Once he puts on his coaching cap, who is Massimo Cancellieri really? The Limoges CSP coach is 49 years old. An Italian born in Teramo, a town of 53,000 inhabitants in the Abbruzes. The one we call “Canch” in Italy grew up with the idea of leaving as soon as possible. Because he doesn’t like small towns where people are often content with what they have.
One idea in mind, to leave your small hometown
So at 18, this only son left his native region for Rome, the capital, for his studies and to satisfy his passion for basketball but not as a player. “I played basketball when I was 9 but I was a terrible player. So I stopped playing to start coaching. I have immense respect for basketball so I don’t want to talk about myself as a a basketball player. I think I am a better coach than a player, but basketball has always been a passion. “
Massimo took on the role of coach, like his uncle before him. A profession that brought him to Milan where he worked as an assistant from 2013 at Olimpia Milano before embarking as head coach, in the Italian 2nd division in 2019 in Ravenna, a city in Emilia-Romagna playing in the second division. He then set down his suitcases this summer in France in Limoges.
I always need to move “
For now, he does not see himself returning to his country. The Italian coach now wants to settle permanently in France: “If I can, I would never leave France. Now, I prefer it to Italy. I love my country but I think I have seen enough. I want to know another culture, to understand how to live there. I love that.”
As his journey shows, Massimo Cancellieri is a fan of change : “After 2 or 3 years, I still need to move. I need to renew myself all the time. I don’t always like to stay at the same level.”
Massimo Cancemllieri is the type to often change his mind
To hear it, everything can change at any time: “I often change my mind. I don’t think it’s because I’m not sure of myself, it’s the opposite! I have a lot of self-confidence so I can change my mind and I don’t need to have habits. I’m always on the lookout for new things, the only thing I won’t change is my wife! “
Teramo and Limoges have one thing in common “
His family, his wife and their 4-year-old daughter, have adapted well to his new life in Limoges. Important data for Massimo Cancellieri: “It’s very important that they live well and honestly, that’s what they tell me, they are very happy with this experience. It’s by far the only thing that makes me relaxed! The rest, no. ”
No more meat or fish for Massimo
Massimo Cancellieri, capable of squeezing 10 coffees a day, to a favorite dish: Melanzana à la Permigiana, a kind of eggplant lasagna. Corn he is not really interested in food, moreover, he no longer eats meat or fish: “I have eaten everything in my life. There is one thing in common between Teramo and Limoges: we eat all the parts of the animal there. Liver, stomach, balls too. Now I have looked around. I’m not a big fan of food. I eat because I have to. I like a lot of things but food is not my priority. “
“In life, I’m not crazy like in games”
A diet without meat or fish that does not prevent the Italian coach from being very energetic on his bench. Outside, the Italian is calmer but he is not the type to sit idly by : “I don’t go crazy like during games, but I prefer to go at high speed. I prefer that rather than living slowly. Throughout my life, I have never been the guy who goes to his couch to relax. . I need to go somewhere or do something. I prefer to stay active. “
A life at a thousand miles an hour with many other passions than basketball : comics, big dogs (he has an Argentinian dog), travel or even music. His favorite bands are Nirvana or the Smashing Pumpkins. Basically everything from Seattle in the 90s. But, right now, he doesn’t have time for all that. All his time, he devotes it to basketball and Limoges CSP.