By John Rammas/ irammas@eurohoops.net
Status, dynamics, form and the significance of results were the criteria for ranking the 16 teams.
Here’s the story so far, with 15 games left for the end of the regular season.
#16 DARUSSAFAKA TEKFEN ISTANBUL
Previous ranking: 16 (-)
Record: 2-13
At home: 2-6
Away: 0-7
Offense-Defense: 75.9-85.1
With 12 defeats in a row, Darussafaka Tekfen Istanbul were about to break every negative record in the competition, but fate owed them at least one win and gave it to them when everyone least expected it, against Olympiacos Piraeus (79-75). It’s just that one for the moment, so last place in the rankings is still theirs, as it has been since Round 7. With Toney Douglas having gotten straight to work – he’s now first in the team in points (12.8) and assists (5.2) – Darussafaka like to believe that more wins are not far off. Until then, it will have the EuroLeague’s second-worst offense (although the first with 12.5 offensive rebounds per game), the third-worst defense, and the worst assist-to-turnover ratio (1.3), among other things.
#15 BUDUCNOST VOLI PODGORICA
Previous ranking: 15 (-)
Record: 3-12
At home: 3-5
Away: 0-7
Offense-Defense: 72.5-84.3
Four consecutive defeats brought Buducnost VOLI Podgorica back to a harsh reality and made the wins over KIROLBET Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz (99-84, Round 7), CSKA Moscow (93-92, Round 9) and FC Barcelona Lassa (67-64, Round 11) look like a distant memory. Now, Aleksandar Dzikic has been replaced on the bench by Jasmin Repesa. Perhaps things would have been different if Buducnost had been able to hold out in the last game against FC Bayern Munich (93-88); the newly-acquired duo of Norris Cole and Goga Bitadze certainly tried. Maybe, too, if the team didn’t also own the worst offense and fourth-worst defense, but you can’t go very far with maybes.
#14 KHIMKI MOSCOW REGION
Previous ranking: 9 (-5)
Record: 5-10
At home: 4-4
Away: 1-6
Offense-Defense: 77.7-80.8
The absence since Round 9 of Alexey Shved, the competition leader in PIR with 25.9, has set Khimki back, so much so that it now sits in 14th place. Three consecutive away losses (72-65 to Bayern, 88-74 to CSKA, 79-63 to Maccabi) didn’t make this team’s mission any easier, while December ended with yet another defeat, at home this time (77-85 to Baskonia). The only win, a dramatic 85-84 decision over Darussafaka, was the least they could do, when their offense has dropped to 77.7 points, giving Khimki both the fourth-worst offense and defense in the EuroLeague. Khimki has also missed Anthony Gill for a few games, as indicated by a league-low 20.0 defensive rebounds per game.
#13 HERBALIFE GRAN CANARIA
Previous ranking: 14 (+1)
Record: 6-9
At home: 4-4
Away: 2-5
Offense-Defense: 81.2-87.9
Against prognostications, a coaching change and the release of Chris Evans, Herbalife Gran Canaria is no bit player in its first EuroLeague season, and might yet take on an important role. Although the end of 2018 may have found the islanders in 12th place, they’re just one win away from the top eight. Now, it will be interesting to see how much commotion they are able to cause, like they did at the beginning (86-94 over AX Armani Exchange Olimpia Milan) and end (73-66 over Zalgiris Kaunas) of December. In their last win, in fact, they kept Zalgiris very far from their league-worst average in defense. In offense, where they are seventh best, Gran Canaria never had a problem.
#12 MACCABI FOX TEL AVIV
Previous ranking: 13 (-1)
Record: 5-10
At home: 3-4
Away: 2-6
Offense-Defense: 78.0-80.1
Maccabi FOX Tel Aviv are 4-4 under the instructions of new head coach Ioannis Sfairopoulos, but still has a long way to go. Slowly, at least, the team’s fortunes seems to have started turning with some wins in the final seconds, as happened with Darussafaka (71-73) in Round 11 and Milan (94-92) in Round 15. Just as important, this improvement has come while Jeremy Pargo still injured and Tarik Black out in the last game. Maccabi is hoping that, with a full roster, it can finally improve on offense (fifth-worst) and thereby take better advantage of its fifth-best defense.
#11 PANATHINAIKOS OPAP ATHENS
Previous ranking: 10 (-1)
Record: 7-8
At home: 6-3
Away: 1-5
Offense-Defense: 79.5-80.1
Defeats and problematic performances, even in games that resulted in wins (75-67 over Darussafaka), succeeded one another for Panathinaikos OPAP Athens until the situation demanded a change. This came in the shape of a new coach (Rick Pitino in place of Xavi Pascual), which already at the first opportunity turned out to be beneficial (96-84 over CSKA). Eight defeats in the regular season and three in the previously impregnable Olympic Sports Center Athens were already too many. Nick Calathes (leading the competition in assists with 8.1 and second in steals with 1.7) is still Mr. Do-It-All in the effort to elevate the team’s offense (sixth worst) and defense (sixth worst, with the third-lowest number of defensive rebounds at 20.8). The lowest number of turnovers (10.6) and the highest in steals (7.8) in the competition should help produce more wins.
#10 AX ARMANI EXCHANGE OLIMPIA MILAN
Previous ranking: 7 (-3)
Record: 7-8
At home: 3-4
Away: 4-4
Offense-Defense: 85.9-85.7
December did not go well for Milan. Despite the return of Nemanja Nedovic, the team counted four defeats in five games. The win over Panathinaikos (83-86) was not enough to give Milan an edge over the other teams that aspire to make the playoffs, while its last defeat to Maccabi (94-92) kept it out of the top eight in the standings for the first time. Arturas Gudaitis, ranked fourth with an average PIR of 20.1, and Mike James (fifth with 18.6) continue to perform at very high levels, but now consistency is required by everyone else, too. Much more so when the gap between the offense (fourth best) and the defense (second worst) remains wide.
#9 ZALGIRIS KAUNAS
Previous ranking: 8 (-1)
Record: 7-8
At home: 3-3
Away: 4-5
Offense-Defense: 81.4-80.7
The absences of important players (Nate Wolters, Leo Westermann, Paulius Jankunas, Antanas Kavaliauskas) have not allowed Zalgiris to keep a consistent course, and its last defeat to Gran Canaria (73-66) is characteristic of the situation. Despite that, December was the team’s best month (3-2). A win over Olympiacos (83-75) stood out. Their offense (sixth best) could have been much better without a league-worst 13.3 turnovers, but the defense (ninth best) to a certain extent contains the damage. Brandon Davies (sixth in the competition in the PIR with 18.4) contributes to both.
#8 FC BAYERN MUNICH
Previous ranking: 12 (+4)
Record: 8-7
At home: 6-4
Away: 2-3
Offense-Defense: 80.5-80.8
With wins like those over Zalgiris (88-84) and Milan (78-80) and its only defeat coming at the hands of Real Madrid (72-82), Bayern will be able to look back at December as the team’s best month in the competition (4-1). In this way, the German champs have occupied place since Round 12 and continue to dream. And all of this without Devin Booker. Stepping up has been Derrick Williams (MVP of Round 12), who has gone up to 17th place in the competition in the PIR (14.6) as he leads his team in points (14.1) and rebounds (3.9). Sixth place in the standings, correspondent with the seventh-worst offense and defense, makes it clear that Bayern’s game needs further improvement.
#7 KIROLBET BASKONIA VITORIA-GASTEIZ
Previous ranking: 11 (+4)
Record: 7-8
At home: 3-3
Away: 4-5
Offense-Defense: 80.8-80.7
With wins like the one against CSKA (76-73) and three away wins (79-81 over Maccabi, 71-84 over Gran Canaria, 77-85 over Khimki Moscow Region), Baskonia more than made up for its single defeat in December (70-77 to Barcelona). Now the team has gone 5-3 under the instructions of head coach Velimir Perasovic and is hoping to reach the top eight before long. Their 12.9 turnovers (third worst) slow them down in offense (eighth best), but their defense (seventh worst) brings some balance for Tornike Shengelia (10th in the competition in the PIR), Vincent Poirier (15th respectively) and the rest. Shengelia being out for a month now with injury to start 2019 will be a challenge for the would-be Final Four hosts.
#6 ANADOLU EFES ISTANBUL
Previous ranking: 4 (-2)
Record: 9-6
At home: 5-2
Away: 4-4
Offense-Defense: 86.1-82.4
Efes suffered four defeats to other top eight teams in December, which were not compensated by its single win over Buducnost (106-68). Despite that, the team remained firmly in fourth place, where it has been since Round 8. The important detail is that now Efes‘s advantage over its pursuers has vanished and there is little room for more mistakes. Rodrigue Beaubois (first on the team in points with 14 per game), Vasilije Micic (second in points with 11.6, first in assists with 5.5), and Adrien Moerman (second in points with 11.5, first in rebounds with 6.3) will need more help. Meanwhile, the point differential between offense (third best) and defense (sixth best) has decreased from 6 to 3.7.
#5 FC BARCELONA LASSA
Previous ranking: 6 (+1)
Record: 8-7
At home: 4-2
Away: 4-5
Offense-Defense: 76.2-76.8
The last two wins, against Baskonia (70-77) and Anadolu Efes Istanbul (80-65), allowed Barcelona to end a negative streak of four consecutive losses and get back in the top eight, where it was at the start of December. The third-worst offense didn’t allow room for something better, no matter how hard the third-best defense tried. Despite this, the reawakening of Chris Singleton (11.5 points in the two consecutive wins) allows Barcelona to hope for even better days and to solidify its spot in the top eight, where it had been from Round 5 to 11.
#4 OLYMPIACOS PIRAEUS
Previous ranking: 5 (+1)
Record: 9-6
At home: 5-2
Away: 4-4
Offense-Defense: 80.6-77.0
Olympiacos started December in fifth place and finished there, but with the important detail that the Reds are now tied with Efes. The win in the game between them (88-81) played its part, but the last defeat to Darussafaka (79-75), who until then had 12 consecutive defeats, set them back a bit. Despite this, Nikola Milutinov (MVP of Round 13, league leader in rebounds with 7.7), Vassilis Spanoulis (MVP of Round 14) and the rest, have no complaints. They just have to close the gap between their offense (ninth best, but second worst in turnovers with 13.0) and defense (fourth best), in order to return move up into the top four spots, where they haven’t been since Round 3.
#3 CSKA MOSCOW
Previous ranking: 2 (-1)
Record: 11-4
At home: 6-0
Away: 5-4
Offense-Defense: 88.5-82.9
CSKA was unbeaten through Round 8, but now its winning percentage has dropped to 73.3%. The Megasport Arena remains one of just two impregnable EuroLeague home courts, together with Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul’s Ulker Sports and Event Hall, but the problem is away from it, since that’s where CSKA now counts three consecutive defeats, to Baskonia (76-73), Fenerbahce (79-75) and Panathinaikos (96-84). In all those defeats, Nando De Colo was not at his best (7.3 points against an overall average of 13.5 points), but the others found the way to make up for the gap in offense (best in the competition), but weren’t able to balance out the situation in defense (fifth best).