By John Askounis/ info@eurohoops.net
Fourteen Gamedays full of thrilling contests scattered around Europe generated plenty of breathtaking displays. Experienced players certainly left their mark and younger upstarts established themselves, but extending their runs into the playoffs was not the case for everyone. Eurohoops looks back at the 2019-20 Regular Season and gives a big round of applause for top players that did not make the Round of 16 cut.
Justin Dentmon
EB Pau-Lacq-Orthez did not make it through. Maybe the situation would have been different with Justin Dentmon part of the squad from the beginning of the Regular Season. The experienced and explosive point guard joined in November with the French team down 1-3. Four wins in the next ten matches were not enough.
Dentmon was more than impressive in his return to European club competitions. Led BCL with 20.9 points per outing, also dished out 3 assists and grabbed 2.7 rebounds per contest. “I would say I gave the team a little boost. We already had the heart and will to win,” he told Eurohoops following his victorious debut against Hapoel Bank Yahav Jerusalem that ended up first in Group B.
The Washington alumni poured his season-best 35 points opposite to RASTA Vechta and was nearly averaging 24 points per match up to Gameday 12. His scoring touch will be missed throughout the playoffs and the Final Four.
Juvonte Reddic
Falco Szombathely seemed set for the Round of 16 firmly on its Cinderella path, but failed to get the job done. Gasper Okorn’s side was 5-4, but only won one out of its last five games in competitive Group D. Juvonte Reddic led his team in points, rebounds and efficiency rating playing up to Gameday 13.
“Hungary is definitely a country I enjoy playing in,” he told Eurohoops early in the season, “I found the fun in playing basketball again last season here. The Hungarian league is very underrated but we are changing that.”
The VCU alumni produced a breakout season with 15.4 points and 5.5 rebounds per Regular Season appearance. Previously put up 15.8 points per contest over four qualifying games. Overall improved compared to this previous professional stints in Belgium, Greece and Italy, but is still among the best players not in the playoffs.
Adam Smith
PAOK was another victim of Group D. The Greek club was going through adversity including head coaching adjustments and player changes. However could have made it to the Round of 16 if some tight games fell its way. Surely, Adam Smith is not to blame for elimination.
The 27-year-old guard emerged as the Gameday 6 MVP behind his 31 points and season-high efficiency rating of 28 against Casademont Zaragoza. Both his 17.4 points and 11.7 efficiency rating per appearance were team-highs, but PAOK finished last in the group.
Smith’s had previous Champions League experience in the form of four games with Elan Chalon a couple of years ago. This time around added 14 more outings, most of them very solid, to prove he deserves a spot at the top level of European basketball.
An ambitious Anwil Wloclawek was set to improve following its 4-10 Champions League run in 2018-19. Players the likes of Tony Wroten, Chris Dowe, Shawn Jones and Rolands Freimanis were accompanied by additional starpower brought to the table by Ricky Ledo, but ended up 5-9 in Group B.
Ledo carried his experience of 28 NBA games and 13 EuroLeague appearances. Previously displayed his scoring and creative abilities in Italy and Turkey. Moving him to Poland was a massive boost for Anwil, resulted to 16.7 points, 5.2 rebounds, 4.7 assists and 1.4 steals per game, but simultaneously short of a playoffs berth.
Hapoel Bank Yahav Jerusalem, AEK, San Pablo Burgos and Teksut Bandirma advanced from Group B pushing aside the Polish outlet, RASTA Vechta, EB Pau-Lacq-Orthez and Telenet Giants Antwerp. It certainly wasn’t an easy task for Ledo and company.
Polski Cukier Torun offense
The other representative from Poland, Polski Cukier Torun was also eliminated. Faced an uphill battle from the start, only managed to score a couple of victories, both against SIG Strasbourg. Despite the poor W-L record ended up second in the Regular Season in terms of points scored as a team. Never finished a game under 70 points.
The mastermind behind this offensive outbreak was Chris Wright. The Georgetown alum not only led Torun with 18.6 points per Regular Season tilt, but also dished out 6.7 assists per game and averaged 18.6 efficiency rating. Ranked among top BCL players in all three columns despite playing for a 2-12 side.
The 2016 All-FIBA Europe Cup team member moved to Poland after four straight seasons in Italy, previously competed in Israel, France and Turkey as well, also has three NBA games with the Dallas Mavericks under his belt. Him orchestrating the offense was a joy to watch, but will not be featured for the rest of the 2019-20 edition of the Basketball Champions League.
Photo Credit: Basketball Champions League