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By Nikos Varlas/ varlas@eurohoops.net
The Turkish Airlines Euroleague is the top basketball competition in Europe at the club level and it makes perfect sense that top scorers from every part of the world have played and are still playing in it! The style of game that is played, though, is such that it pushes even the most offensively charismatic players to adapt to their teams’ systems and to place the common interest above their ego, to absorb the unwritten rules of teamwork and to use their talent for the benefit of the clubs they represent.
This is the secret for players to become established scorers in top-class teams and to enjoy longevity in their careers and achievements. Eurohoops.net searched and classified the 10 players with the highest scoring average in Euroleague history. The criterion we set is designed to reward consistency and longevity; accordingly we selected only players who have competed in over 100 Euroleague games, which practically means that all of them have played at least five seasons – and three of them have exceeded 10 seasons on the Euroleague hardwoods.
The result is six Europeans, three Americans and one Argentinian on our list. They are all players who are charismatic at putting the ball through the hoop and have written their own history and five of them, aside from their individual achievements in scoring, have been crowned Euroleague champions!
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[lptitle title=”10. Juan Carlos Navarro“]
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Teams: FC Barcelona Lassa
POINT AVERAGE: 13.11
POINT TOTAL: 3723
GAME TOTAL: 284
He is the player with the most points in the history of the Euroleague! Now in his 15th season in the competition, Navarro has only played for his beloved boyhood club, FC Barcelona, with a break of only one season, when he played for Memphis in the NBA. A high-caliber scorer, gifted with a killer shot from the perimeter and his trademark move, known to basketball fans as La Bomba. An emblematic figure for European and Spanish basketball, Navarro is a two-time Euroleague champion (2003 and 2010). He has made 49.4% of his two-point shots, 38.1% of threes and 85.6% of his free throws. His personal best in was 32 points against Zalgiris Kaunas in February 2006.
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[lptitle title=”9. Bo McCalebb“]
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Teams: Partizan NIS Belgrade, Montepaschi Siena, Fenerbahce Istanbul, FC Bayern Munich
POINT AVERAGE: 13.11
POINT TOTAL: 1390
GAME TOTAL: 106
McCalebb has played for six Euroleague seasons with four different clubs. His most productive years were his first with Partizan, when he reached the 2010 Final Four, and his second with Siena, 2011-12. His trademark is his lightning-quick first step and his finishing at the basket. McCalebb is a classic case of a combo-guard who relies on speed and explosiveness. For his career he made 57.4% of two-point shots, 33.6% of threes and 79.8% from the free throw line. McCalebb set his career high in January 2012 as a Siena player with 25 points against Real Madrid.
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