Chus Mateo: Mavs and Doncic visit was “a great gift for the fans”

Real Madrid coach Chus Mateo spoke to the media after his team’s victory against the Dallas Mavericks. For him, the day turned out just as everyone had hoped - to perfection: “It has been a real party for the fans, I think the possibility of seeing Luka Doncic back in Madrid, being with his team mates and spending a few minutes on the court in front of the people who love him was really nice. But we wanted too wanted to be a part of the party and for our fans to recognize that we are doing a good job. I think tonight has been a great gift for them.”

A number of first players from Real Madrid’s soccer team attended the WiZink Center - Toni Kroos and his brother Felix, Thibaut Courtois, Dani Ceballos and Lucas Vázquez had courtside seats to follow the action close up.

What differences have you found when facing an NBA team? And what did it feel like having Jason Kidd in front of you?

I have great admiration for Jason Kidd, without any doubt. I admire him greatly on all levels for what he has achieved and for who he is. The most obvious difference with an NBA team is athletic ability. The physique is an enviable trait. It’s true that we have were able to match it on this occasion and that’s very pleasing. They have shown an explosiveness and a capacity to get past players in one-on-one moves that is really impressive. But we have been good and we have been able to contain them.

What did you think of Tavares? Has this friendly game helped you to see how he was?

I wanted to test him to see how he was feeling and, above all, if he was able to manage because he had breathing problems and had been out of action for more than 15 days. Edy’s a big guy and struggles to get going after he has spent time out and today was a good day to test him a little and see how he got on. This match has been very good for him. And also for us to find out about his physical condition. And I hope to start counting on him from now on.

Real Madrid has very demanding Euroleague match against Anadolu Efes in Turkey in a few hours, how is the team preparing for that after today’s game?

We will try to do our best over there. Now we will reset a little and start focusing on official competition. We have a very demanding month ahead and this was a very nice game to play. It was Luka’s party and we wanted to be there. Now we have to try to put this game behind us, tomorrow will be another day and we have to continue being humble and consistent in our work, because that is what will make us continue getting results. The Efes game is going to be very tough and we have to focus and try to recover. For us it has been an effort because it is different to playing 48 minutes.