INTERVIEW: Ante Delaš - "People from Zadar recognize good things"

After scoring 25 points in defeat against Metalac Farmakom two weeks ago, Ante Delaš has shined again, and this time the whole story had a happy ending. Player of Zadar made 27 points against Partizan NIS, helped his team achieve a very important win, while he eventually picked up the MVP award of the round 10 in ABA League!

Read the full interview that Ante Delaš gave for the official website of ABA League:

You had a marvelous game against Partizan NIS. Combining your fantastic individual performance and a great team play, Zadar managed to break their rivals in the final minutes. What was the key thing in this victory?

"The game was very difficult, but we expected that. Regardless of their current position on the standings, Partizan NIS are a very good team and everyone will see that in the rest of the season. We played a good, tough game, and the most important thing is that we won. It is hard to say what was the decisive factor. Probably our defense which we have played on a high level during the whole game. When we were failing to score some points in offense, our defense was there to get us away from the problem. I think that our win is absolutely deserved."

After the episode in Cedevita, where you haven't had some major role, you decided to return to Zadar and you quickly became the leader of the team. How is even possible to fit in so good in such a short period?

"It's because everything is very familiar to me. The city, all the people inside the club, our head coach... Also, this role definitely suits me more, because I like to have the ball with me and I am not afraid to take responsibility. It was not the case in Cedevita, especially in my second season. Head coach Ante Nazor knows me well and he knows what he can expect from me. He gave me the role that that helps me contribute to the team on the best possible way. The most important thing is that we are winning."

What is like to be in Zadar again? Is it playing in front of "Tornado" something special for you and how much that atmosphere on the stands helps you win the games?

"It is nice playing in Zadar, especially when you are winning. Still, it can be also difficult if the results are not so good. The point is that you should always give your best as Zadar fans recognize good things. The atmosphere at the game against Partizan NIS was excellent and I hope the fans will continue to support us in the following games. They have once again showed that they are our 6th player."

What are you expectations for the rest of the season?

"We will see what will happen. We should keep working and the time will tell how much we can do. I hope that we will remain in the upper part of the standings, but that will not be easy. It is clear that our fans expect good results, so we need to achieve them on the court."

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Ante Delaš - "Naši navijači prepoznaju dobre stvari"

Nakon 25 poena u porazu od Metalca Farmakom pre desetak dana, Ante Delaš je ponovo zasijao, a ovoga puta cela priča je imala i srećan kraj. Košarkaš Zadra je proteklog vikenda ubacio 27 poena Partizanu NIS, vodio je svoj tim do velike pobede, a njegova fantastična partija mu je donela i priznanje najkorisnijeg igrača 10. kola ABA lige.

Pročitatje ceo intervju koji je Ante Delaš dao za zvanični sajt ABA lige.

Protiv Partizana NIS ste odigrali izvanrednu utakmicu, pre svega vi lično, ali i kao cela ekipa. Protivnika ste slomili u poslednjim minutima - šta je bilo odlučujuće?

"Utakmica je bila vrlo teška, ali to smo i očekivali. Partizan je bez obzira na trenutnu poziciji na ljestvici jedna odlična ekipa, što će se tek pokazati i u nastavku sezone. Odigrali smo dobru utakmicu, čvrstu i borbenu. Najvažnija je ipak pobjeda. Teško je procijeniti što je presudilo, vjerojatna naša obrana koju smo igrali na visokoj razini cijelu utakmicu, bez obzira na kretanje rezultata. Kad smo u nekim trenucima zakazali u napadu, izvukli smo se obranom. Smatram da je naša pobjeda apsolutno zaslužena."

Posle epizode u Cedeviti, gde niste imali bitniju ulogu, vratili ste se u Zadar, gde ste brzo postali lider ekipe i opravdali poverenje trenera Nazora svojim igrama. Kako je uopšte moguće da ste se tako brzo toliko uspešno uklopili u novi tim?

"Prilagodba je vrlo dobro prošla jer poznajem grad, ljude u klubu, trenera. Ova uloga mi zasigurno više odgovara, jer volim imati loptu i ne bojim se preuzeti odgovornost. U Cedeviti to nije bio slučaj, pogotovo u drugoj sezoni, za razliku od prve kada sam imao važnu ulogu, dosta slobode u napadu i odgovornosti u svojim rukama. Trener Ante Nazor me jako dobro poznaje, zna koliko može od mene očekivati. Dao mi je ulogu koja mi odgovara jer zna da tako mogu najviše doprinijeti momčadi, a najvažnije je da se pobjeđuje."

Kako je za vas opet igrati u Zadru? Da li je igranje pred navijačima Tornada za vas nešto posebno i koliko vam odlična atmosfera na utakmicama, kao protiv Partizana NIS pomaže na putu do pobeda?

"U Zadru je lijepo igrati, pogotovo kada se pobjeđuje. Ipak, ponekad je i teško, pogotovo kad ide loše. Nema tu prevelike filozofije, treba dati sve od sebe, a naši navijači to znaju prepoznati. Atmosfera protiv Partizana je bila odlična, nadam se da će se tako nastaviti. Navijači su se opet potvrdili kao naš šesti igrač."

Kakva su vaša očekivanja pred nastavak sezone?

"Vidjet ćemo kako će se ova sezona odvijati. Trebamo nastaviti trenirati, pa ćemo vidjeti koliko vrijedimo. Nadam se da ćemo biti u gornjem dijelu ljestvice, ali to neće biti nimalo lako. Jasno mi je da naši navijači očekuju dobre rezultate od nas, ali mi to moramo dolazati na parketu."