By Stefan Djordjevic/ info@eurohoops.net
The 2019-20 Basketball Champions League regular season is in the books and everything is ready for the draw which will decide the Round of 16 matchups.
While waiting for the playoffs, it’s time to recap what the season brought so far and that includes taking a look at the MVP race. This time around, Eurohoops picked four regular-season MVPs, one for each group.
Group A – Kyle Wiltjer
It was a race until the very end on who will take the first spot in Group A and Kyle Wiltjer pushed Turk Telekom to its rightful place.
The 27-year-old Canadian-American forward averaged 18.5 points on 53.9% shooting including 43.2% from deep, 6.6 rebounds, and 1.6 assists.
He played all 14 games in the regular season with his best performances coming against Filou Oostende on Gameday 5 (33 points, 10 boards, 1 block) and in the last game, against SIG Strasbourg (32 points, 8 boards, 1 assist).
? @kwiltj tallied 32PTS & 8REB, helping @TurkTelekom_SK beat SIG Strasbourg for their 11th W of the season! #BasketballCL pic.twitter.com/ooLKNT8y20
— Basketball Champions League (@BasketballCL) February 6, 2020
Group B – TaShawn Thomas
As part of Hapoel Bank Yahav Jerusalem’s Fantastic Four, TaShawn Thomas was instrumental in leading the Israeli squad to the first spot in Group B while keeping the perfect 7-0 record at home.
The 26-year-old American has been averaging league-high 21.8 PIR by posting 15.8 points, six boards, 2.1 assist, and 1.5 blocks per game. And all of that while shooting 74% from the field.
He logged 38 PIR against Burgos on Gameday 13 with 27 points (11-14 FG), six boards, four assists, four blocks, and one steal for his best outing yet.
? @TaeThomas35 is playing the best basketball of his professional career right now, here is your GameDay 13 MVP in action! #BasketballCL pic.twitter.com/MLRpNYSmRV
— Basketball Champions League (@BasketballCL) January 31, 2020
Group C – Giorgi Shermadini
Unlike the previous two choices, this time the honors go to the second-placed team in the group, Iberostar Tenerife.
It was a tough pick between Marcelinho Huertas and Giorgi Shermadini as they are both contributing on a high level for the Spanish squad. Shermadini gets the slight edge of playing all the games so far and showing he can get it done without Huertas’ brilliant playmaking.
The 30-year-old Georgian has been posting 14.9 points on 62.1% shooting, 5.8 boards, 1.9 assists and his best came against Mornar Bar in Week 9. He logged 31 PIR in only 18 minutes with 31 points (9-12 FG), eight boards, two steals, one assist, and one block.
Group D – David Holston
Last but not least, the JDA Dijon’s 167cm tall David Holston gets the spotlight in Group D.
Dijon finished second in its group and the 34-year-old American guard was instrumental in that effort. He averaged 11.1 points, 6.9 assists, 2.5 boards, and 1.8 steals in the regular season but his real value shows up in crunch time.
He best showed that early on in the season, when he single-handedly gave Dijon win over PAOK on Gameday 4 by draining three straight shots from deep in the last 90 seconds of the game.
Photo Credit: Basketball Champions League