EuroLeague Rising Star candidates revealed

By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net

EuroLeague announced the candidates to win the 2017 Rising Star Trophy.

Here is the related press-release:

Luka Doncic, Real Madrid

At times with the game on the line, the player first-placed Real Madrid looks to is Luka Doncic. The 17-year-old sensation has already claimed a pair of MVP of the Round awards this season – the first of which made him the youngest player ever to capture that honor – and often seems to be on the verge of collecting the first triple-double in the competition in a decade. Doncic ranks among Madrid’s top five in scoring (8.5 ppg.), rebounds (4.2 rpg.), assists (4.0 apg.) and his true impact can be viewed through his performance index rating, where on a per-minute basis (29.0 prorated over 40 minutes), he is third in the entire league.

Ante Zizic, Darussafaka Dogus Istanbul

You won’t see the name Ante Zizic on any leader boards, but that’s because the Darussafaka Dogus Istanbul center only joined his team in December and debuted in Round 15. However, if his averages were included, Zizic would lead the league in offensive rebounds (3.3 per game), rank third overall in rebounding (7.6 rpg.), fourth in shooting percentage (67.3%) and seventh in blocks (1 bpg.). Moreover, since the 20 year-old cracked the starting lineup, he has averaged 12.8 points and 9 rebounds per game. His 18-rebound effort in Round 19 at Anadolu Efes Istanbul was the most in the league by any player this season.

Cedi Osman, Anadolu Efes Istanbul

Cedi Osman was the runner-up in the Rising Star voting last season as a part-time starter for Anadolu Efes Istanbul and this season at age 21 year has embraced a full-time starting role. Osman has been Efes’s most-accurate three-point shooter (42.9%), but also provides highlights with his athletic drives to the rim and fast break finishes. He has set career highs in many categories this season, including with a 22-point performance on the road against the league’s stingiest defense, Olympiacos Piraeus. For the season Osman is averaging 7.7 points, 2.7 rebounds and 0.9 assists per game.

Marko Guduric, Crvena Zvezda mts Belgrade

Sixth-man Marko Guduric of Crvena Zvezda mts Belgrade has been the source of instant offense for one of the league’s best defenses. After receiving the fourth-most votes in last season’s selection process for the Rising Star Trophy, Guduric started this season with confidence and set career-highs with 21 points, 5 assists and a performance index rating of 30 in a Round 3 victory over FC Barcelona Lassa. He is averaging 7.1 points, 2.1 rebounds and 1.9 assists in just 17 minutes per game while giving the second unit a go-to scorer, which has helped Zvezda emerge as a serious dark horse this season.

Aleksandar Vezenkov, FC Barcelona Lassa

In his second season with FC Barcelona Lassa, forward Aleksandar Vezenkov is putting together a season rarely seen in top flight basketball. He is third in the league in three-point accuracy (52.4%), eighth in two-point shooting (66.7%) and no player his height or taller is more accurate from the foul line (85.7%). That has translated into 7.3 points and 3.3 rebounds over 18 minutes per game for the 21-year-old. Every time he touches the ball, Vezenkov is a threat to score and his inside-outside game allows him to impact defenses in myriad ways.

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