PISTOIA. The news, first reported on the Superbasket.it website, was then picked up by all the other local media and sports sites. The departure of Nicola Brienza, who after three seasons, would conclude his experience in the red and white with a brilliant sixth place in the championship and the goal of unexpected playoffs in the first year of Pistoia Basket returning to Serie A.
Superbasket.it considers Brienza’s departure as certain. Not only that, the 44-year-old coach from Cantù has already accepted the offer from Givova Scafati. And here the first wave of disappointment arises spontaneously in the comments on social media: why Scafati, who wouldn’t have much higher ambitions than Pistoia? This is the question asked by the fans, who have become deeply fond of Brienza, as has rarely happened in recent years even with esteemed coaches like Moretti and Esposito.
Brienza seems destined to accept Scafati’s proposal, who strongly wanted him and offered him a two-year contract. Pistoia Basket will have a new coach in 2024/25. The American owners of the club would have decided not to continue with the Cantù coach. A farewell destined to cause discussion, especially because it would not have depended on the will of the Brianza coach.
The club is working to set up a competitive roster for next season, but to date the certainty is that many of the protagonists of the last three years will leave Pistoia. The first to say goodbye, all that is missing now is the official announcement, was Carl Wheatle, who after five seasons in the red and white chose Venice. Another almost certain farewell is that of assistant coach Luca Angella, who will probably return to his native Livorno.
Market rumors instead say that the new American ownership, and the president-in-chief Ron Rowan, have a stars and stripes coach in mind for Pistoia for the 2024/25 season. A choice viewed with some perplexity by most of the fans. We will know in a few days who Estra’s next coach will be. What now seems certain is that, despite another year on his contract, it won’t be Nicola Brienza. L
Tiziana Gori
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