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By Lefteris Moutis/ moutis@eurohoops.net
“There is nothing more exciting in sports than the final minute of a basketball game,” Charles Barkley once said. But who are the players that can determine the fate of a game in the final seconds, when the difference is small? Eurohoops showcases the ten most decisive players in the Euroleague, the best clutch players, as they call them in the NBA, according to the numbers.
With the help of gigabasket.org, Eurohoops.net presents the ten best players based on ranking in this year’s season in the Euroleague in games where the point difference in the final five minutes was less than 5 points. In this list, for instance, there are no players from CSKA or Barcelona because these two teams in particular won most games easily throughout the season without having to go through the ordeal of a thriller.
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[lptitle title=”10. Sergio Rodriguez (Real Madrid)”]
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(5-4 wins, 28 points, 34 ranking)
His inclusion in this list is almost entirely due to the playoffs against Efes, where at the end of the second and third game he led Real in scoring and creation. The 29-yearold Spanish guard though, is without a doubt tops the list of the Madrilenos, competing in nine games that were decided at the last minute.
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[lptitle title=”9. Artsiom Parakhouski (Nizhny Novgorod)”]
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(6-7 wins, 17 points, 37 ranking)
The Belarusian forward was one of Nizhny’s most defining players in their amazing run this year. He has fewer points (17) compared to all the other players on this list, but he got 13 rebounds and had 70% accuracy (7/10) in two-point field goals and 75% (3/4) in free throws.
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[lptitle title=”8. Zoran Erceg (Galatasaray)”]
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(4-6 wins, 35 points, 37 ranking)
The Serbian forward of Galatasaray was the constant target of his teammates to generate offenses after the mass exodus of players in the second half of the season. However, Erceg essentially found himself in this position because of a magical game that he had in November, when Galatasaray defeated Crvena Zvezda 110-103 after two overtimes and Erceg in the end scoring 12 points (with a perfect scoring percentage) and a 19 ranking.
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[lptitle title=”7. Matt Lojeski (Olympiacos)”]
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(10-3 wins, 31 points, 38 ranking)
The American forward with 11/15 shots in the end of close games has 31 points in total and full numbers, proving that he’s not afraid to step up when things get tough. He was defining in the three first games of the season and in the win against Fenerbahce, and he took part in the finales of 13 games in total.
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[lptitle title=”6. Boban Marjanovic (Crvena Zvezda)”]
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(1-9 wins, 21 points, 40 ranking)
The Serbian center has the worst record in terms of percentages in wins compared to the rest, since, in the end, he celebrated only one win. However, Marjanovic is by a long way (almost double) from the second, at the top of the offensive rebound list having gotten 12 in total! He also has 15/17 free throws.
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