Back on track. Flamengo's most experienced basketball player has found his way back to scoring baskets and scoring double-doubles. Olivinha has regained his starting position for FlaBasquete in recent games and demonstrated how he's one of Gustavo De Conti's key weapons in securing a spot in the Super 8 final. This Thursday, Flamengo faces Botafogo at Arena Carioca 1 at 21:10 pm, and Olvinha wants to maintain his level of form. He scored 47 points in his last two matches against Minas, crucial for the team to emerge victorious. 

Having played for Flamengo since 2012 and won everything, Olivinha faced the demands of the stars and felt he was being held accountable. He went to work. He rolled up his sleeves, picked up the ball, and began spending even more time after practice practicing shots, especially three-pointers. Olivinha already had this habit, but he stepped it up a notch. On the eve of the game against Botafogo, he spent more than 20 minutes shooting with very high accuracy, especially from the "dead zone." 

"After the games, I've been trying to improve, and I noticed I was lacking offensively. After training, I'm working on my shooting routine, and it's been working. There's no magic formula. The harder you work, the more successful you are," said the power forward, who also spoke about his chemistry with Marquinhos, his longtime friend who combined for 50 points in the last match against Minas. "Marquinhos and I have played together for 10 seasons, seven of them here at Flamengo. We have a great connection; I always know where he'll be, and he knows where he is."

Not only Olivinha, but Flamengo as a whole has improved its numbers up front as well. The team's points average has increased, and in the three recent matches, the team has surpassed the 90-point mark, reaching 100, precisely against Botafogo, Thursday's rival. For Olivinha, this is due not only to the team's chemistry, which improves with each game, but also to the time Gustavo has had to work with his players. 

"Our team has been working very hard. We had a long period of time to train, something we couldn't do before because of the tight schedule. So we were able to train a lot, and that helped the team. Our team chemistry has improved a lot. We can see that in the games. Our attack flows very well, and we have great players with great offensive power. The team is in a very good moment, and that's due to the hard work we've been putting in. We knew this time would come, and this is truly the result of the work we've been putting in."

The derby against Botafogo will be the sixth this season. There have been four in the State Championship and one in the NBB, all of which were won by Flamengo. In the Carioca Championship, the teams faced each other in the qualifying round, and both matches went to Flamengo. The opening match, at General Severiano, was a tight affair, with a 67-57 victory. In the return match, at Tijuca Tênis Clube, another close match ended in a 73-69 victory. In the final, which was a best-of-three match, Flamengo won in two games: 88-69 and 83-73, securing the state championship for the third time. 

In the NBB, the two teams faced each other at Tijuca Tênis Clube, with another victory for Orgulho da Nação, 102 to 73. For Olivinha, all this history has its weight, but when the ball goes up in Arena Carioca, everything will be behind them.

"The focus has to be on the 40 minutes. We've played against them a lot, we know the team well, we've won them all, but that's in the past. Each game is a different story, and tomorrow will be the same. It's a knockout game. Whoever wins advances to the final. Both teams have the same goal. Botafogo is coming off a good win against Pinheiros, which gave them a lot of confidence, but our team is also ready. We're doing very well. We won against Minas, our confidence is high, and the team is motivated," concluded the number 16.

Toys for Tickets

As with the previous match against Minas, there will be no ticket sales for this match. Tickets will be exchanged for toys in good condition at the Arena entrance. One toy = one ticket. As with all classics in Rio de Janeiro, this Flamengo vs. Botafogo match will feature a single Flamengo fan base. 

The basketball teams of Clube de Regatas do Flamengo receive funding from their sponsors – thinkseg, AmBev, Rede D'or, IRB Brasil RE, CSN, Brasil Plural, and EY – via the Federal Incentive Law/Ministry of Sports (IR) and the State Incentive Law/Rio de Janeiro State Secretariat of Sports, Recreation, and Youth (Seelje), in addition to support from the Brazilian Club Committee (CBC) resulting from the decentralization of resources generated by the Pelé Law. The Anjo da Guarda Rubro-Negro Project, a personal tax transfer, benefits all Olympic sports of the Most Beloved.