By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
Joe Arlauckas, former EuroLeague champ and current game announcer and podcast host; Juan Antonio Casanova, the former long-time EuroLeague writer for La Vanguardia in Spain; Djordje Matic of Serbian newspaper Novosti; Alex Madrid of Eurohoops Spain; and Frank Lawlor, Editorial Director of Euroleague Basketball, discuss certain topics of interest in EuroLeague’s “Experts Round Table” for Round 5.
Per EuroLeague.net:
1. Which team needs to win most in Round 5?
Joe Arlauckas
I think the obvious answer here is Khimki; they have had such a rough ride early on with losses to Olympiacos and Fenerbahce and then two heartbreaking one-point losses. Khimki plays Herbalife Gran Canaria at home and another loss here can destroy an already delicate situation.
Juan Antonio Casanova
KIROLBET Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz. They lost their last three games, the last one against an – in theory – inferior opponent in Bayern. There’s still plenty of time for everything, but the team has to react fast because its current 1-3 record does not match the quality of that roster, and Baskonia has been in the playoffs the last three seasons. The problem is even bigger because of the expectations they put into this season with the fact that the Final Four will be in Vitoria-Gasteiz next May.
Alex Madrid
Baskonia and Khimki, both of them. The Basque team is a clear contender for the Final Four and, after starting the season with a win in Kaunas, hasn’t been able to prove it. I find its record surprising considering the team’s good performances in the Spanish League. On the other hand, Khimki needs to get off the bottom of the standings. They have lost the last two games on the last possession but, in the end, both count as defeats.
Djordje Matic
When you look at the standings, you can’t not notice that Khimki and Buducnost both need a win. Nobody expected that Khimki could start 0-4. They have a good coach and a good team. And nobody expected that Buducnost would compete for the Final Four after such a long absence from the EuroLeague, but nobody expected it to be 0-4 against teams that are not main candidates for the trophy.
Frank Lawlor
There are a few candidates, but I’ll choose Maccabi FOX Tel Aviv. This team wants to turn the corner from staying in close games to winning them, and waiting beyond Round 5 in Barcelona might mean starting the season 1-5, since Real Madrid visits Tel Aviv next. With six of its first eight games away, Maccabi has excuses for being 1-3 now, but what it needs most is another win, and soon, to prevent a drop in confidence. A statement win on the road against another team seeking its way back to prominence, Barcelona, would be just what the doctor ordered.
2. Who is the best “under-the-radar” player you’ve seen?