By John Rammas/ irammas@eurohoops.net
The 18 teams had until Wednesday, February 24 at 18:00 CET to strengthen themselves with players who hadn’t played in the EuroLeague yet this season (until January 6 for those who had played in the competition with another team) and more than a few of them seized the opportunity.
Eurohoops presents the additions that were made in 2021, fifteen in number by thirteen different teams.
In chronological order:
ALEX TYUS
Real Madrid | Center | 8 January 1988 | USA
2,8 pts | 2,5 reb | 0,6 ast | 0,4 stl | 0,5 blk | 0,6 tov | 11:20 min | 3,4 PIR | 8 G
The presence of Walter Tavares was already causing terror in the middle, but Real Madrid made sure to make their frontline even scarier with a player with a long tenure in the EuroLeague, Alex Tyus (Jan. 5). The 2014 Champion with Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv already counts eight games with the “Los Blancos” and, as time goes by, his role in the rotation grows more and more substantial.
LEO WESTERMANN
FC Barcelona | Guard | 24 July 1992 | France
3,4 pts | 1,6 reb | 1,9 ast | 0,4 stl | 0 blk | 1,5 tov | 12:47 min | 2,4 PIR | 16 G
FC Barcelona made it just in time before the deadline (Jan. 6) set for players who have played in the EuroLeague this season with another team and acquired Leo Westermann from Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul. Sarunas Jasikevicius knows him well from their years together in Zalgiris Kaunas (2016-17, 2018-19) and didn’t find it difficult to offer him a spot in the backcourt. He has already played in seven games as a Blaugrana (1.7 points, 1.4 assists).
DZANAN MUSA
Anadolu Efes Istanbul | Forward | 8 May 1999 | Bosnia and Herzegovina
0 pts | 0,7 reb | 0,3 ast | 0,3 stl | 0 blk | 0,3 tov | 2:46 min | 0 PIR | 3 G
Dzanan Musa returned to the EuroLeague (Jan. 13) five years after his last stint in the competition (Cedevita Zagreb 2015-16) in order to reinforce Anadolu Efes Istanbul’s effort to finish what they started last season. The team’s full roster hasn’t yet given him the role he would like in the rotation but he’ll definitely get more chances from Ergin Ataman.
TARIK BLACK
Zenit St Petersburg | Center | 22 November 1991 | USA
– pts | – reb | – ast | – stl | – blk | – tov | – min | – PIR | – G
When Zenit St Petersburg needed another option in their frontline they didn’t think twice about offering Tarik Black a contract (Jan. 14). He hasn’t made his debut yet for the Russian team but he’s definitely a player who can provide solutions in the key, as he showed in the previous two seasons with Maccabi (10.5 points, 5.2 rebounds in 37 games in the EuroLeague).
KYLE BRANDON O’QUINN
Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul | Center | 26 March 1990 | USA
2,7 pts | 3 reb | 1,3 ast | 0,3 stl | 0,3 blk | 0,3 tov | 7:28 min | 4,3 PIR | 3 G
Until 2021, Kyle Brandon O’Quinn had never played outside of the USA, but Fenerbahce convinced him (Jan. 20) that they’re the right team for his first experience away from home and neither of them has lost so far. He has played in three of the Turkish team’s 10 consecutive wins in the EuroLeague and no one knows where they will stop.
TJ CLINE
Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv | Forward | 22 July 1994 | USA
– pts | – reb | – ast | – stl | – blk | – tov | – min | – PIR | – G
TJ Cline is the new face in Maccabi’s frontline (Jan. 24). He still hasn’t made his debut in the EuroLeague but he has played in the Israeli Super League and it won’t be long before the moment comes.
ANTON PONKRASHOV
Khimki Moscow Region | Forward | 23 April 1986 | Russia
2 pts | 2 reb | 1 ast | 1 stl | 0 blk | 0 tov | 14:12 min | 0 PIR | 1 G
Khimki Moscow Region is the fifth team in Anton Ponkrashov’s career in the EuroLeague after CSKA Moscow (2006-07, 2009-10, 2011-13), Lokomotiv Kuban Krasnodar (2013-14), Unics Kazan (2016-17) and Zenit (2019-20). The Russian team turned to him at a difficult time in their history in the competition and he accepted the challenge (Feb. 3).
MICHAEL ERIC
CSKA Moscow | Center | 24 June 1988 | Nigeria
– pts | – reb | – ast | – stl | – blk | – tov | – min | – PIR | – G
Nikola Milutinov’s injury to his right shoulder and the fact that he’s going to miss the rest of the season forced CSKA to move fast and snatch Michael Eric from Turk Telekom Ankara (Feb. 10). The choice was not random as he’s a player with an experience of two seasons and 57 games in the EuroLeague (8.4 points, 3.9 rebounds in Darussafaka Istanbul in 2018-19 and Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz in 2019-20). The postponement of the game with Panathinaikos OPAP Athens in Moscow pushed back his reappearance in the competition.