By Utkan Şahin/ info@eurohoops.net
You also have to perform at a certain level with consistency and step up to the plate to give everything you have on the court.
At Eurohoops, we decided to take a look at the greatest legends for each EuroLeague club. The first step of our research was to uncover the highest-scoring players in their beloved teams’ jerseys for all 16 teams.
Distinguished readers, here you have the 16 highest-scoring players this century in the EuroLeague from 16 great clubs.
ANADOLU EFES ISTANBUL – THOMAS HEURTEL (916 POINTS)
Seasons: 2014-2017
Games: 77
Stats: 11.8 points, 6.4 assists, 2.2 rebounds
Thomas Heurtel made a leap regarding his performance at the highest level in his 2014-15 season with Baskonia Vitoria Gasteiz, and this led other teams to notice him. That performance paved his way to Anadolu Efes Istanbul.
There were high expectations. Thanks to his unique vision, perfect passing and accuracy rate of 56.3% from beyond the arc, everyone admired him. The fact that he was working with one of the best coaches in Europe, Dusan Ivkovic, was particularly exciting to everybody.
Unfortunately, that excitement was not matched by the results in the end. Heurtel put up several amazing performances throughout three seasons in Istanbul, and was so talented that he could dish out 15 assists against Real Madrid. Still, he was not able to lead Efes to the long-awaited Final Four, falling one victory short of that goal last season.
Nonetheless, Heurtel scored 916 points and dished out 499 assists. The French guard leads both categories for Efes since 2000.
Runner-up: Antonio Granger – 900 points
AX ARMANI EXCHANGE OLIMPIA MILAN – ALESSANDRO GENTILE (825 POINTS)
Seasons: 2011-2017
Games: 71
Stats: 11.6 points, 2.2 assists, 2.5 rebounds
The relationship between Alessandro Gentile and AX Armani Exchange Olimpia Milan didn’t end as both had hoped, but they certainly had their shiny days together.
Gentile came of age in Benetton’s youth program, and in 2012 he became a player for Milan. He was an all-around sort of player who was physically superior to his opponents.
All these properties had everyone excited and, indeed, Gentile was a major factor in Milan reaching the EuroLeague playoffs for the first time in 2014, although an injury kept him and the club from their dream of playing that year’s Final Four at home.
Even though the story did not end the way he wanted, Gentile created his myth in Milan by becoming the highest-scoring player there in the EuroLeague this century.
Runner-up: Keith Langford – 609 points
BASKONIA VITORIA GASTEIZ – LUIS SCOLA (2,054 POINTS)
Seasons: 2000-2007
Games: 144
Stats: 14.3 points, 1.7 assists, 5.6 rebounds
What a player he was…Yes, he never got to win a title in the EuroLeague, but Luis Scola deserved it more than most.
Having been one of the stars that Baskonia brought from South America, Scola managed to become the most important player of the team in the seven seasons he played there. During this time, Baskonia competed with the powerhouses of both the EuroLeague and the Spanish League.
While he was on the court, the Argentinian was his team’s primary offensive power and he instilled fear in his opponents.
During his time there, Baskonia got themselves in the Final Four five times and reached the final on two of those occasions. Even though they never won it all, it didn’t hold Scola back from becoming a legend.
Runner-up: Mirza Teletovic – 1,438 points
BROSE BAMBERG – NIKOS ZISIS (596 POINTS)
Seasons: 2015-2018
Games: 75
Stats: 7.9 points, 3.7 assists, 1.7 rebounds
Nikos Zisis is one of the most experienced players in the history of the EuroLeague, with a total of 304 games to his name.
In the 2014-15 season, Zisis helped Fenerbahce Dogus Istanbul to reach the club’s first Final Four. The leadership he showed in half a season was amazing for the now-reigning champs.
The Greek guard did not score a lot, but he was there whenever his team needed him. Right after his last Final Four appearance, he made a move to Germany to play for Brose Bamberg.
In three seasons, he has become a legend there. And the recent game in which he scored 7 points against Crvena Zvezda mts Belgrade put him at the top of the scoring charts in the club’s history.
Runner-up: Darius Miller – 591 points
CRVENA ZVEZDA MTS BELGRADE – MARKO SIMONOVIC (627 POINTS)
Seasons: 2015-2017
Games: 67
Stats: 9.4 points, 0.5 assists, 2.8 rebounds
It is not easy at all to talk about one specific player who contributed over several seasons at Crvena Zvezda. Still, Marko Simonovic managed to do a lot in three seasons. He was a significant option in Zvezda’s offense thanks to his great shooting skills. The Serbian forward carried his team through many wins by becoming “hot” when he had to.
In his last season, Simonovic became one of the key players of his team’s run for the playoffs.
The things that Simonovic did in just 67 games made him the highest-scoring player in this club’s EuroLeague history.
Runner-up: Charles Jenkins – 534 points
CSKA MOSCOW – MILOS TEODOSIC (2,142 POINTS)
Seasons: 2011-2017
Games: 157
Stats: 13.6 points, 5.5 assists, 2.5 rebounds
As one of the greatest clubs in the EuroLeague, CSKA Moscow has allowed us to watch many great scorers play.
J.R. Holden, Trajan Langdon, Theodoros Papaloukas and Nando De Colo are among the first names that come to mind. However, the player who surpassed them on this list is entirely unique. We are talking about one of the best players in the EuroLeague in the last 17 years: Milos Teodosic.
Having left Olympiacos Piraeus in 2011, Teodosic moved to Moscow and, each season, he became an even greater player. He got as close as you could get to a title without winning in 2012, but he kept going until he lifted the EuroLeague trophy in 2016.
He formed a perfect backcourt duo along with De Colo, and is now one of only two players that have gone beyond the 2,000-point mark for CSKA. De Colo could well join the same club before this season is over, however, and even take over first place for CSKA.
Runner-up: J.R. Holden – 2,044 points
FC BARCELONA LASSA – JUAN CARLOS NAVARRO (4,105 POINTS)
Seasons: 2000-2018
Games: 335
Stats: 12.3 points, 2.5 assists, 1.6 rebounds
Juan Carlos Navarro makes it unfair for the rest of FC Barcelona Lassa’s legends. To outdo him, you have to be a great scorer and spend almost 20 seasons at this club. No, it is not possible to surpass him.
Starting his journey in 1997, Navarro has always been the most valuable player in Barcelona, except for a single season he spent in the NBA.
He has played with many great players, but the one to take responsibility whenever it was necessary was always Navarro.
In his time at the club, Barcelona has won two EuroLeague titles and the Spanish League eight times.
His performance makes Navarro the highest-scoring player not only for Barcelona but in the history of the EuroLeague. His lead over the next-best Barcelona player this century is almost 2,500 points, which means that Navarro’s mark will be around for a long time.
Runner-up: Ante Tomic – 1,607 points
FENERBAHCE DOGUS ISTANBUL – JAN VESELY (1,224 POINTS)
Seasons: 2014-2018
Games: 108
Stats: 11.2 points, 1.3 assists, 5.3 rebounds
Having given EuroLeague fans a glimpse of his great talent by helping Partizan reach the Final Four in 2010, Jan Vesely saved his best for his second stint in the competition, with Fenerbahce starting in 2014. Never in a Final Four before that, Fenerbahce has not missed one since Vesely’s return.
If when he first joined the team, fans were not sure what to expect, over four seasons he has made their expectations soar.
His great performance against Maccabi FOX Tel Aviv in the 2015 playoffs got him a leadership role and Fenerbahce into its first Final Four.
Two seasons later, Vesely was a key part in winning the first EuroLeague title by a Turkish team ever.
This season, Vesely has been at the heart of Fenerbahce’s efforts to defend that title, showing that there is much more to his game than spectacular dunks! And at 27, he has plenty of time and plenty of devotion from Fenerbahce fans to keep adding to his numbers.
Runner-up: Emir Preldzic – 1,086 points
KHIMKI MOSCOW REGION – ALEXEY SHVED (886 POINTS)
Seasons: 2015-2016 and 2017-2018
Games: 47
Stats: 18.8 points, 4.2 assists, 2.6 rebounds
The list continues with a player whose presence here wouldn’t surprise anyone: Alexey Shved.
Khimki Moscow Region only has five seasons of EuroLeague experience but even 10 seasons may not be enough to watch a scorer like Shved play.
He tries hard, he loves dominating the ball, and his skills are so unique that you can’t take your eyes off him.
Shved scored 20+ points in 21 out of the 47 games he played in two seasons, and he can score impossible-looking threes. It is truly difficult to find someone else like him.
This season, Shved is on pace to break the single-season EuroLeague record for points scored and his current 21.9-point average is the EuroLeague’s highest ever for more than 20 games.
Enough said.
Runner-up: Vitaly Fridzon – 451 points
MACCABI FOX TEL AVIV – NIKOLA VUJCIC (1,730 POINTS)
Seasons: 2001-2008
Games: 122
Stats: 14.1 points, 3.1 assists, 6.2 rebounds
Just like with CSKA, we have watched many greats play for Maccabi.
According to many fans, the title-winning squad of 2004 and 2005 is one of the best teams the EuroLeague has ever seen. As one of that team’s key players, Nikola Vujcic finds himself on this list.
Vujcic was ahead of his time among centers. He was a great passer, well-established rebounder and a big man with lots of weapons on offense.
As such, and in spite of the fact that many legends have played in this competition, it is no surprise that he is the only one to have registered a triple-double – and he did so twice!
Vujcic was a cornerstone for a great Maccabi team for seven years. He played a key part in two titles and managed to top Maccabi’s scoring charts.
Runner-up: Devin Smith – 1,485 points
OLYMPIACOS PIRAEUS – VASSILIS SPANOULIS (2,651 POINTS)
Season: 2010-2018
Games: 189
Stats: 13.9 points, 5.1 assists, 1.8 rebounds
Vassilis Spanoulis is one of the most important legends in both Greek and European basketball, and definitely a big-time leader. Through his unique talent, he can both score and create for his teammates and get them involved. These features have made him one of the best players in the EuroLeague for a long time.
He won his first EuroLeague title with Panathinaikos Superfoods Athens and then moved on to Olympiacos to become a legend there.
Without having won a EuroLeague title in the new century yet, Olympiacos built a team around Spanoulis and started accomplishing remarkable successes after 2010.
That system based on Spanoulis brought two trophies for Olympiacos with rare back-to-back EuroLeague crowns in 2012 and 2013. As long as he is on the court, Olympiacos will always be one of the favourites to win the title.
Runner-up: Georgios Printezis – 2,145 points
PANATHINAIKOS SUPERFOODS ATHENS – DIMITRIS DIAMANTIDIS (2,495 POINTS)
Seasons: 2004-2016
Games: 278
Stats: 9.0 points, 4.5 assists, 3.5 rebounds
Dimitris Diamantidis was never known for his scoring and he never treated scoring as the most important of all his abilities.
Throughout his career, the Greek legend involved his teammates in the game, tried to make his team perform better, and scored whenever needed.
Nonetheless, he was so special that he still managed to score the most points in Panathinaikos‘s rich history.
Starting his EuroLeague career in 2004, Diamantidis played in 278 games for the Greens. He won the title in 2007, 2009 and 2011, when he was also the EuroLeague MVP in 2011.
Diamantidis was a legendary player over every inch of the court – and that’s how he will always be remembered – but by leading the most successful team of the century in points, there is no denying he was an elite scorer, as well.
Runner-up: Mike Batiste – 2,219 points