was like a paid vacation, but I learned quick. It was so hot, and there was no air-conditioning in the gyms, so before the season even started I lost six or seven kilos! Then the games started, and it was run and gun all the time, people in the crowds getting rowdy, a hectic atmosphere, neighborhoods against neighborhoods. Come to think of it, that was a lot... more

Hi everyone. Now, we're really close to the moment of truth! By that moment, I mean Saturday's semifinals, too, because without winning then, there is no Sunday to dream about the trophy. I can guarantee you that we are focused on that moment and ready to play. The whole season has been building up to this, every improvement along the way adds up to having a team that is confident and prepared to confront this challenge. As I said in my first blog, I am confident because of the chemistry we have on our team. It's a mix of young guys and veterans, shooters, defenders, passers, floor-runners.... We do have a very versatile team. For instance, this is my first year playing with Victor Claver, and even as a teammate, I tell you, he's fun to watch and very talented. He can play either forward spot well and do everything, really. It's no wonder he was named the Rising Star Trophy winner for the Eurocup, but he doesn't play like a young guy. Everyone knows we're a deep team, but one interesting thing about us that people may not recognize is that the guys coming off the bench have a lot of experience. Marko Marinovic, Florent Pietrus, Serhiy Lishchuk and I are all guys who have played and won a lot. I think that means that our lineup gives a lot of options to our coach. Depending on the game, he can utilize the player he needs at any given moment, which is part of our success: we have players... more