Βy Lefteris Moutis/ moutis@eurohoops.net
Who are the players that are going to remember this year’s Turkish Airlines Euroleague season as the one that changed their careers? Eurohoops.net evaluates the players who have made this their breakout season in the Euroleague and explains why they realized this blast-off in their careers.
The players are divided into many categories depending on when they matured, improved and reached the highest playing level in their career. There are those that showed us early on what has come to pass, those who worked and showed their improvement every year, but there are also the so-called “late bloomers”, the ones who are slow to sprout but eventually impress us with their talent.
Eurohoops.net ranks those who made the biggest bang in their careers this season and compares this year with their previous ones in the Euroleague.
Of course, those who are playing in the Euroleague for the first time this year could not have been included in this list, nor those who are having a very good season but have had a similarly one or more in previous seasons.
Janis Strelnieks
Brose Baskets Bamberg
Guard
Height: 1.91 meters
Date of birth: 31/10/1989
Season in the Euroleague: 2nd
Strelnieks is one of the not-so-well-kept secrets in Bamberg‘s excellent course this season. The Latvian guard has impressed with his performances in a well-structured unit that has perfectly distributed roles between everyone. Strelnieks was always known for his amazing accuracy from long-distance. This season in the Euroleague, not only does he confirm this reputation – hitting 28 or 57 three-point shots, or 49%, to date – but he makes sure he does other things, too, like dishing 3.5 assists per game! With 12 points and a 13.4 performance index rating (PIR) per game, Strelnieks can definitely be proud for the lift-off he has taken this season.
Mindaugas Kuzminskas
Unicaja Malaga
Forward
Height: 2.05 meters
Date of birth: 19/10/1989
Season in the Euroleague: 6th
Kuzminskas’s path in the Euroleague has been constantly on the rise, but this year is really special for him. The Lithuanian forward’s numbers have soared to 13.5 points, 3.7 rebounds and 14.2 PIR in his third season in Unicaja, where he now has an undisputed role as team leader. Kuzminskas is a forward, but head coach Joan Plaza has structured Unicaja in such a way that the ball goes through his hands very often on offense so that he can decide whether to shoot, pass or create a lane in the opposing defense.