By Cesare Milanti / info@eurohoops.net
Vlado Micov, Errick McCollum, CJ Jerrells, Stephane Lasme, Sinan Guler, Ergin Ataman. These are only some of the protagonists of Galatasaray‘s latest success in the European landscape.
It was a whole different world, not only basketball-wise. On the other side, SIG Strasbourg won Game 1 of the 2015-2016 EuroCup Finals with Mardy Collins, Kyle Weems, Rodrigue Beaubois, a young Frank Ntilikina, and Vincent Collet on the team’s bench.
Game 2, played in Istanbul, gave the red-and-yellow fans a reason to celebrate all night long. They were returning to the EuroLeague after one year away from the highest competition in the Old Continent.
It was the 27th of April, 2016. The previous month, another project to reinforce concurrency on the European scale was forged: the Basketball Champions League was born.
Galatasaray fans, players, coaches, and the whole club couldn’t imagine that this would have turned into their usual home for the fifth consecutive season now. After that success, they couldn’t reach the higher stages of both the EuroLeague and EuroCup, moving to the BCL in the 2020-21 season.
Next to Ergin Ataman on Galatasaray’s coaching staff, from 2012 to 2017, was sitting one of the most respected and faithful assistant coaches out there: Yakup Sekizkök. Nine years later, he’s still there.
Once again in the Play-Ins
Ending his chapter with Darussafaka among economic difficulties last season, the 45-year-old tactician – who also spent time with Anadolu Efes alongside Ergin Ataman – moved back to Galatasaray last year to replace Zvezdan Mitrovic at the beginning of February.
Despite starting the 2023-24 season with high hopes, bringing in high-level players like Jonah Radebaugh, Corey Walden, and Klemen Prepelic, the whole project quickly collapsed.
Sekizkök’s affection for the audience and strong ties with the red-and-yellow Turkish powerhouse brought back the illusion of finally making a strong presence in the Basketball Champions League this season. It was time to bring Galatasaray back to where it belonged.
After the first stop in the Regular Season, they had three straight Round of 16 participations, never reaching the Basketball Champions League Quarter-Finals and fighting for the Final Four.
We know we say it every October, but man this Galatasaray team looks impressive 🦁#BasketballCL I @GSBasketbolpic.twitter.com/E5v4rRa0Pf
— Basketball Champions League (@BasketballCL) October 1, 2024
Entering the 2024-25 Basketball Champions League Regular Season, the Lions were drawn into Group D, facing RASTA Vechta, Promitheas Patras, and the surprise ERA Nymburk. Having no significant issues against the first two, they were swept by the Czech champions in their encounters thus far.
A mental switch, however, happened in the Turkish Basketball Super League, where they are only trailing the two EuroLeague teams from the country at a 10-3 record.
Most importantly, since the beginning of November “defeat” hasn’t been a word present in Galatasaray’s vocabulary, except for the 80-70 defeat on the road to Nymburk. Between BCL and TBSL, they have now won 10 out of their latest 11 games, with an active eight-game winning streak.
The last of those occurred with the 84-63 home success against Saint-Quentin Basket-Ball, mortgaging a spot in Group J of the Round of 16 with a statement victory in Game 1 of the Play-Ins.
Well-oiled and long rotations
Coming to the real question: is this the year where Galatasaray can finally achieve the dream of coming back to fighting for a European title? Well, ambitions rely on a strong base.
First of all, the chemistry of this group seems unmatched. Bringing in the MVP of last year’s Bundesliga Otis Livingston and pairing him up with an experienced guard like Will Cummings look already solid on paper, but they have been showing even more than what was expected from them.
Adding a solid scorer like James Palmer Jr., a one-two punch under the rim in Angel Delgado and Ebuka Izundu, the solidness of Bugrahan Tuncer and Sadik Emir Kabaca, a newcomer like Michael Young, the returning Robert Blumbergs, and David Efianayi’s replacement to the mix… is interesting.
What makes this roster more dangerous than ever in their Basketball Champions League history is the collective effort: everybody can step up on a different night, depending on the matchup. Among the best 25 scorers in the competition, there’s not a single Galatasaray player. And that can be a strength.
Keep your eyes on Cummings the entire time, perfect relocation 🎯#BasketballCL I @GSBasketbol pic.twitter.com/r09EZxAyy8
— Basketball Champions League (@BasketballCL) January 7, 2025
Moreover, their defensive abilities are clear. According to Hack a Stat, they’re 4th in Defensive Rating (101.1) in the whole BCL, only behind Tenerife (97.8), Malaga (98.0), and Nymburk (98.7).
“I think that is very possible,” Otis Livingston told Eurohoops about finally making it to the BCL Final Four. It would be a long way to achieve such a goal, starting from sweeping Saint-Quentin Basket-Ball in Game 2 of the Play-Ins next week – just like it happened last year, against Derthona.
Up next, they would reach what’s probably the toughest group in the Round of 16, going up against reigning champions Unicaja Malaga, Rytas Vilnius, and Manisa or Chemnitz.
Pushed by thousands of fans both and home and pretty much everywhere they play, Galatasaray can always count on a sixth man on the floor. Only ghosts from the past are preventing them from finally fulfilling a long-awaited return to
PHOTO CREDIT: Basketball Champions League