Stars
American(s) who played particularly well.
Ricky Hickman, Maccabi Tel Aviv: Hickman’s improbable run to the top of European basketball world keeps rolling, and it gained a Hell of a lot of steam this week. His 30 points were not only a season high (it was previously 24 in a Top 16 game against Fenerbahce Ulker), but they came in the most important game of Maccabi’s season, a home affair against the team one game up on them, Khimki Moscow. With a loss, Maccabi would have fallen to a lonely sixth place in Group F in between the Istanbul teams—Fenerbahce and Besiktas—and the playoff hopefuls. The 80-79 win locks them into a three-way tie for fourth and puts them a mere game out of second place.
Also, 35 minutes of heavy, hard-hitting usage from Hickman (the man drew 11 fouls and shot 16 times) and only one turnover is remarkable, especially for a Euroleague rookie.
And what’s an extraordinary performance without a single image to define it?
As good as Jeremy Pargo’s hammer against Zalgiris (DaJuan Collins: ankles. Mirza Begic: face.) in 2010?
Nah. Not even close. But Hickman’s dunk wins in the value department, as his dunk tied a game that was…yeah, I already told you: extremely important.
Time will tell which dunk will have more legs in Maccabi lore, but if this year’s Tel Aviv club ends up scraping into the playoffs or beyond (Pargo’s Maccabi team lost to Panathanaikos in the finals), then Hickman’s stuff will surely be their season’s signature moment.
Unless he pulls something else even more spectacular these net few weeks, and drops it in the context of yet another 30-point night. Don’t sleep on Ricky.
Jamon Lucas, Anadolu Efes: While Jordan Farmar (deservedly) soaks up the adornment of Efes believers this week for his 29 points against Bamberg, Lucas deserves equal credit for productively existing within the Efes offense as Farmar did his thing. Lucas ran the pick and roll from all quadrants of the floor, his dancing partners ranging from Stanko Barac to Semih Erden to Dusko Savanovic. A few creative bounce passes into the post, some well-timed kicks to the shooters and Jamon ended up with a season-high 11 assists to go with eight points (he made his first four shots) and a stellar-as-always job defensively.
Now to the Americans who…uh…didn’t look so hot.
Nick, I have to ask, when you endlessly reap praise on Mirotic here, how come you never once ever mention when he has bad games? He has bad games all of the time and not even a mention of it.
Then when he has a good game the articles are singing his praises.
Thanks for reading as always, AP. And this was from my Mirotic piece that started our debate:
“…Mirotic had his worst game of the year this past week in a 76-70 loss to Cantu. He scored just two points on 1-of-5 shooting.”
I realize the man has his faults and definitely could work on consistency, but it doesn’t shake my belief that he’s the best young player in Europe. And honestly, the fact that his consistency even gets called to question as a 22-year-old shooting 60/30/90 in the Top 16 and averaging 12 and 6 for Europe’s deepest club is exceptional, is it not?
Who do you think–at his age or younger–projects as a better pro?
Thanks for the comment, AP.
At his age or younger project as a better “pro”? Several guys in Europe do…….
Like Hezonja, Abrines, Dubljevic of course there are plenty of others as well, but they are too young to get into the discussion. You overrate him. I just watched him get manhandled by an old washed up Kostas Tsartsaris for example. Maybe also Gentile and Karasev……..
Also don’t sleep on some guys that are “unheard of” because USA NBA hype machine has not put them into the hype machine (like they did with Mirotic) .
Adetokoubo brothers
Campazzo
Kavvadas
And the use of these NBA terms like “pro” is the problem here. You guys use terms like “pro” to refer to NBA players and imply that guys in Euroleague and other good European leagues are somehow not pros. Well, I am pretty sure they are pros also, considering they make enormous salaries.
So Mirotic is already a “pro” player. And as for Real Madrid, the “deepest team in Europe” has lost 4 straight home games. I think you are definitely overrating Mirotic and that whole team.
You are taking this idea of what Mirotic will be in the NBA, and claiming he is that in Euroleague. It’s two different things. It’s the same discussion about Rubio when he was in Euroleague. “He’s going to be a star in NBA, so he’s obviously the best player in Europe”.
Even though he pretty much sucked in Barca. Mirotic of course is a good player in Madrid, so it’s not the same level, but the point is that you can’t talk about a guy being best in Europe, just because you think he will be an NBA star.
Mirotic is a good player currently in Euroleague and nothing more than that. He might be an NBA star, but that should not somehow magically make him better now than he actually is.
If you really watch him play, he scores in two ways – free throws and wide open jump shots. That’s basically it. That’s his entire offense. And on defense, he’s barely even an average player.
Sure, he could be an NBA star (because no one plays any defense in NBA and I am sure he can put up numbers there), but in Euroleague, he’s not what you advertise him as.
Anyway, I like reading your articles Nick. Keep up the good work on helping to promote Euroleague in English speaking press. It needs it.
Kyle Hines has been officially measured at 199 cm or 6’6 ½” tall by Olympiacos. He’s not 6’5″ and that’s just an obvious error by Draftexpress.com – which has many, many such errors in their height listings of players.
Kyle Hines is 6’6″, not 6’5″, since players get listed in shoes these days.
Actually, just as an example on the same team of the BS height listings by Draftexpress – they claim Spanoulis at 6’3″ barefoot, when anyone can clearly see he’s more like 6’3″ in shoes.