By Nikos Varlas/ varlas@eurohoops.net
Let’s get started for another season! A concept established in Europe by Eurohoops.net regarding the top league and which is, by nature, subjective! It can generate disagreements, objections, agreements, and, above all… interest!
In recent seasons, the choices are becoming even harder and more torturous to make! Because all the good players are packed in 16 teams and the top clubs in Europe have greater depth in their rosters in order to manage the new format of the EuroLeague and the levels of energy it requires. Which makes the ranking very difficult and leaves out of the list of the EuroLeague’s Top 100 players, athletes that could have easily been among our choices.
As we wrote last season, there are at least 50 players who could have been objective and subjective choices, especially between 100 and 80, and we ask for your understanding because, unfortunately, there is not enough room for everyone.
However, we promise that after the first 15 rounds, when we will have a substantial sample by the end of the first phase, we will rank the Top 100 players based on their performance up to that point, and so, any possible mistake will be rectified! You are familiar with our criteria from previous seasons. The only footnote is that, some players who are coming back from a long absence due to injury (for example, Zoran Dragic) were not ranked and that this will happen during the season. With the exception of Sergio Lull, who is in a category of his own!
Criteria
- The individual quality of the player IN COMBINATION with the role and playing time we anticipate he will get in his team.
- The strength of the club he plays for. The players of the teams that are in the Top 8 and that are title contenders every season always have an edge because they combine individual quality with their club’s high aspirations.
- What each player has achieved in his career in the EuroLeague combined with the prospects he has for the 2017-18 season.
#90 Zach Auguste (Panathinaikos)
Year of birth: 1993
Height: 2.08m
Center: C
Following a good college career in Notre Dame and his first season in Europe with Usak, we’ll get to see him at the top level! He has excellent potential. Very athletic, strong, he can contribute both in offense as well as in defense. He’s already a good pick-and-roll finisher and has plenty of room for improvement, especially in his shooting and his perception of the game.
#89 Artsiom Parakhouski (Maccabi Tel Aviv)
Year of Birth 1987
Height: 2.11m
Position: C
A classic, old school center with a variety of moves in the post and a flair for scoring close to the basket. A pretty good rebounder and blocker. He could have been higher on the list but these kinds of scoring big men who need balls in the paint usually don’t click in a harmonious way with Maccabi’s traditional style. We hope that, with the help of coach Neven Spahija, he will be the exception to this rule!
#88 Antoine Diot (Valencia)
Year of birth: 1989
Height: 1.93m
Position: PG
He returns to the EuroLeague after a three-year absence! An experienced and quality guard. He can organize and score with proficiency on a good day, he’s not afraid to take initiatives when his team needs him to. He’ll have the opportunity for a breakout season in an excellent team, because the truth is that, so far in his career, he hasn’t made a lot of noise in the league, something that was difficult for him to achieve in Le Mans or Strasbourg.
#87 Pierre Jackson (Maccabi Tel Aviv)
Year of Birth: 1991
Height: 1.80m
Position: PG
What he knows how to do well is to score! In his first venture in the EuroLeague with Fenerbahce he didn’t freeze, but in Maccabi he has a much bigger chance. Jackson can score in every way and he has a good pass in his repertoire as well. The big key, which will determine his progress, is whether he will adjust to the European style and, above all, whether he will be mentally ready in the crucial part of decision making on the court.
#86 Sasha Vezenkov (Barcelona)
Year of Birth: 1995
Height: 2.06m
Center: F
Last season, there wasn’t enough room for him on this list. This season, there is! His time has come to get a more substantial role in Barcelona and get established. He has a great gift in scoring and a rare ability to shoot from the perimeter. Now, he also has experience at the top level as well. It seems like he has improved his speed and his strength and he’s one of the favorites to have a breakout season and raise his level this year.
#85 Juan Carlos Navarro (Barcelona)
Year of Birth: 1980
Height: 1.92m
Position: SG
No need for introductions! The best scorer in the history of the EuroLeague, a huge player, a legend at club and international level. He’s now the oldest player in the competition, in recent seasons he has been missing several games due to injuries and last season he managed to play in 16 games with 15 minutes of playing time and 5.7 points on average, by far the lowest in his long career and his 16 seasons in the league!