Βy Eurohoops Team/ info@eurohoops.net
Like the EuroLeague, Eurohoops “awards” the best of each season and we continue with the 2017-18 EuroLeague Coach of the Year.
Read about the candidates and vote in Eurohoops’ poll
Dimitris Itoudis
CSKA Moscow | 08/09/1970 | Greece
In his fourth season in the competition as head coach, all of them with CSKA Moscow, the 48-year-old Greek led the Russian team to the top of the rankings in the regular season and, in fact, they’ve been there firmly since Round 6. With 24-6 (80%) this season, his career record went up to 100-124 and tied Xavi Pascual as the fastest one to reach a three-digit number of wins.
Zeljko Obradovic
Fenerbahce | 09/03/1960 | Serbia
There’s no needs for words when it comes to the competition’s multi-winning coach (nine titles with five different teams), who is guiding Fenerbahce on the road to defend the title. Under the 58-year-old Serb’s instructions, the Turkish team tallied a 21-9 (70%) record and finished in second place in the regular season.
Ioannis Sfairopoulos
Olympiacos | 21/03/1967 | Greece
In a season that’s been full of injuries, the 51-year-old Greek found the way to keep Olympiacos firmly within the Top 8 (Olympiacos, Real Madrid and Khimki are the only teams that managed this) and get them to finish in third place in the regular season. The 19-11 (63.3%) record bumped him up to a career record of 74-43 in the competition, always from the Reds’ bench.
Xavi Pascual
Panathinaikos | 09/09/1972 | Spain
The 46-year-old Spaniard saw Dimitris Itoudis tie his record for the fastest 100 wins in the EuroLeague, but he still holds the record of 11 consecutive appearances in the playoffs, nine of them with Barcelona (2007-16). With a 19-11 (63.3%) record, his team finished – at the last minute – in fourth place in the rankings in the regular season and will enter the postseason with a home court advantage.
Pablo Laso
Real Madrid | 13/10/1967 | Spain
Real Madrid has been plagued by injuries from the start of the season, but the 51-year-old Spaniard found the way to keep them firmly in the playoff positions (Real Madrid, Olympiacos and Khimki were the only teams that managed this) as they reach 7 out of 7 appearances in the playoffs together. Unfortunately for him and the Spanish team, the record of 19-11 (63.3%) in the regular season proved at the last moment to be insufficient to get them the home court advantage.
Sarunas Jasikevicius
Zalgiris | 05/03/1976 | Lithuania
Zalgiris was impressive in the regular season of the EuroLeague and a large share of the success definitely belongs to the 42-year-old Lithuanian. In just his fourth season as coach, all of them with the team from Kaunas (assistant coach until early 2016), he led them to sixth place in the rankings with a 18-12 (60%) record, which took his own career record up to 34-38.