This past week, the first stage of the major European competitions, the Euroleague, Eurocup and Eurochallenge group stages, came to a close. The final week of the Euroleague finished with a bang, with Unics Kazan failing to reach the top 16 despite having a high-budget roster featuring Keith Langford, after being upset by fellow Russian squad Nizhny Novgorod, who were playing without their star guard Taylor Rochestie. Although most of the European basketball community may be focusing on Europe’s top competitions, NBA
Mitnick: EuroHoops update: Goudelock sets 3PT record, Marinkovic’s hot shooting, Osman stands out for Efes
It was another exciting week of European basketball, with the Euroleague and Eurocup’s “regular season” stage hitting their halfway points, before both competitions shed some dead weight going into the next stage of the season. This week, we had an ex-Laker absolutely dominate as he continues his climb to the top of the European ranks, while a couple of young draft prospects make their first splashes in Euroleague waters, all below in this weeks EuroHoops update. [Read more…]
Euroleague Final Four Preview: Mayhem in Milan
After a fantastic season of Euroleague basketball, one weekend of mayhem in Milano will decide the champion. While the seven-game series format leading up to the Final Four has proven undeniably exciting (and profitable), there is a special charm to the Euroleague’s one-and-done Final Four format that gives off a very comparative feeling to the NCAA Final Four. For the first time since 2006, neither of the Greek powerhouses – Olympiacos and Panathinaikos – will be represented in the Final Four. Instead,
Mitnick: Spurs sitting on two Eurostash studs
The Spurs stars may be getting old, but their blueprint for winning remains as strong as ever. They were beaten at their own game by former Spurs executive, Sam Presti, this season, but they still have a few more tricks up their sleeve with Erazem Lorbek and Nando De Colo. Since that fortunate day in 1997 when the ping-pong balls magically awarded Tim Duncan to San Antonio, the Spurs have written the instruction manual on how a small market team can achieve
Mitnick: Update from Israel on Fran Vazquez (Magic) and Erazem Lorbek (Spurs)
TEL AVIV, Israel — Regal Barcelona put on a defensive clinic in Tel-Aviv against Maccabi in a round of 16 showdown between two of the powerhouse teams in the Euroleague. Barcelona’s stable of big men and heady guard play were too much for Maccabi to overcome, giving the Spanish squad a big 71-57 road victory. Barcelona’s frontcourt features two NBA prospects in Erazem Lorbek and Fran Vasquez, whose combination of size and skill was too much for Maccabi. With Sofoklis Schortsanitis