By Stelios Toromonides/ info@eurohoops.net
Three days of the Final Four, one game, a distinction, an impressive performance, a lead, a play, a shot. Anything can make the difference and give a team the trophy.
In the 16 Final Fours that have come before, there have been seven different European champions. Panathinaikos celebrated four times (2002, 2007, 2009, 2011), CSKA Moscow (2006, 2008, 2016) and Maccabi Tel Aviv (2004, 2005, 2014) three times each, Olympiacos (2012, 2013) and Barcelona (2003, 2010) two times each, while Fenerbahce (2017) and Real Madrid (2015) have one each.
Some of these successes were accompanied by achievements that have made history. Besides, climbing to the top of Europe is a feat, and the “garnish” of this feat is made with all the records that were broken for it to take place.
10. Olympiacos – Vassilis Spanoulis (2013 Final Four)
Arena: O2 Arena (London)
Accomplishments: 1. Olympiacos: They won back-to-back EuroLeague trophies.
2. Vassilis Spanoulis: Third EuroLeague trophy and third Final Four MVP award in three appearances.
They were the defending European Champions, but once again they were the outsider of the Final Four against Barcelona, CSKA Moscow and Real Madrid. This particular role fits them perfectly, as was once again shown. Olympiacos defended their title by playing total basketball, with which they prevailed over the Army Team in the semifinal (69-52) and the Whites in the final (100-88).
At the same time, the leader of the Piraeus team, Vassilis Spanoulis, tied an amazing record held by Toni Kukoc from the three-year period between 1989 and 1991. In his third appearance in the Final Four, he won his third MVP award and his third EuroLeague trophy. To this he added the MVP of the season, to cap a legendary season.
9. Barcelona (2010 Final Four)
Arena: Bercy (Paris)
Accomplishment: The only team to win the EuroLeague with just two defeats throughout the entire season (20-2 record).
The definition of a flawless season! Xavi Pascual’s Barcelona started out the regular season as the favorites, maintained this reputation throughout the season and were crowned champions after what turned out to be a walkover in the Final Four in Paris.
So far, there hasn’t been another team in the modern era of the EuroLeague with only two defeats in a trophy-winning season. In the Final Four, the Blaugrana first subjugated CSKA Moscow with ease (64-54) and then Olympiacos (86-68).
It’s worth highlighting that it’s very rare, almost impossible, for a team that has been doing perfectly throughout the season to win the trophy in the end. We’ll only mention the examples of CSKA Moscow in the 2004-2005 and 2011-2012 seasons, as well as Real Madrid’s mishap three years later.
8. Maccabi Tel Aviv (2014 Final Four)
Arena: Mediolanum Forum (Milan)
Accomplishment: The first team to win a EuroLeague final in overtime.
At the start of that season, Maccabi Tel Aviv had been characterized as a limited team that couldn’t compete for another EuroLeague title after nine whole seasons (the last time they had won the trophy was in 2005).
Despite that, the Israelis managed to reach the Final Four under the instructions of David Blatt. There, quite a few… unexpected things happened so that they could win the trophy. Initially, they needed Victor Khryapa’s… contribution in order to get past CSKA Moscow in the Final Four.
The final was against the competition’s big favorites, Real Madrid. The Madrilenos had an impressive season all the way to the Final Four with a 24-4 record, they demolished Barcelona in the semifinal with a 100-62 win, but they couldn’t overcome Maccabi’s obstacle. The Israelis managed to take the game into overtime and win the EuroLeague, becoming the first team to be crowned champions in the extra five minutes of the title game.
7. Panathinaikos (2002 Final Four)
Arena: PalaMalaguti (Bologna)
Accomplishment: The only team to win a EuroLeague trophy on their opponent’s home court in the game that decided the title.
They were effective throughout that season, they were favored by the results of the Top 16, they advanced to the Final Four and wrote one of the most glorious pages in the history of the competition. How? By becoming the first team to win the EuroLeague on the host’s home court, against that very host in the final.
Zeljko Obradovic’s Panathinaikos got his third ring against the defending European champions, Ettore Messina’s Virtus. Manu Ginobili and Matjaz Smodis may have been excellent, but Dejan Bodiroga, Ibrahim Kutluay and Lazaros Papadopoulos got in the way and spoiled their opponents’ party.
6. Fenerbahce (2017 Final Four)
Arena: Sinan Erdem Dome (Istanbul)
Accomplishment: First Turkish team to win the EuroLeague
Turkish teams, and by extension, Fenerbahce, have spent hundreds of millions of euros in the last decade in order to taste the joy of reaching the top in Europe. In the end, they made it in May of 2017, when Zeljko Obradovic’s “armada,” led by Bogdan Bogdanovic and Ekpe Udoh, were in form at the right moment and demolished anyone who got in their way.
Of course, they had the support of their fans, since the Final Four took place in Istanbul. Apart from this, though, the image that Fenerbahce presented in the quarterfinals onwards can be described as a feast for the eyes.
5. Real Madrid (2015 Final Four)
Arena: Palacio de Deportes (Madrid)
Accomplishment: Real Madrid conquered the top of Europe after 20 years and two lost finals in a row.
After 20 whole years, Real Madrid managed to return to their throne. After three consecutive finals, Pablo Laso and his team were crowned European champions. In 2013 they lost to Olympiacos (100-88) and in 2014 to Maccabi Tel Aviv (98-86), but they just couldn’t lose for the third time in a row.
The Whites came up against Olympiacos, in a repeat of the game that had given the Reds the title two seasons earlier. This time, the outcome of the game was different as the Madrilenos, led by Jaycee Carroll and Andres Nocioni, reached a big win.