By John Rammas/ irammas@eurohoops.net
We rated the 18 teams – 10 being the highest grade – in five different areas that can reveal the capacity of each team at the start of the season.
THE CRITERIA
Roster quality: What is evaluated here is the talent of all the players on the roster and depth at every position.
Chemistry: The big names do not guarantee a good team. Even though it’s very early and the teams are still trying to create their core, the chemistry that the players have between them is very important, as is the level of familiarity with their coach.
Status: The name and history of a team do not play basketball, but in crucial games sometimes the “weight” of the jersey can determine the outcome.
Transfer moves: In this category, we evaluate the moves that were made in the transfer market and estimate how they affected the team.
How far they will go: Our assessment regarding the course of each team. The teams that are big favorites to get to the Final Four and win the title are graded with a 9, the teams that aim for an appearance in Cologne and have good chances of making it are graded with an 8, the teams whose big goal is to reach the playoffs with a 7, the teams that are expected to have a decent run with a 6, and those that are out of the running for qualification early on are graded with a 5.
The evaluation regarding the course and dynamics of every team has, of course, been developed before any official games have begun and so it is expected to change throughout the season.
#18 LDLC ASEL VILLEURBANNE
Quality of the roster: 6
Chemistry: 6
Status: 5
Transfer moves: 6
How far they will go: 5
Total: 28
The wait is finally over for LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne. After nine years, ASVEL has returned to the top European club competition’s first French representative since Limoges and Strasbourg in 2016. However, as great as the enthusiasm is, there is as great a question regarding the skills of the squad that head coach Zvezdan Mitrovic is called to present. The talent is there, but not the experience. Only Edwin Jackson, Antoine Diot, Adreian Payne and David Lighty have played in the EuroLeague. The rest are rookies who will try to cover the experience gap through their individual skill sets.
#17 ALBA BERLIN
Quality of the roster: 6
Chemistry: 6
Status: 6
Transfer moves: 6
How far they will go: 5
Total: 29
The wait is over, too, for ALBA Berlin, back to the EuroLeague after a four-year absence. Things have changed since the 2014-15 season and the degree of difficulty has risen sharply, but Aito Garcia Reneses and his players promise to give everything they’ve got for the best possible representation. Even though he’s a rookie at the highest level in Europe, as are several of his teammates, Peyton Siva – injured to start the season – is expected to retain the leadership role he had last season, when ALBA reached the 7DAYS EuroCup Finals. Players experienced in the competition, like the EuroCup MVP Luke Sikma and Marcus Eriksson, will try to provide that something extra.
#16 ZENIT ST PETERSBURG
Quality of the roster: 7
Chemistry: 7
Status: 5
Transfer moves: 7
How far they will go: 5
Total: 31
Its first EuroLeague season is already historic, but Zenit St Petersburg splurged in the transfer market so as to make it even more historical. The acquisition of Gustavo Ayon caused a sensation, but head coach Joan Plaza has more options to bet on. His new acquisitions can be counted in double digits, and most of them bring years of EuroLeague experience, like Anton Ponkrashov and Alex Renfroe in the backcourt, and Will Thomas and Colton Iverson on the frontline. The roster seems to have no shortages at any position, so what remains to be seen is how quickly the players will gel so that we can see how much trouble they will be capable of causing.
#15 VALENCIA BASKET
Quality of the roster: 6
Chemistry: 7
Status: 6
Transfer moves: 6
How far they will go: 6
Total: 31
Last season’s 7DAYS EuroCup champions, Valencia Basket, are called to prove that they can hold their own at the highest level in Europe, too. The new format is not foreign to veterans like Fernando San Emeterio, Bojan Dubljevic and Sam Van Rossom, who were with the team in the 2017-18 season as well, but with 18 teams the level of difficulty is now expected to be higher. Newly acquired Brock Motum, with four EuroLeague seasons under his belt, will try to pass on some of his experience to help EuroLeague rookie coach Jaume Ponsarnau manage a roster that may be talented, but which perhaps has limited capabilities.
#14 FC BAYERN MUNICH
Quality of the roster: 6
Chemistry: 7
Status: 6
Transfer moves: 6
How far they will go: 6
Total: 31
FC Bayern Munich missed its goal of making the playoffs for the first time by a small margin last season. It has spent the summer making moves in order to meet that goal this time. It won’t be easy. They did see some important players depart, like Derrick Williams and Devin Booker, but they also welcomed others like Greg Monroe – who has nine seasons in the NBA – and Mathias Lessort. They make Bayern’s frontline its benchmark. At the same time, they added further solutions in the backcourt, as Stefan Jovic is no longer there, though Petteri Koponen and Nihad Dedovic, among others, will remain. All will be at the disposal of very experienced and capable head coach Dejan Radonjic, who has guided teams to the playoffs before.
#13 CRVENA ZVEZDA MTS BELGRADE
Quality of the roster: 7
Chemistry: 7
Status: 6
Transfer moves: 6
How far they will go: 6
Total: 32
Crvena Zvezda mts Belgrade ended its hiatus from the EuroLeague pretty quickly and has returned with the aim of once again showing the team’s long-time trademark: fighting spirit. In his second full season on any bench, both with Crvena Zvezda, Milan Tomic is banking on an experienced squad. The veterans are Stratos Perperoglou, with 10 EuroLeague seasons and two titles under his belt, and James Gist, with nine seasons behind him. There are also Charles Jenkins, with six, and team captain Branko Lazic, with five, among others. The performance of EuroLeague newcomer Billy Baron is awaited with interest, as he is expected to carry much of the burden on offense.
#12 OLYMPIACOS PIRAEUS
Quality of the roster: 7
Chemistry: 6
Status: 8
Transfer moves: 5
How far they will go: 6
Total: 32
It’s rare that Olympiacos Piraeus starts with the goal of qualifying for the playoffs more than anything else. And this is because there are plenty of new faces on the roster, though the presence of longer-serving ones like Vassilis Spanoulis, Georgios Printezis, Kostas Papanikolaou and Nikola Milutinov stands out. Head coach David Blatt, who continues on the bench for a second season, is called to get the best out of them and from recent arrivals with experience in the competition, like Mindaugas Kuzminskas, and others with less of it, like Brandon Paul and Augustine Rubit. It will be a learning curve for the likes of Kevin Punter, Wade Baldwin and Ethan Happ. All of them will have commitments only in the EuroLeague, since Olympiacos will use a different roster in the Greek League, an experiment that is awaited with interest.
#11 KIROLBET BASKONIA VITORIA-GASTEIZ
Quality of the roster: 7
Chemistry: 7
Status: 7
Transfer moves: 6
How far they will go: 6
Total: 33
KIROLBET Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz was not able to be part of the Final Four they hosted in Vitoria last season, but they return full of ambition, with the aim of qualifying to the playoffs for a fourth season in a row. They may have had to say goodbye to key players like Marcelinho Huertas, Darrun Hilliard, Johannes Voigtmann and Vincent Poirier, but they did everything in their power to fill the gaps, welcoming others such as Pierria Henry, Nikolas Stauskas, Michael Eric and Youssoupha Fall. What’s not in their power is bad luck, which visits them often, as was confirmed in the worst possible way with point guard Jayson Granger, who suffered a ruptured Achilles tendon in his left leg and is out for six months. He and team captain Tornike Shengelia were among the unluckiest ones in Baskonia last season, too, but rising guard Lucas Vildoza and swingman Patricio Garino got more experience with World Cup silver medals and will continue helping the cause.
#10 ZALGIRIS KAUNAS
Quality of the roster: 7
Chemistry: 7
Status: 7
Transfer moves: 7
How far they will go: 6
Total: 34
Zalgiris Kaunas didn’t manage to become the pleasant Final Four surprise for a second season in a row, so now Sarunas Jasikevicius and his players are called to prove they have what it takes to win back everyone’s highest esteem. This project looks anything but easy, since there were great changes to the roster and, like any new team, they will need time. Nevertheless, the captain Paulius Jankunas, Arturas Milaknis, Edgaras Ulanovas, Marius Grigonis and Thomas Walkup among others are there to help the new players get acclimated as quickly as possible. Zach LeDay and Nigel Hayes stand out on the roster and are expected to play leading roles in the frontline, while Lukas Lekavicius has returned after a two-year absence to strengthen the guard positions.
#9 KHIMKI MOSCOW REGION
Quality of the roster: 8
Chemistry: 6
Status: 6
Transfer moves: 9
How far they will go: 7
Total: 36
For Khimki Moscow Region, this season gets under way with perhaps the greatest expectations of any in their previous seven in the EuroLeague. There are more than 10 new faces on the roster as Khimki aims to make everyone forget their rather mediocre run last season. The key test will be how this team responds to any difficulties that will arise this season. Alexey Shved’s presence stands out, but now there are plenty more benchmark players. It’s not just all those who left the NBA to join the EuroLeague, like Jonas Jerebko, Timofey Mozgov and Dairis Bertans; it’s also those who excelled last season, like newcomers Stefan Jovic, Devin Booker and Jeremy Evans. With players like Anthony Gill and Janis Timma having stayed on, Rimas Kurtinaitis has some pretty valuable material to work with.
#8 PANATHINAIKOS OPAP ATHENS
Quality of the roster: 7
Chemistry: 8
Status: 8
Transfer moves: 7
How far they will go: 7
Total: 37
New season, same goal for Panathinaikos OPAP Athens: to return to the Final Four for the first time since 2012. Hoping that this will be their year, they went ahead and made some considerable changes, although the most important of them all did not really depend on them. That is because Rick Pitino chose not to continue on the bench, where Argyris Pedoulakis has returned for his third sting in the last seven years. Players with long-term presence are absent from the roster, like James Gist (2012-2019), but now there are others who can provide solutions for some key problems they had last season. Jimmer Fredette stands out in the backcourt, while another signing that caused a strong sensation is nine-year NBA veteran Wesley Johnson.
#7 AX ARMANI EXCHANGE MILAN
Quality of the roster: 8
Chemistry: 7
Status: 7
Transfer moves: 9
How far they will go: 8
Total: 39
AX Armani Exchange Milan is the only team that made a greater impression with the signature of their new coach than with those of its new players. And when Sergio Rodriguez and Luis Scola are among those newly acquired players, one can understand how big a statement that is. But how can it be otherwise when we’re talking about the return of Ettore Messina from the other side of the Atlantic after five years? Aside from “El Chacho” and Luis Scola, the four-time EuroLeague champion coach (1998, 2001, 2006, 2008) also asked for and will have under his instructions long-time NBA guard Shelvin Mack, as well as experienced Michael Roll and Aaron White. The hope is to create, together with those that stayed on – among them, the injured Nemanja Nedovic and Arturas Gudaitis – a squad that will be able to play a leading role until the end this time.
#6 MACCABI FOX TEL AVIV
Quality of the roster: 8
Chemistry: 8
Status: 7
Transfer moves: 8
How far they will go: 8
Total: 39
Five years have gone by since Maccabi FOX Tel Aviv won a EuroLeague trophy, and also since its last Final Four. How much longer can Maccabi last away from the spotlight? Ioannis Sfairopoulos and his players look determined to provide answers. Scottie Wilbekin and Tarik Black stand out among those that stayed on, while there are plenty of big names among the newly acquired, first and foremost Omri Casspi, who returns to his first pro team after 10 years in the NBA. The most important thing is that Maccabi is considerably strengthened in every position. Aside from the aforementioned, they also signed Othello Hunter, Nate Wolters, Quincy Acy and Tyler Dorsey.