Luka's Slovenia will face Giannis' Greece for a place in the 2024 Olympics

The group stages of the 2024 FIBA ​​Olympic Qualifying Tournaments are getting more exciting every day. After showing intense and impressive results in the previous weeks, the stage is finally set for the semi-finals, which will present the much-anticipated clash between Slovenia and Greece.

This pairing is electrifying not only because both countries are on the verge of going to the sport's biggest stage in Paris this month, but also because it will be between two of the best athletes in the NBA.

Luka Doncic, who is the current NBA scoring champion, has already predicted how difficult the game will be against Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo. “It's hard to give up on Giannis. We are not the favourites, but we have to believe until the end,” he expects of Saturday's competition.

🇬🇷 Giannis Antetokounmpo and 🇸🇮 Luka Doncic reunited earlier than expected ⚔️ #FIBAOQT

Who will take their team to the finals? 🤔 pic.twitter.com/zQIwbO9JuF

— BasketNews (@BasketNews_com) July 4, 2024

The other semi-finalists will be Croatia, who defeated Slovenia in the group stage, against the Dominican Republic. Greece, on the other hand, defeated the Caribbean nation after a good performance from the Milwaukee forward.

“Giannis loves being here. He loves to represent his country,” said Greece coach, Vassilis Spanoulis, after the star scored 32 points in 19 minutes, going 11 of 11 from the field. “He is very humble. You are part of the team. For a superstar you don't get this easy. … It's about winning.”

Preparing for the first semi-final of this tournament between the two Mediterranean teams on Saturday at 16:30 CET, the Greek tactician explained what his team's strengths are in this challenge, without the leadership of Antetokounmpo.

“This shows who we are. On the other hand, we have to improve our defense. Especially in the second quarter, I didn't like a lot of things. It was good that it happened so it doesn't happen again. We have to be very strong in other parts of the game,” confirmed Spanoulis, 42.

The Greek coach knows both Doncic and Antetokounmpo well and explained the big difference between the stars before the semi-final.

When asked about Saturday's game against Slovenia, Spanoulis had only words of praise for the Mavericks guard, who always idolized the Olympiacos icon growing up in European basketball.

“Our relationship is one of great respect, first as a person and then as an athlete. I don't have much to say about him in terms of gameplay. Everyone knows him. He is a good person and an idol to many children,” said the coach. “It's important these days to have that kind of idol.”

However, Spanoulis shares the same kind of praise for his student Antetokounmpo, seeing him as a role model for society, not just basketball. “I am very happy that we also have a great star in our team like Giannis, who is a great person, a leader and an idol of many children. We need this kind of example in our society,” said the diplomat.

Praise aside, Spanoulis talked about how difficult it will be to face this Slovenian team, but he knows how Greece can stop Doncic. “We have the best defenders in football. But self-defense is not just for one person, but for the team. We have to be able to cover all the mistakes in the ball, be ready to throw in the right way, and defend in the right way,” he explained.