By John Rammas/ irammas@eurohoops.net
All 18 EuroLeague teams were rated by Eurohoops based on status, dynamics, form and the significance of their results.
#18 ZALGIRIS KAUNAS
Previous Ranking: 14 (-4)
Record: 0-7
Home: 0-2
Away: 0-5
Offense-Defense: 66.3-79.9
Changing the head coach tends to pair up with improved showings. That was not the case with Zalgiris. Jure Zdovc replaced Martin Schiller, but the team from Kaunas is still without a win, alone at the bottom of the standings. Joffrey Lauvergne remaining sidelined for several more months does not help, while Emmanuel Mudiay got replaced with Taj Webster. Perhaps a positive sign is that six out of the next eight games are at home, beginning with ALBA Berlin’s visit on Friday.
#17 CRVENA ZVEZDA MTS BELGRADE
Previous Ranking: 16 (-1)
Record: 2-5
Home: 1-1
Away: 1-4
Offense-Defense: 66.9-70
Starting the season 2-1 is now a distant memory for Crvena Zvezda. The four losses in a row are the second-worst streak after winless Zalgiris. The team from Belgrade was on the wrong end of narrow defeats in two cases, while three out of the four games were on the road. Home fixtures against Panathinaikos OPAP Athens and LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne can launch a new start through the next two weeks, as long as the team manages to improve without the injured Aaron White.
#16 ALBA BERLIN
Previous Ranking: 16 (-)
Record: 2-5
Home: 1-3
Away: 1-2
Offense-Defense: 74.4-78.4
Regularly fun-to-watch ALBA has been recently downgraded by injuries and losses. Except for the wins against Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul and Crvena Zvezda mts Belgrade, the Berliners have struggled to be consistent. The bright spots are Luke Sikma, who is currently ranked third overall in PIR, and Oscar da Silva who seems to be anything but a rookie.
#15 BITCI BASKONIA VITORIA-GASTEIZ
Previous Ranking: 10 (-5)
Record: 3-4
Home: 2-1
Away: 1-3
Offense-Defense: 68-77.1
Three wins in a row against Panathinaikos OPAP Athens, ALBA Berlin and AS Monaco seemed to get the engines started for Baskonia, but suddenly things went backward in Russia against UNICS Kazan and Zenit St Petersburg. The point differential is second-to-last, edging only winless Zalgiris Kaunas. Rokas Giedraitis is back hoping to add offensively, while Alec Peters will be sidelined indefinitely after knee surgery.
#14 PANATHINAIKOS OPAP ATHENS
Previous Ranking: 14 (-)
Record: 2-5
Home: 2-1
Away: 0-4
Offense-Defense: 76.6-80.1
The top end of the schedule heavily featuring games on the road has taken away from the home-court advantage for Panathinaikos. Returning to OAKA was combined with a big win over Anadolu Efes Istanbul, but LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne visiting next proved such triumphs will not always be the case. The next chunk of fixtures is expected to be equally challenging for a team with plenty of new players, including the most recent newcomer, Yogi Ferrell.
#13 ANADOLU EFES ISTANBUL
Previous Ranking: 1 (-12)
Record: 2-5
Home: 2-1
Away: 0-4
Offense-Defense: 77.6-79.3
After very few offseason adjustments, Anadolu Efes is off to a poor start, the worst-ever for any defending champion in EuroLeague history. The team based in Istanbul went seven games to get on the win column for merely the second time. Well, Efes was far from firing on all cylinders at the beginning of the 2020-21 season, but that worked out. The injured players are steadily returning to action as James Anderson and Bryant Dunston await their turns.
#12 FENERBAHCE BEKO ISTANBUL
Previous Ranking: 4 (-8)
Record: 2-5
Home: 2-1
Away: 0-4
Offense-Defense: 72.3-69.4
Since destroying UNICS Kazan, Fenerbahce has suffered three consecutive losses by a margin of 2 points or less. Going the other way in those close games would generate a 5-2 record, instead of the actual 2-5. With CSKA Moscow on the road and AX Armani Exchange Milano at home coming up, the situation can turn from bad to worse, if the experienced and proven players don’t charge up soon. Danilo Barthel is still out.
#11 UNICS KAZAN
Previous Ranking: 12 (+1)
Record: 3-4
Home: 3-2
Away: 0-2
Offense-Defense: 68.4-72.3
The EuroLeague return for UNICS already features more than a fair share of ups and downs. Beating Bitci Baskonia Vitoria-Gasetiz and Real Madrid at home last week gained momentum for the team based in Kazan seemingly underachieving. Key games on the road versus LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne and Panathinaikos OPAP Athens follow on the schedule.
#10 ZENIT SAINT PETERSBURG
Previous Ranking: 7 (-3)
Record: 4-3
Home: 2-1
Away: 2-2
Offense-Defense: 70.7-70.6
It is among the most balanced teams early in 2021-22 whether playing at home or on the road. Zenit’s lopsided loss to Barcelona is the lone exception. The team based in Saint Petersburg won its first two games on the road and has done it all with point guard Shabazz Napier out indefinitely.
#9 CSKA MOSCOW
Previous Ranking: 2 (-7)
Record: 4-3
Home: 3-0
Away: 1-3
Offense-Defense: 80.7-81.7
CSKA carries players capable of being stars of any team, but injuries can still knock the team down. Nikola Milutinov was first on the injury list. Marius Grigonis followed. Tornike Shengelia was next after back-to-back MVP of the Week awards, but is closer to returning to action. The Muscovites edged their opponents for four wins before dropping a couple of games in France, versus LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne and AS Monaco last week. It’s not a good sign ahead of fixtures versus Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul, Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv and FC Barcelona over the next three weeks.
#8 FC BAYERN MUNICH
Previous Ranking: 9 (+1)
Record: 3-4
Home: 1-1
Away: 2-3
Offense-Defense: 74.4-74.3
After a 0-4 start, Bayern has reeled off three wins in a row with a couple of them on the road. Five out of the next seven games at home can add more to the win column. There are plenty of strong teams coming to Audi Dome, including Real Madrid visiting on Friday. Coach Andrea Trinchieri’s side, the only team to hand AX Armani Exchange Milan a loss so far, looks to be up to the challenge.
#7 AS MONACO
Previous Ranking: 13 (+6)
Record: 4-3
Home: 3-1
Away: 1-2
Offense-Defense: 80.4-77.4
It only took seven games for Monaco to go through many memorable experiences in the EuroLeague. The same goes for its opponents. The most recent highlight of the club’s debut season was the big win against CSKA coming back from a 22-point deficit. La Roca Team nearly took down another powerhouse, Barcelona, but was defeated in overtime. The largest losing margin of 12 points shows the readiness to put up a fight. Friday’s visit to Olympiacos Piraeus will be the next crucial game for Coach Mitrovic’s side.
#6 REAL MADRID
Previous Ranking: 4 (-2)
Record: 5-2
Home: 4-0
Away: 1-2
Offense-Defense: 76.4-70.9
Lacking stability on the road, as seen by the all-time-low 58 points scored in the recent visit to Kazan, Real Madrid will be tasked to prove otherwise when it takes on Bayern in Germany and ASVEL in France through the next three weeks. The players on the roster are undoubtedly capable of much more, especially when Nigel Williams-Goss, Anthony Randolph, and Trey Thompkins get cleared to return to action.
#5 LDLC ASVEL VILLEURBANNE
Previous Ranking: 16 (+11)
Record: 5-2
Home: 3-1
Away: 2-1
Offense-Defense: 77.9-74.3
Surprise-package ASVEL is coming off its first-ever win at Panathinaikos OPAP Athens. Other teams it has defeated include CSKA Moscow and Anadolu Efes Istanbul, while Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv and AX Armani Exchange Milan managed narrow wins over the French champs for the stains on its 5-2 record. It has become obvious that the team based in Villeurbanne means business as Elie Okobo leads all scorers with 20 points per game and Chris Jones ranks 10th with 14.6 points per game.
#4 FC BARCELONA
Previous Ranking: 2 (-2)
Record: 6-1
Home: 3-0
Away: 3-1
Offense-Defense: 81.1-73.1
Maccabi ending the undefeated streak was to be expected, especially with Barcelona being part of two out of the three games stretching into overtime through the first seven rounds. The wins over Olympiacos and Monaco were claimed after 5 extra minutes and Barca also beat Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul at the buzzer. Also to be expected, the team is getting into a better rhythm. The focus turns to Thursday’s game at AX Armani Exchange Milan, which will break the tie atop the standings. Alex Abrines remains sidelined.
#3 MACCABI PLAYTIKA TEL AVIV
Previous Ranking: 8 (+5)
Record: 5-2
Home: 4-1
Away: 1-1
Offense-Defense: 76.4-73.4
Edging FC Bayern Munich and the ensuing losses to Crvena Zvezda mts Belgrade and AX Armani Exchange Milan have since proven to be a premature sample of the 2021-22 edition of Maccabi. The preseason woes apparently took a toll on the team over the first three rounds. The Israeli champion has recovered in style with four wins in a row, marking the longest active streak in the league. James Nunnally, ninth in the league with 14.7 points per game, and Scottie Wilbekin, eighth with 14.9 points per game, have been the difference-makers.
#2 OLYMPIACOS PIRAEUS
Previous Ranking: 10 (+8)
Record: 5-2
Home: 5-0
Away: 0-2
Offense-Defense: 78-71.6
Remaining undefeated through five games at home, Olympiacos is enjoying a pleasant view from its current spot on the standings. The Reds were really close to securing wins on the road as well, but suffered narrow losses at FC Barcelona and CSKA Moscow. After Friday’s home fixture opposite Monaco, five of the next six games will be on the road putting the team to the test.