By Nikos Varlas/ varlas@eurohoops.net
On Thursday night in Athens, two of the most important teams in the history of the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague have an appointment! Panathinaikos Superfoods Athens and Maccabi FOX Tel Aviv have won six continental trophies each.
Those totals include the latter’s triumph over the former in the 2001 FIBA SuproLeague, a year after Panathinaikos had beaten Maccabi in the EuroLeague championship game. They also faced off in the 2011 EuroLeague title game, with Panathinaikos claiming its last continental trophy, and in the next season’s playoffs, a five-game classic won by the Greens.
On Thursday, Panathinaikos brings a 3-2 record and Maccabi a 2-3 mark to a clash that is very important for both sides. One of the most important matchups on the court is going to be that of Panathinaikos’s floor general, Nick Calathes, against the scoring machine that answers to the name of Andrew Goudelock! Both players have a great impact on their teams’ performances and the winner of this matchup along the perimeter is going to give their team a major boost and advantage in the race for the win!
Calathes is in his fifth season in the competition and, as was expected, it’s his most productive yet, since there is no Dimitris Diamantidis anymore and his role has become that of new team leader! Calathes does a lot of things on the court, he has already courted a triple-double twice. Everything suggests that sooner or later he’s going to become the second player in the EuroLeague after Nikola Vujcic to bring it off!
Besides, his averages this year indicate as much. He tallies 12.4 points, 7.6 assists, and 6.8 rebounds per game, along with 1.8 steals and a PIR of 18.8, which is the fifth-best so far in the league. A great defender and creator, very effective in transition situations, his only flaw is his shot from the perimeter. He has won the EuroLeague in 2011 with Panathinaikos, as well as the EuroCup with Lokomotiv Krasnodar in 2013, when he was that competition’s MVP!
Goudelock has started just his second season in the EuroLeague. In his first, wearing the colors of Fenerbahce Istanbul back in 2014-15, he made a lot of noise. He broke the single-game three-point record with 10 shots made, was chosen to the All-EuroLeague Second Team and helped Fenerbahce reach its first Final Four. His role is the same in Maccabi: top scorer! After five games he has tallied 18.4 points on average, together with 3.6 assists and 1.8 rebounds. His percentages are impressive. He shoots with 47.1% on three-point shooting, 60.6% on two-pointers and 94% from the free throw line.
He’s the third-best scorer in the competition, and at the same time he’s third with an average performance index rating of 18.6. The American guard is perhaps the most gifted scorer in the entire EuroLeague and threatens in every way. A very good shooter, he has the ability to do a lot of damage through drives, while he also has a good mid-range shot.
On a good day he can destroy any defense. His productiveness can be combined with a harmonious offensive function from the rest of Maccabi’s players and with balanced play between the perimeter and the the low post.
It’s worth watching one of the most famous European classics and these two players who represent completely different basketball styles, but who are both essential pillars on their teams! #GameOn!