By Lefteris Moutis/ moutis@eurohoops.net
Malcolm Delaney and Bradley Wanamaker are the two American guards with the highest ranking in the Euroleague. In the last game of the Top 16, the selections of players in fantasy are difficult since there are several teams with no motivation, but the durability and motivation of both of these players makes them “welcome”.
The fact that more than half of the teams in the Top 16 are indifferent in the last week, is expected to urge most coaches to be unpredictable with their rotation and the role they are going to give to each of their players.
Fenerbahce and Crvena Zvezda have qualified and already know their final standing, and Efes, Darussafaka, Malaga, Cedevita, and Zalgiris have been excluded mathematically as well, but it’s not impossible that, until they start their games, other teams will have already lost any interest mathematically as well.
Last week the Eurohoops.net team had one the best weeks of the season, having the 322nd best score of the week, now being at 670th place overall (with 3.707 points). In the Eurohoops league, EVICROCK has the lead with 4.168 points overall, with a clear advantage for the big prize.
The first players to depart from the team this week are the two leaders of Olympiacos. After the defeat by Khimki in Russia, Vassilis Spanoulis and Georgios Printezis (he’s injured too) aren’t likely to have any motivation for the game against CSKA. There’s no reason, then, to rely on them for a big score. On the other side, Papanikolaou is better at home, he’s inexpensive, and he can stay.
CSKA’s duo – Teodosic and De Colo – has been hot throughout the entire season, Hanga is in very good shape and Laboral are motivated. Bourousis was the best player of the month and he rightly remains at the top of the most popular centers. Finally, Ayon or Augustine are possible candidates but they’re both in such good condition that it’s justified to bet on both of them.
On the other side, Thomas Heurtel had an excellent March with 24,6 points on average, but Efes are now indifferent in terms of standings, Panathinaikos plays well enough in their defense along the perimeter and so he probably won’t have the chance to produce another big score. So, it’s preferable to select a player who is motivated.
In the point guard position, the “chosen one” is Bradley Wanamaker, who is Bamberg’s leader, the team that is still trying to qualify, and who has been in form recently. Also, after a two-week break, Malcolm Delaney has returned to his impressive performances for good, and, motivated to secure the home court advantage, he’s expected to once again lead Lokomotiv Kuban.
With very few available credits we are going to select a player who is not fazed by things like motivation and who will soon be among the best in the league. Cedevita’s Marko Arapovic costs only 32,5 credits and Zvezda’s big men are not known for their effectiveness in defense. The 20-year-old Croat has an average of 14,2 points and 14,2 evaluation points in the last four games and he can make the difference in the last game of the season as well.
Enjoy fantasy!
Eurohoops.net team
Point Guards
Milos Teodosic 78,1 credits (-0,2)
Bradley Wanamaker 58,2 credits
Shooting Guards/Small Forwards
Nando De Colo 104,7 credits (+2,5)
Malcolm Delaney 85,9 credits
Adam Hanga 57,1 credits (-0,8)
Kostas Papanikolaou 29 credits (+0,2)
Power Forwards/Centers
Ioannis Bourousis 96 credits (+2,7)
Gustavo Ayon 82,4 credits (-0,8)
James Augustine 71,3 credits (+2,4)
Marko Arapovic 32,5 credits