Βy Aris Barkas/ barkas@eurohoops.net
As 2015 comes to an end, 2016 will bring a new Euroleague format, a version of the competition that approaches the vision of a true European league and Kyle Hines is ready for the change.
The former Euroleague champion with Olympiacos and member of CSKA Moscow welcomes the change: “I think the new format for Euroleague is really positive for the future of European basketball and Euroleague Basketball. Generally, I think the new format makes the league more competitive. It makes every game that much more important. And from a fan’s standpoint, I think it’s also exciting because every week, every game, they’ll be excited to see big matchups versus some of their favorite teams and some of the historical, bigger clubs in Europe. Now, you don’t know for sure when your team will play versus other big clubs or in other big derbies, like Olympiacos and Panathinaikos know for sure when they’ll play in Greece or Real and Barcelona know for sure when they’ll play in Spain. So I think that competitive-wise and fan-wise I think it’s a positive for everybody in Europe and it makes the future brighter for basketball in general”.
What can be even better for Hines? As he said maybe in the future the final four format should be changed for the traditional american formula of the play offs: “The only thing I would add is that I would look forward in the future a next feature to have would probably bemore of a round-robin playoff series, a competitive playoff series, almost like NBA-style traditional playoff series. That will also make it a lot more exciting and competitive for all Euroleague teams, not only the fans and also the clubs. I think it’ll help generate a lot more interest in the games. Eventhough the Final Four is also the great event, I think for the fans and for the clubs, sometimes it puts some of them at a disadvantage. I think with a round-robin or a traditional playoff system it willmake the games more exciting for everybody, because everybody will get a chance to play home and away games. Also, like I said, for the fans, they’ll get the chance to see their home team and the chance to travel. As a fan, as a basketball fan, I would like to see Euroleague eventually move to that format”.