The term repeated several times, highlighted and placed at the center of the meeting by Luis Scola, CEO of Varese Basketballwith the press it was: continuity.
A concept which, however, objective facts in hand, to date, has not yet materialized in the sporting reality of First team red and white since El General took the helm of command of the troop.
Since his entry as CEO, first, and then owner of the red and white club, in fact, there have been many more changes than confirmations management, technical staff and roster levels.
Let’s start from its first year, 2021-2022: during that season, Pallacanestro Varese sees the change General Manager, Andrea Conti, who resigned after the collapse at home against Reggio Emilia, a decision that apparently had very little to do with Scola, only to then discover the very strong friction between the two. Scola himself who decides to entrust the vacant role to Michael Arcieriwhile the coach’s bench jumps Adriano Vertemati and is chosen as his successor Johan Roijakkers. The Dutchman was then kicked out a few days before the end of the championship and in his place led the red and whites to safety coach Alberto Seravalli. Meanwhile, the club had changed the entire starting lineup of the team built at the beginning of the season, with the farewells of Gentle, Egbunu, Wilson, Jalen Jones and Trey Kellreplaced by the arrivals of Keene, Veins, Reyes And Woldetensae.
The summer of 2022-2023 is the first real summer of the Scola project, with El General who, together with the knowledge and professionalism of Arcieri, builds a spectacular team: they arrive Ross, Brown, Johnson, Owens and with the confirmations of De Nicolao, Ferrero, Reyes, Caruso, Woldetensae and Librizzi. He arrives on the bench Matt Brasewith assistants Paolo Galbiati And Herman Mandolas.
A crazy season, ruined by the penalty linked to the Tepic award, at the end of which a veritable umpteenth diaspora occurs: Arcieri, Ferrero, De Nicolao, Caruso, Ross, Brown, Johnson, Owens, Brase and Galbiati leave. Varese decides to include Sogolow as GM and Horowitz as coach Tom Bialaszewski and as deputy Marco Legovichwhile they arrive on the field Shahid, Moretti, Ulaneo, Brown, Cauley-Stein, McDermott, Hanlanto which are added the confirmations of Woldetensae, Librizzi and Virginio.
A team that, however, turns out to be poorly constructed, with errors especially in the play-pivot axis which is promptly replaced halfway through the season: go Shahid and Cauley-Steininside Mannion And Spencer. The team found its own more than interesting framework, winning victories that would later prove to be fundamental for their final salvation, but a few weeks later came the excellent farewell of Hanlan towards CSKA Moscow. The former red and white captain is replaced by BessonWhile Gilmore takes the place of Younga meteor that passed through Varese without leaving any trace.
A team that is unlikely to be the starting point for that much sought-after continuity, given the contractual situation of many players and given the change in the technical staff, with the farewell to yet another coach, Bialaszewskiand the now almost certain landing of Herman Mandolas as his replacement.
Here is Mandole, if you look closely, However, it can be the real starting point in search of that much desired continuity from the red and whites: a man perfectly integrated into the Moreyball context, Head of Player Development, the work area behind the new red and white project and coach who has full trust and respect for Luis Scola. Will we start again from him? Very likely, with the equally probable prospect of having to rebuild a revolutionized roster again.
In the illustrated history we then add the change of CDA happened, the affair Pelligra and now the new registered street Varese Sport Entertainment at the end of a picture which today sees Pallacanestro Varese with well-defined figures in the club and which is trying to restart on the pitch from Mandole as a sign of continuity to a project born now 2 and a half years ago and which now needs to find that much needed continuity hoped for but so far never really realised, for a thousand contingencies, especially often economic, and against which the red and whites had to fight between budget sustainability and market competitivenessand choices, whose goodness or otherwise we have deliberately not analyzed, from which today the red and whites however want to draw out some fixed points so as not to have to start, once again, completely from scratch.
Alessandro Burin
