Nikola Mirotic and Vasilije Micic have been the last two winners of the award for best player of the season
Discover in SPORT the players who are called to dominate this season in the Euroleague
The start of the Euroleague 22/23 is imminent. The fight to win the continental crown will once again offer high-level battles, in which the great stars of the competition will fight to lead their teams to high levels of the competition, but also to achieve individual distinctions, such as the award for best player of the season, who last year fell into the hands of the azulgrana Nikola Mirotic.
Barca’s ’33’ It will still take a while for him to debut a day in the Euroleague, but the list of great players that will be part of this Euroleague is practically endless. From the most usual dominators of the competition, to the newcomers, the European competition continues to progress season after season, and although it is a utopia to be able to live in Europe one day, a level similar to that of the NBA, there are more and more less complex so that American stars or European elite players bet on playing in the old continent.
THE LIST OF THE 10 PLAYERS TO FOLLOW IN THIS EUROLEAGUE
Vasilije Micic (Efes)
Although it may sound somewhat subjective, the Serbian point guard and main star of the Turkish champion has spent several seasons showing that He is the best player in the competition. His regularity is admirable, and to the great level that he exhibits throughout the season is added an acceleration with which he is usually decisive in transcendental matches. Without going any further, his was the triple with which ‘his’ Efes beat Olympiacos to qualify for a Euroleague final that they would end up winning. Micic’s repertoire is practically infinite, capable of annihilating his defender from the 3-point line or forcing a drive-in. In terms of scoring, he is insurance, but in terms of direction of the game he is also privileged. For the fans, it is a pleasure to be able to enjoy their class on the European courts while waiting for an NBA offer that seduces them. For rivals, on the other hand, a real nightmare.
Dzanan Musa (Real Madrid)
The Bosnian forward already knows what it is like to play in the top continental competition, but he has barely played 14 games between Cedevita and Efes, the club to which he returned after passing through the NBA. After exploding in Lugo leading Breogán, Madrid did not hesitate to seize his services, and now, with just 23 years, Musa is called to be one of the leaders of the group of Chus Mateo. The Balkan player has proven to be a brave player on court, in addition to being overflowing with talent, so his scoring is anticipated to be outstanding. Of course, at a defensive level, the great lack of him, will be the competition itself that reveals those qualities that still need improvement. He is still old enough to return to the NBA and try to succeed in the American league, but those options will be to become an unstoppable player in Europe.
Nico Laprovittola (FC Barcelona)
The Argentine magician faces his second season as a Barça player after being the big reveal last year, and wanting to be even more important in European competition. His 26 points in the fifth and transcendental match in the quarterfinal playoff against Bayern, or the seven triples that he endorsed Asvel in the regular phase match, are good proof that, with a little more regularity, Laprovittola can be among the best players in the competition. Jasikevicius has been able to find the best version of himself playing as ‘2’, in a position where he can better exploit his scoring side and not so much as the game director. His exterior accuracy and the ability to slip between the rivals to finish in the basket are his strong points in attack, and in defense, his level is also optimal.
Kevin Pangos (Olimpia Milano)
After triumphing at Zenit, flying to the NBA’s Cleveland Cavaliers to have few opportunities, and returning to Europe at the hands of CSKA, without making his debut with the Muscovites due to the conflict with Ukraine, Kevin Pangos regains stability again from the hand of an Olimpia Milano who has given him the keys to the team. Both Sergio Rodríguez and Malcolm Delaney are already history in the Italian team, and the Canadian point guard arrives to try to offer the same version that he gave in Saint Petersburg. Pangos does not have a privileged physique, something that makes him have a hard time in defense, but in attack he has already shown that he can be one of the best point guards in the competition. The combination of his exterior success but also from mid-range, and his ability to lead the team have finished convincing Ettore Messina that he is practically obliged to return his team to the Final Four. With Pangos, it should be easier.
Sasha Vezenkov (Olympiacos)
The big reveal of last season. The former Barça player shone with Olympiacos to return the Piraeus to a Final Four five years later, and his records of 13.7 points and 6 rebounds per game earned him the best forward of the season. The Bulgarian player has had the chance to make the leap to the NBA thanks to the Sacramento Kings, but finally he will return to be under the orders of Georgios Bartzokas. If Vezenkov finds consistency in his outside shot, he is a very difficult player to stop at both the ‘3’ and ‘4’ positions. His pace of play is also high, and his intelligence on the court makes him almost always find good shots. If Vezenkov repeats numbers, Olympiacos can dream of winning the Euroleague.
Nemanja Bjelica (Fenerbahce)
The Serbian power forward rushes through the last years of his career and returns to the Euroleague, nothing more and nothing less, than with the championship ring achieved with the Golden State Warriors last season. At 34 years old, Bjelica is willing to lead a Fenerbahçe that is reinventing itself with another handful of new faces and with Dimitris Itoudis on the bench. Due to his great physique, the Serbian can perform with guarantees in the ‘5’ position, and can be a great outside threat. His experience and leadership should help Fenerbahçe to regain its place in Europe, although against Bjelica, there are doubts about his physical condition that made it impossible for him to play last Eurobasket.
Elie Okobo (Monaco)
After completing a great season in the ranks of Asvel, in which he finished as one of the top scorers in the competition With an average of 14.5 points per game, Elie Okobo must become one of the bets this season to confirm the ambitious bet carried out this summer by Monaco to consolidate the project of the Monegasque principality. The French outsider, silver with his selection in the European past, is a compulsive scorer, also from the outside line, although somewhat inconsistent in his streaks. Last season he “disappeared” at some points during the season on the track, and Asvel missed him. If he manages to maintain that reliability, he can integrate, along with Mike James, one of the most powerful duos in the competition.
Lorenzo Brown (Maccabi)
We have heard his name a lot this summer for his participation with Spain in the Eurobasket. But “Lorenzo de Albacete” (named after Usman Garuba) leaves La Mancha to disembark in the umpteenth project of a Maccabi Tel-Aviv that sighs with past times. The American battery of the Israeli team will once again be numerous, and Brown has in his hands to be one of the leaders of the team from his mettle on the court, and also with a quality that he treasures, both in direction of the game and in scoring. His experience in competition (Estrella Roja, Fenerbahçe and Unics) will make his performance immediate, and if he manages to combine all Maccabi’s free verses, the Tel Aviv men can dream of something big.
Marius Grigonis (Panathinaikos)
The Lithuanian forward arrives at the team from the Greek capital after leaving Moscow, and at OAKA they hope that his performance will be similar to the one he marveled at in Kaunas. The former Manresa is no longer any promise and must take a step to confirmed as one of the best ‘3’ in the competition: his versatility in attack and his great defensive level are his main weapons, and he has a team designed at the height of, at least, fighting once again to finish in the top eight.
Chris Jones (Valencia Basketball)
As soon as the name of the point guard from Memphis began to be linked with the taronja team, the euphoria to incorporate one of the best point guards in the competition faded. Now that it’s a reality, Alex Mumbrú and his Valencia Basket They have a player who will play his third season in the Euroleague after having done so in the ranks of Maccabi and Asvel. His numbers last season were 13 points, 3.2 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game in Europe, with an outside shooting percentage of close to 40%. Valencia has a lot of competition to try to finish in the top eight, but if Chris Jones shows the best version of him, it is a more than real objective.