By John Rammas/ irammas@eurohoops.net
We evaluated the players – 10 being the highest score – in five different areas that can demonstrate the competitive value of each of them so far this season.
Honorable mentions: Kevin Pangos (Zenit St Petersburg), Vladimir Lucic (FC Bayern Munich)
#5 JAN VESELY (previous rank: new entry)
Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul | Center | 24 April, 1990 | Czech Republic
12,5 pts | 5,3 reb | 2,3 ast | 0,8 stl | 0,6 blk | 1,3 tov | 28:17 min | 16,2 PIR | 18 G
Player’s performance: 8
Team’s course: 7
Player’s role: 9
Consistency: 8
Leadership: 7
Total: 39
“When the going gets tough, the tough get going” might be Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul’s new motto. It definitely is Jan Vesely’s, as he took action when Fenerbahc’s defeats were coming consecutively and by big margins and gave everything he had to make them a thing of the past. The MVP of the season in 2018-19 had already started to improve, but now he has stabilized his performance at a high level and the proof of that is that he scored in double digits in each game of the team’s ongoing six-win streak.
He has one of the best percentages in two-point field goals in the EuroLeague (62.9%), he’s 13th in rebounds and has climbed up to 12th in PIR.
#4 MARIUS GRIGONIS (previous rank: new entry)
Zalgiris Kaunas | Guard | 26 April, 1994 | Lithuania
14,5 pts | 2,3 reb | 3,1 ast | 0,6 stl | 0 blk | 2,2 tov | 27:01 min | 15,4 PIR | 21 G
Player’s performance: 8
Team’s course: 8
Player’s role: 8
Consistency: 8
Leadership: 8
Total: 40
Zalgiris Kaunas is the definition of a team, but even so, they still have players that stand out more than others. Marius Grigonis is the greatest proof of that, as he leads Zalgiris in points and is second-best in assists, but more so in the sense that he’s the player who will not hesitate to take the initiative in the decisive moments (game-winner vs. FC Bayern Munich). With the corresponding confidence, he has managed to achieve career-highs at every level.
He’s eighth in the EuroLeague in points and holds the all-time record in free throw accuracy (98.2%), while he also has the fifth-highest percentage in three-point shots (48.5%).
#3 WALTER TAVARES (previous rank: new entry)
Real Madrid | Center | 22 March, 1992 | Cabo Verde
12,3 pts | 7,8 reb | 0,8 ast | 0,9 stl | 1,9 blk | 1,6 tov | 26:18 min | 19,7 PIR | 21 G
Player’s performance: 9
Team’s course: 8
Player’s role: 9
Consistency: 8
Leadership: 7
Total: 41
Against the tradition that has seen Real Madrid produce MVPs in other positions on the court (Sergio Rodriguez in 2014, Sergio Llull in 2017, Luka Doncic in 2018) and going against the era of the undersized center, Walter Tavares makes the difference, all 220 centimeters of him. How could it be otherwise for one of the most impactful players on both ends of the court, who is unbeatable on offense and such a bulwark on defense?
He’s eighth in the EuroLeague in two-point field goals (70%), second in rebounds, and second in blocks, too. Those stats are fitting for a career-high season that has him in third place in PIR.
#2 NIKOLA MIROTIC (previous rank: 2nd)
FC Barcelona | Forward | 11 February, 1991 | Spain
16 pts | 6,7 reb | 1,3 ast | 1,3 stl | 0,4 blk | 1,6 tov | 25:19 min | 22,9 PIR | 14 G
Player’s performance: 8
Team’s course: 9
Player’s role: 9
Consistency: 8
Leadership: 9
Total: 43
His absence from four of the last five games may not have been reflected in his team’s results and FC Barcelona essentially returned to the top of the rankings (tie with CSKA Moscow), but Nikola Mirotic was definitely missed. He wasn’t able to show that in his return to action (a season-low 6 points), but that was the exception to the rule (he has scored in double digits in 12 of 14 games).
You won’t find anyone else with such high scores in almost every main statistical category, such as points (6th) – including the league’s sixth-best two-point accuracy (71.3%) – rebounds (3rd), and steals (10th). Despite having the ball in his hands a lot, he’s pretty low in turnovers (49th). The total has him in first place in PIR.
#1 MIKE JAMES (previous rank: 1st)
CSKA Moscow | Guard | 18 August, 1990 | USA
19,9 pts | 3,5 reb | 5,8 ast | 1 stl | 0,1 blk | 3 tov | 31:04 min | 20,6 PIR | 20 G
Player’s performance: 9
Team’s course: 9
Player’s role: 9
Consistency: 8
Leadership: 9
Total: 44
Three defeats in the last four games and still ranked first (in a tie with Barcelona)? Yes, but we’re talking about the CSKA team that had 12 consecutive wins right before that, and Mike James made sure to do his part for those wins. Besides, he’s the player who handles most offenses and, by extension, the one who determines the team’s results to a large extent. It’s no coincidence that these last defeats to TD Systems Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz, Barcelona and Fenerbahce came on nights when, though he did score in double digits, his points came with quite lower accuracy rates than usual (51.4% 2PT, 37.8% 3PT, 80.6% FT).
Other that that, he’s first in points in the EuroLeague and sixth in assists, while the first place in turnovers that he holds is the natural outcome of the many things he does or attempts to do. Added up, all this has him second in the PIR.