{"id":55324,"date":"2023-09-04T15:26:31","date_gmt":"2023-09-04T13:26:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.olimpiamilano.com\/?p=55324"},"modified":"2023-09-04T15:29:27","modified_gmt":"2023-09-04T13:29:27","slug":"diego-flaccadori-had-olimpia-in-his-destiny-opponent-and-even-as-a-former-try-out-hopeful","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.olimpiamilano.com\/en\/diego-flaccadori-had-olimpia-in-his-destiny-opponent-and-even-as-a-former-try-out-hopeful\/","title":{"rendered":"Diego Flaccadori had Olimpia in his destiny, as an opponent and even as a former try-out hopeful"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\u201cI started to love basketball very early, at 4 or 5 years of age. I was lucky because my grandfather was an official with the Bergamo team, so he brought me to games on Sundays, and then I asked him to start practicing too. Everything started with my grandfather, he was the reason why I started to play and to love the game.\u201d<\/strong> Everything started with a conversation with his grandpa. Then, Diego Flaccadori became a promising prospect in Italy. Being part of a team in his native Bergamo he faced Olimpia Milan youth teams so many times you lose count. And he was good. So good, that he played for the National Team in 2012 at the European Under 16 championships. Two years later, he was great at the Under 18 level when he averaged 16.1 points per game on top of getting 5.3 rebounds. He was a guard, one of the best in Europe in his age group. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Olimpia had given him a chance by then. The EuroLeague Final Four were in Milan in May of 2014. The Under 18 team had to take part in the highly competitive junior tournament and offered him a spot on the team. He was on a loan, but you never know. \u201cIt was a beautiful experience \u2013 he says -. That tournament was organized during the Milan edition of the Final Four in 2014. So, they gave us the chance to watch the games. At that age, to wear Olimpia jersey was great and on top of it I attended the Final Four. It was great.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Diego Flaccadori during the 2014 EuroLeague junior tournament that he played on the Olimpia Under 18 team<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

He did well, seriously, so well that maybe he was sitting by the phone waiting for a call that never happened. \u201cNo, it was an opportunity, so I came well prepared and yes, I did everything well. But I understood which kind of development I was supposed to follow. In truth, I enjoyed the experience to the best of my capabilities.\u201d He doesn\u2019t have no regrets. He played the part; he helped the team win a couple of games and moved on. He is a smart guy; he was 18 and needed to face experienced competitions with playing time to use. He was signed by Trento, an emerging team. \u201cI was a kid and became an adult. Trento meant a lot to me, I spent there my formative years. It was crucial. And tough in the beginning. I had to absorb the rhythm of being a professional player. And it took time. Once, I got into my rhythm everything was a lot of fun. It is to this day.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n