By Antonis Stroggylakis/ info@eurohoops.net
With three games left before the completion of the EuroLeague Regular Season, the MVP picture is becoming clearer and clearer. So much so that we might as well be looking at an image of Mike James.
James is the undisputed MVP favorite, standing out as one of the very few players who can combine prolific numbers with a strong team record. No one can shake him from first place on the MVP Ladder.
Facu Campazzo just about retains his position on the list, mainly by the grace of Real Madrid’s record and his impact on the season overall; less so because of what he’s done over the last couple of weeks. Toko Shengelia, who appeared in all previous editions of the MVP Ladder, is out since Virtus Segafredo Bologna has fallen well below the top six and his averages are also diminishing.
There are three new faces this time, chosen by a combination of criteria that have to do with individual performances, team form and position in the standings.
1. Mike James – AS Monaco
Season Stats: 19.0 points (1st), 5.0 assists (tied for 8th), 4.4 rebounds, 1.2 steals for a 20.3 PIR (tied for 1st)
Team Record: 20–11 (tied for 2nd best)
Previous spot on the MVP Ladder: 1st
“I think it’s Mike James’s time to win the MVP.”
That’s what reigning EuroLeague MVP Sasha Vezenkov told Eurohoops recently, and who are we to disagree with him? It’s not like the former Olympiacos Piraeus forward doesn’t speak for most of us, anyway. Mike James is the MVP of the people – his game is acclaimed and lauded like none other this season.
Honestly, the only thing that stands between James and his long-awaited MVP award is whether AS Monaco will advance to the Final Four. There’s simply no other player around with such a vast, massively positive influence on his team getting winning results.
Right now, the Monegasques are in a pretty solid position to clinch home-court advantage in the playoffs and achieve their second straight qualification to the Final Four, but it’s all down to the way in which the veteran guard has been masterminding the team’s offense throughout the whole year. Especially over the last two months.
During the 8-0 streak that Monaco had from Round 22 to 29, James was firing on all cylinders with all-around superlative averages of 18.8 points, 4.9 assists and 4.3 rebounds. Among those wins was one at FC Barcelona that ensured Monaco swept the series and grabbed the potentially crucial tiebreaker.
In the meantime, James also became the new EuroLeague’s all-time scoring leader, but hey, this was bound to happen sooner or later this season.
2. Mathias Lessort – Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens
Season Stats: 13.9 points (14th), 6.1 rebounds (8th) for a 19.6 PIR (4th)
Team Record: 20–11 (tied for 2nd best)
Previous spot on the MVP Ladder: –
After Panathinaikos’s win over Barcelona, I asked Mathias Lessort which player on his team should be included in the latest edition of the MVP Ladder – because someone from the Greek side just had to own a spot here. He didn’t want to give any names, pointing out that his team has multiple star players.
There is, however, one Panathinaikos player who sticks out as the most steady, reliable and consistent contributor: Mathias Lessort himself. In his team’s five wins over the last six games, the French big man posted 17.6 points, 6.6 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.6 blocks to help the Greens get within reach of securing a precious top-four finish, which brings with it home-court advantage in the postseason. He often handles the opposition’s centers all by himself, in part due to Panathinaikos’s injury problems and head coach Ergin Ataman tightening the rotation, yet he is still able to maintain a highly physical and energetic style of play.
Lessort had his most outstanding night during the aforementioned period against a near-unbeatable team, as he delivered a career-high 26 points (making 12 of his 18 shots), along with 7 rebounds and 4 assists, to lead Panathinaikos past Real Madrid on the road. A rare loss for the defending champions back then and a resounding message by Lessort and his team.
3. Wade Baldwin – Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv
Season Stats: 17.5 points (3rd), 5.0 assists (tied for 8th), 2.8 rebounds for a 19.7 PIR (tied for 3rd)
Team Record: 18–13 (7th)
Previous spot on the MVP Ladder: –
Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv needed Wade Baldwin to become its Superman and prevent what would’ve been a huge upset by the visiting LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne. Indeed, it was a heroic showing by the former NBA guard, who delivered one of the top individual performances in this EuroLeague season with 30 points, 10 assists, 5 rebounds and several major plays down the stretch.
While Maccabi got what they needed in its bid to make the top six, Baldwin showcased once again the kind of leader he’s evolved into for the Yellows. Now 27, he’s overall playing the best basketball of his career while shooting the ball more accurately than ever before (47.2 percent on two-pointers, 40.9 percent on threes).
Apart from being Maccabi’s leading scorer and second-best assist man, Baldwin was the key to his squad’s recent five-game winning streak, averaging 18.2 points, 4.8 assists and 3.8 rebounds.
4. Facu Campazzo – Real Madrid
Season Stats: 11.3 points, 6.5 assists (tied for 2nd), 2.9 rebounds, 1.2 steals for a 15.9 PIR (14th)
Team Record: 25–6 (1st)
Previous spot on the MVP Ladder: 3rd
Although Facu Campazzo’s outings are nowhere near the impressive level he reached beforehand, let’s say halfway through the season, there’s still no Real Madrid player more deserving to be on the list than he is. The Argentine been the driving force behind the high quality of basketball that Los Blancos put on the court and he helped his team wrap up first place in the standings three rounds before the regular season is over.
After a period when its dominance was doubted ever so slightly with three losses in a row, Real bounced back by recording a statement win at Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade. Campazzo was one of the standouts (8 assists, 7 points), making a big impact with his playmaking as Real overpowered the hosts to leave with a well-earned victory.
5. Alec Peters – Olympiacos Piraeus
Season Stats: 14.3 points (tied for 11th), 5.1 rebounds (19th) for a 16.0 PIR (tied for 12th)
Team Record: 19–12 (tied for 3rd best)
Previous spot on the MVP Ladder: –
Olympiacos Piraeus has climbed the standings faster than the cocaine bear does in the eponymous movie, so it feels appropriate for the Reds to have a representative in the MVP Ladder for the first time this season. And who is more fitting than Alec Peters?
Peters is the leading bucket getter of Olympiacos and its second-best rebounder, just 0.7 boards behind injured center Nikola Milutinov. Since the very start of 2023-24, the American forward immediately took advantage of the extra opportunities, playing time and responsibilities he received by head coach Giorgos Bartzokas to regularly provide fluid scoring with phenomenal efficiency.
And that’s the keyword. Making the 50-40-90 group is swell, but Peters is actually flirting with establishing a 60–50–90 club that has a one-person membership; apart from Peters, no one else has achieved this feat. So far, he’s shooting 59.7 percent on two-pointers, 88.9 percent on free throws and a ridiculous 54.5 percent on 110 three-point attempts to provide a crucial offensive punch for an Olympiacos team that is stout and sturdy yet lacking the talent of previous years.