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By Aris Barkas/ info@eurohoops.net
The Euroleague season started, there’s a small sample of games after round 1, but the perception for most teams is the same we got during the summer. And like it or not, the summer signings are those who define the buzz that every team creates.
Eurohoops ranked the Top20 Euroleague summer moves, not taking into account not only the money spend, the fans’ reaction or the media interest, but also the impact and the role each player is expected to have. After all, all of them are now part of title contenders and the final verdict on their transfers can be reached only at the end of the season…
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[lptitle title=”20. Nikola Kalinic“]
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Signed with Fenerbahce Istanbul
His move from Crvena Zvezda Telekom Belgrade to Fenerbahce turned out to be a summer serial and the Turkish club had to buy out his contract in order to get him.
According to Crvena Zvezda, the buyout was one million euros, the biggest paid this summer in Europe. The player also got a generous raise compared to the money he made in Serbia. However, money doesn’t play basketball. Kalinic brings a tone of energy to every team, but at the same time he has a lot to prove.
Among all the players in this Top 20, the Serb forward in theory is the biggest risk taken by any team. With that being said, head coach Zeljko Obradovic always finds a way to make his players blossom.
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[lptitle title=”19. Marcus Slaughter“]
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Signed with Darussafaka Dogus Istanbul
He was one of the summer’s last moves and the most impressive addition by Darussafaka, which made quite a few. It’s not small feat to get a center from the reigning Euroleague champions who had a valid contract with the team.
The story of Slaughter is quite strange. Last year he was one step from leaving Madrid in order to sign with Maccabi FOX Tel Aviv, but in the end he stayed with the team and with time he found his role. In the last part of the season, he was an asset for the champs and that’s why we expect him to find his role with ease in his new team.
He is one more player of the recent undersized center trend which is a must for every Euroleague club and one of the best at what he does.
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[lptitle title=”18. Pero Antic “]
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Signed with Fenerbahce Istanbul
He was part of the back-to-back Euroleague-winning Olympiacos Piraeus teams and returns after two season in the NBA with a vengeance. This time he will play for Fenerbahce and the target is obvious. Despite being listed as a power forward, he can also play at center and that’s a plus in the current Fenerbahce roster.
His presence in any case guarantees rebounds despite his 33 years of age, while his gung-ho mentality and his habit of making big shots, especially threes, are a plus for his team. This unpredictable part of his game cost him his spot in Olympiacos, but if the timing is right, it can turn a team into a champion.
Also the fact that a Euroleague champion is now in the locker room of Fenerbahce can do no harm. On the contrary.
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[lptitle title=”17. Carlos Arroyo“]
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Signed with FC Barcelona Lassa
At 36 years of age, Carlos Arroyo has one more – and maybe his last – big chance to compete for the Euroleague title. Considering the fact that he has a much different role compared to the one we were used to seeing him hold at Galatasaray and Besiktas, nothing can be excluded.
This time Arroyo doesn’t have to do everything by himself; he just has to contribute some quality minutes and offensive punch from the bench. As he proved last season, despite his age, the experienced guard still has much of his old athletic ability. His basketball IQ can’t be denied and the motivation of playing for a team like Barcelona may prove to be enough.
And that’s good news also for Barcelona, which is trying to get back on top for the first time since 2010.
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[lptitle title=”16. Trey Thompkins“]
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Signed with Real Madrid
Real Madrid was collecting titles last season and at the same time preparing for next season. Thompkins, a key member of the last season’s Cinderella team, Nizhny Novgorod, was the power forward who was missing for the champs’ roster.
Thompkins is the kind of player who can be effective both in the post and on the perimeter. He is an efficient rebounder, he has a body that permits him to play in the paint, and he completes the already admirable roster of Madrid. We expect to see him play at the center position for some minutes. In theory he can be on the court together both with Felipe Reyes and Gustavo Ayon. And he is a better post presence compared to Andres Nocioni and Jonas Maciulis.
This seems to be a match made in heaven.
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[lptitle title=”15. Bobby Dixon“]
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Signed with Fenerbahce Istanbul
He took the Turkish league by storm last season and beat Fenerbahce in the semifinals. His reward for this season was a contract with the team he killed. The story of the 32-year-old Dixon makes you cheer for him. He is playing basketball in Europe almost for a decade and this is the first time he gets his big break.
The only question for him is quite simple. In Pinar Karsiyaka Izmir, he had the ball in his hands and the team was built around him. In Fenerbahce things are different and even the starting point guard position is up for grabs.
However, if he continues to play like he did last season, then he may turn out to be the key element missing from Fenerbahce in order to make the next step.
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[lptitle title=”14. Jayson Granger “]
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Signed with Anadolu Efes Istanbul
After an excellent season with Unicaja Malaga, with his name being mentioned in the transfer plans of Barcelona and Madrid, Granger leaves Spain for Istanbul and Dusan Ivkovic’s roster.
After two full seasons in the Euroleague, the 26-year-old Granger heads to Efes for his blast-off. His path looks a lot like Thomas Heurtel’s, who found himself in Turkey from Spain mid-way through last season. It only remains to be seen whether their games can complement one another if they’re on the court at the same time, or if they will share minutes and responsibilities.
It is indeed the Efes transfer that made the least noise compared to the two new players in the Turks’ frontline, but throughout the season he might prove to be more substantial.
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[lptitle title=”13. Patric Young “]
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Signed with Olympiacos Piraeus
Young was a clear target for Olympiacos as they were expecting that they might lose Bryant Dunston, and so they went after him in every way, especially after the issue of Kyle Hines staying in CSKA had been resolved.
Young is capable of evolving into, if not the best, then at least the most spectacular undersized center of the tournament. And he definitely fits in with the basketball that the Reds play. His first goal was the NBA and he was willing to play in the summer leagues in order to have that opportunity. Olympiacos convinced him that it would be better for him to sign a two-year contract in the Euroleague.
Half a season in Galatasaray was enough for Young to make his name in Europe and now he has the chance to follow in the steps of Hines and Dunston.
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[lptitle title=”12. Kostas Sloukas“]
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Signed with Fenerbahce Istanbul
The Greek guard was one of Olympiacos’s priorities. The fact, however, that negotiations with him had began from the summer of 2014 and we had to reach the summer of 2015 for the issue to be clarified, was a clear indication that the Reds had some serious chances of losing him, as they did.
Sloukas had a better financial offer in his hands from Fenerbahce, but at the same time Zeljko Obradovic’s approach played a huge part, as he assured him that he would have bigger responsibilities in Istanbul than he would if he had stayed in Piraeus.
Sloukas’s choice showed that he went for the difficult path and the risk of failure, exiting the Greek borders for the first time instead of waiting to pick up where Spanoulis left off in the not-so-near future. And as they say, fortune favors the brave…
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[lptitle title=”11. Jordan Farmar“]
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Signed with Maccabi FOX Tel Aviv
He returned to Europe from the NBA last year mid-way through the season and signed with the ambitious Darussafaka, who, by adding him, showed definitively that they mean business. Farmar, however, couldn’t make the difference to any impressive degree, especially in the playoffs.
This, however, in no way changes the facts regarding one of the most talented guards to have crossed the Atlantic to play in Europe in recent years. Actually, the fact that he returns to Maccabi, the team he played for the first time he left the NBA, is probably to his favor.
Farmar doesn’t feel like has anything to prove, he’s in a familiar environment and he has the full support of everyone. The prospects of him leading Maccabi to a high place are better than ever.
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[lptitle title=”10. Miroslav Raduljica“]
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Signed with Panathinaikos Athens
Panathinaikos upgraded their frontline with a move that on the one hand made the team spend more money than initially calculated, but on the other gave them a player they simply didn’t have.
The center position is crucial and Raduljica, having had a stint in the NBA and having found himself and his role in the national team of Serbia, is ready to offer the Greens an edge on offense inside the post, a significantly upgraded one compared to Esteban Batista.
On the other hand, for Raduljica as well, after his stint in China, Panathinaikos is a huge opportunity for him to enter the high club level of Europe for the first time. This collaboration can prove to be beneficial for both parties.
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[lptitle title=”9. Pau Ribas “]
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Signed with FC Barcelona Lassa
Relatively quietly, the Spanish guard has managed to be considered among the best of his country and considering the quality of the Iberian backcourt players, this is no small feat. It was known for a long time that Barcelona had locked onto him after his excellent season with Valencia and that Valencia, through the right of “tanteo,” would simply try to secure a compensation for his loss.
With his positive appearance in the EuroBasket, as well as the preseason “Supercopa” tournament, Ribas proved that he’s ready to take initiatives, while in his career so far he never had a problem operating as part of the whole. Even though this particular transfer move was not appreciated as much as it should have outside of Spain, Ribas is in no case a negligible addition.
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[lptitle title=”8. Bryant Dunston“]
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Signed with Anadolu Efes Istanbul
He was voted the best Euroleague defender and after two seasons at Olympiacos, he changed his status. The Reds didn’t intend to match his new demands and he took the road to Istanbul, where he is expected to create with Derrick Brown one of the most interesting frontline duos of the league.
Dunston is one of the best options any Euroleague contender could get. He is part of the undersized centers trend and that makes him a valuable asset. He is a great pick-and-roll finisher and the only question about him is how he will perform in a new environment after being part of a winning system for two seasons.
However the way he adopted in no time to Olympiacos two years ago can make Efes feel safe for its choice.
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[lptitle title=”7. Gigi Datome “]
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Signed with Fenerbahce Istanbul
With the Boston Celtics, where in half an NBA season he got as many chances as he had missed in his whole term in Detroit, the Italian forward showed that he’s an excellent shooter. This shooting ability earned him a spot on Fenerbahce, who, either by choice or by necessity, have made very important changes to their roster and are basically building the team from scratch.
Datome, then, returns to Europe in his best age, since he’s 27 years old, having shown what he’s capable of and being ready to play his best basketball. On the Celtics, he shot 47% on three-point field goals and even though he’s called upon to fill the gap left by last season’s Euroleague MVP Nemanja Bjelica, he has the way to do it, even though his style is quite different.
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[lptitle title=”6. Jeff Taylor “]
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Signed with Real Madrid
A peculiar case of a player whose only experience in Europe is with the national team of Sweden. Madrid went after him and managed to convince him to leave his career in the NBA for the first time, something that automatically makes him one of the most highly paid players in the Euroleague, even if the Spaniards never disclose the cost of their signings.
Considering his experience on the other side of the Atlantic and his athletic qualities, Taylor offers the champions something that they didn’t have before: a player who can become as good as Rudy Fernandez and can contribute in all areas of the game along the perimeter.
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[lptitle title=”5. Joel Freeland“]
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Signed with CSKA Moscow
Yet another return from the NBA, even though in this particular case, Freeland’s course was expected. The Englishman couldn’t stand out in Portland, the Blazers didn’t show any intention of keeping him and Europe was waiting for him.
He’s unfortunate since he starts this season with an injury, but he can have an essential role in CSKA’s game close to the basket, replacing Sasha Kaun. In fact, contrary to the Russian, Freeland is a bigger offensive threat, since he can play facing the basket and has a handsome mid-range shot.
Considering that CSKA is once again one of the big favorites for the title, the challenge for Freeland, who in his last year in Europe was carrying Unicaja Malaga on his shoulders, is huge.
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