Turkey captain Ibrahim Kutluay believes there will be more pressure on his team to do well at this year's EuroBasket after their success at the 2006 FIBA World Championship.
Turkey qualified second from a group containing Brazil, Greece, Lithuania and Australia and then beat Slovenia to make the quarter-finals at last year's showpiece tournament in Japan.
| “ | We have to continue the atmosphere that we created last year, we have to fight until the very end and win everyone round. | „ | ||||
| Ibrahim Kutluay | ||||||
He told Fanatik newspaper: "Everybody expects us to be successful at the EuroBasket after last year's success and that increases our responsibility.
"They didn't expect much from us (last year) and that lifted the pressure."
Turkey's run at last year's World Championship was eventually brought to an end with an 83-58 defeat to Argentina.
Kutluay continued: "Progressing from the group would have been seen as a success and we almost made the semi-finals. Now the goals have got bigger.
"We have to continue the atmosphere that we created last year, we have to fight until the very end and win everyone round."
In Japan, the team were without star forwards Hidayet Turkoglu and Mehmet Okur, and though Kutluay believes their absence made the team fight harder, he is understandably happy at their return for the EuroBasket.
He added: "I lot of people said that we wouldn't be successful because we were missing Mehmet and Hidayet.
"They thought we were weak without them - even some players in the team didn't believe in us.
"But we motivated each other and made things happen with a fighting team.
"Now, Mehmet and Hido [Turkoglu] have joined us and they have great potential in attack - they will take us to another level with their attacking game.
"I believe they have the same kind of belief and we will become capable, creative and effective in the attacking game."
Turkey are in Group C and will face familiar opposition in Lithuania, as well as Germany and the Czech Republic.
And Kutluay believes two of these sides has what it takes to become champions.
"There are several candidates who could win a medal: Spain, Greece, Lithuania, France, Italy, Germany, Russia.
"And we also belong to this group.
"It will be a different tournament - everybody has squads of the same strength and every team has capable players.
"The teams who want it more, who don't give up until the very end, who are better physically, who are close to each other and who even lose like a team will be more successful.
"Spain beat Greece in the World Championship final by a very big margin even though they were missing their best player.
"They have created a team where although they have several star players, they play like a team.
"We have done the same thing.
"We will create a team which bites the opponents and fights and I believe we will become more successful."
