By Dimitris Minaretzis/ info@eurohoops.net
Anadolu Efes missing Shane Larkin has already come with the cost of losing the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague home opener versus Zenit Saint-Petersburg led by Xavi Pascual. Fantasy players aren’t heavily invested in the winner of the Turkish meeting between Efes and Fenerbahce Beko Thursday, but strictly on Vasilije Micic combining a strong outing with the fantasy bonus attached to every victory.
The Serbian guard is productive playing alongside Larkin. On most occasions, both players bring out the best from each other. In this case, Micic tabbed at 1.92 is a cheaper fantasy pick compared to Larkin and his 2.50. He lasted 34:31 in Round 1 with Rodrigue Beaubois also sidelined, posted 17 points and nine assists, only for a poor sum of 15 fantasy points. The three turnovers and 0/4 threes took their toll. We expect much more versus Fener.
Mike James a safe selection
Potentially opting to move away from Efes due to Larkin remaining out can lead to Mike James, priced at 2.12. The opener opposite to FC Barcelona saw the CSKA Moscow star held at 13 points and 7 PIR, and make six turnovers. We anticipate a much-improved outing against Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv Thursday. Back-to-back poor showings would surprise us given his quality.
Buy low
We struggled as the Eurohoops team in the opening round. We warned this Fantasy season would be challenging, especially the first rounds.
Panathinaikos OPAP’s Nemanja Nedovic did not pull through for us, but we still count on with Olympiacos coming up. The same goes for Shaquielle McKissic from the other side of the Greek derby. A similar thought process keeps Maccabi’s Ante Zizic part of our plans.
While extending our Eurohoops Official League invitation, we remind FC Bayern Munich’s Wade Baldwin being among our initial picks.
Kevin Pangos is another player in great shape and available at 1.08. The Zenit guard produced 27 fantasy points in the opening week and is gearing up to face his previous side, Barcelona, a special occasion for most players. Strong showing or not, he will likely be valued higher in the future, therefore we currently rate him a sound investment.
ALBA Berlin’s Simone Fontecchio and Maccabi’s Angelo Caloiaro are two more players attainable at a relatively low price and coming off strong opening round outings. In an additional note, the latter earned 31 minutes of playing time from Giannis Sfairopoulos.
More ideas can come out from studying our two Fantasy teams. We hope for more success on this trip.
