By Aris Barkas/ barkas@eurohoops.net
While the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague is without a doubt the top level of basketball in Europe, you can argue that 7DAYS EuroCup is not that far behind.
The 24 teams that are part of the competition are ready to dazzle and make a case for a EuroLeague spot. After all, that’s the ultimate prize that goes along with the EuroCup trophy. And that’s a good reason for Eurohoops to present its first EuroCup Power Rankings, just before the start of the season.
1 Lokomotiv Kuban Krasnodar
They have last season’s EuroCup Coach of the Year in Sasa Obradovic and former EuroLeague players like Vitaly Fridzon, last with CSKA, Jamel McLean (Olympiacos) and Dorell Wright (Bamberg). They are the de facto favorite to go all the way this year, after a near-perfect season that, unfortunately for them, included a bitter finish in the finals against David Blatt’s Darussafaka Istanbul.
2 Unicaja Malaga
When they don’t play in the EuroLeague, they are a candidate to win the EuroCup. And this year is not an exception, thanks to a roster that includes former Olympiacos duo Kyle Wiltjer and Brian Roberts, and also former Crvena Zvezda big man Matthias Lessort.
3 Valencia Basket
They are the arch-rivals of Unicaja, especially in the EuroCup, and they have a battle-tested group that includes Bojan Dubljevic and Rafa Martinez. The addition of sharpshooter Matt Thomas and French international center Louis Labeyrie can only make things better. Plus, no other club has already won three EuroCup titles.
4 UNICS Kazan
Don’t underestimate them. The team of coach Dimitris Priftis is a project that started last season and has already turned heads. With the additions of Pierria Henry and Errick McCollum in the backcourt, it’s obvious that this is going to be a special team.
5 Crvena Zvezda mts Belgrade
Longtime Olympiacos icon Milan Tomic joined Zvezda as the new head coach. During his playing days, Tomic was a true fighter on the court and that’s expected to be the mentality of his team. Add veteran Stratos Perperoglou, a complete roster, plus the loudest fans in the competition, and you have a contender.
6 Zenit St. Petersburg
A rising force from Russia which made headlines on both sides of the Atlantic with the addition of NBA veteran Brandon Jennings. The team of coach Vasily Karasev and his son, sharpshooter Sergey Karasev, is expected to be one of the highlights of the competition.
7 Tofas Bursa
The ambitious Turkish club lost Pierria Henry and Raymar Morgan but kept all the other members of the core that led them to the Turkish League finals. Coach Orhun Ene has a good team on his hands and Tofas simply can’t be overlooked.
8 ALBA Berlin
The traditional German powerhouse decided last year to trust veteran Spanish coach Aito Garcia Reneses. It was obviously a smart move. Reneses build a very good team, starring Payton Siva and Luke Sikma. Since the summer of 2016, Siva is playing for the Berliners and it’s a match made in heaven. The next step of this project will be making a statement in the EuroCup.
9 Cedevita Zagreb
The Croatian club made a choice quite similar to ALBA. By hiring Spaniard Sito Alonso, who has already coached Baskonia and Barcelona, they made an impression from the get-go. The rest was easy, as they created a strong roster that includes familiar names in Spain like Pablo Aguilar, Augusto Lima, and Vitor Benite. Don’t expect Cedevita to be your typical Balkan team this year.
10 AS Monaco
They are newcomers to the EuroCup, however, they were finalists in both the French League and the Basketball Champions League. This year they turned the page, signing new faces to the roster and hiring Saso Filipovski. The Slovenian coach is considered a hot commodity after his years in Turkey and he has the chance to prove why.
11 Dolomiti Energia Trento
If you consider yourself a “basketball connoisseur,” then you should love Trento. If you are not, then Maurizio Buscaglia is probably the best coach that you don’t know about. The Italian mastermind always finds a way to create teams that play tantalizing basketball, despite modest resources. He has already won the 7Days EuroCup Coach of the Year award in 2016 and his team will be more than competitive.
12 LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne
After building Monaco, coach Zvezdan Mitrovic left to restore Tony Parker’s club to its former glory. Lithuanian point guard Mantas Kalnietis and Croatian big man Miro Bilan are among the marquee names of this new project, which will be watched closely by everyone. After all, ASVEL is expected to compete via a wildcard in next season’s EuroLeague and the team wants to prove in the EuroCup that they deserve it.
13 FIAT Turin
On paper, this is by far the most interesting team of the EuroCup. It’s coached by none other than Hall of Famer Larry Brown. It has a roster that includes 36-year-old Carlos Delfino, who practically returned from retirement, former NBA player James McAdoo, whose uncle Bob McAdoo had a legendary presence in Italy. This team has amazing potential. Still, nobody can tell yet how the experiment will turn out.
14 Galatasaray Istanbul
The Turkish club has one of the most passionate fan bases in Europe. What’s more, coach Ertugrul Erdogan has a great backcourt duo in Tai Webster and Aaron Harrison. In the frontcourt, former Panathinaikos big man Zach Auguste has the physical tools to dominate the EuroCup competition, so this can be their year.
15 Morabanc Andorra
Morabanc Andorra is preparing for its second season in the EuroCup with the biggest addition being coach Ibon Navarro. The Spaniard is one of the up-and-coming names in European coaching and the perimeter of Dylan Ennis, Rafa Luz, and Michele Vitali can set any game on fire.