By Stefan Acevski/ info@eurohoops.net
The 2025-26 BKT EuroCup regular season is slowly heading towards its conclusion. Six rounds remain until the end of the group stage, after which we will know the names of the four teams that have directly qualified for the quarterfinals, the eight that go to the playoffs, and the eight that will end their participation after 18 games.
So, after 12 games, it’s the right time to look at which players have stood out so far as the best and who can enter the race for the EuroCup MVP award this season.
At the very top is last year’s MVP Jared Harper, who is having another incredible season, but the American has serious competition this season. This is the list of the main candidates for the MVP award.
1. Jared Harper, Hapoel Midtown Jerusalem
Season stats: 18,6 points, 5,2 assists, 2,6 rebounds, PIR of 23,5 (1st)
Team Record: 10-2 (1st in Group A)
Jared Harper is currently leading the race for the MVP award for clear reasons – his team is first place in Group A, and he ranks first in performance index rating. The American is the true leader of Hapoel Midtown Jerusalem, a team that has clear aims of winning the BKT EuroCup.
Harper is the top scorer of his team, averaging 18.6 points per game, never scoring below 14 points in any contest, and he’s also the team’s leading assist provider. Harper is someone who dictates the pace, loves having the ball in his hands, and enjoys deciding tight games. All things that Hapoel needs.
The team from Jerusalem is on a nine-game winning streak and currently looks unstoppable. Last year’s MVP is one of the main reasons for that.
2. Fatts Russell, U-BT Cluj-Napoca
Season stats: 22,2 points, 6,5 assists, 3,8 rebounds, PIR of 22,2
Team Record: 7-5 (4th in group A)
Currently second on the list is Fatts Russell, the point guard for Romania’s U-BT Cluj-Napoca, who is having an excellent EuroCup season.
Russell had already introduced himself to Europe as an incredible scorer, performing wonders in the ABA League with Mornar Bar by averaging over 25 points per game, and now he’s delivering similar performances with Cluj. The point guard is excellent with the ball in his hands, capable of going on a scoring spree, and is often unstoppable for opposing defenses.
Together with Iverson Molinar, he dictates the rhythm of Cluj’s game, which has won its last two EuroCup matches and is determined to keep that run going. Russell was particularly impressive in the last game, scoring 30 points in a win against Slask and sharing the MVP award for the last round – together with DeVante’ Jones – with a 37 PIR. The key to his teams game lies in his hands, and it seems that few can stop Russell this season.
3. Malachi Flynn, Bahcesehir College Istanbul
Season stats: 18,2 points, 4,2 assists, 3,9 rebounds, PIR of 20,4
Team Record: 8-4 (3rd in group A)
We remain in Group A, and another candidate for the EuroCup MVP award comes from the Bahcesehir College Istanbul. It’s Malachi Flynn, a player who has taken Europe by storm this season.
Not many players have made such an impact in Europe immediately after arriving from the NBA, as Flynn has. A guard who can boast about being in the select group of players to have scored 50 points in an NBA game, this season he is a crucial part of Bahcesehir’s team, which aims to surpass last season’s result when they reached the EuroCup semifinals.
Flynn is an excellent scorer and a good athlete, with good shooting percentages from two-point range and quite solid from deep. Just like the two players above him on the list, he hasn’t had a single-digit game this season. He was especially outstanding two rounds ago when he ended the game against Umana Reyer Venice with 31 points. Flynn is the leader of this team, the ambitions are clear, and we will see if he can lead the Turkish team to the EuroCup title
4. Ante Zizic, Besiktas GAIN Istanbul
Season stats: 13,1 points, 7,5 rebounds, PIR of 22,2
Team Record: 8-4 (3rd in Group B)
The first name on this list from Group B is Ante Zizic, the leading center in the race for the MVP award. Zizic is one of the key pieces in Dusan Alimpijevic’s puzzle, and we all know that Besiktas GAIN Istanbul is aiming to win it all this season.
The Croatian center, with serious NBA and EuroLeague experience, has brought significant strength and stability to the Turkish team in the paint and is currently among the top 10 rebounders in the competition, averaging 7.5 rebounds per game.
Zizic’s qualities are well-known. He thrives in the paint, is shooting over 70% from inside the arc, a respectable 77% from the free-throw line, and is one of the most fouled players in the competition. Considering that he ranks fourth in performance index rating among all players, while having the least playing time compared to his rivals (less than 24 minutes per game), it’s clear why the Croatian has made it onto this list.
5. DeVante’ Jones, Dolomiti Energia Trento
Season Stats: 19 points, 4,2 rebounds, 3,6 assists, PIR of 22,4
Team Record: 7-5 (5th in Group B)
The top five on the list is completed by DeVante’ Jones, the star guard for Dolomiti Energia Trento, who is having a brilliant first season with the Italian team.
Trento is enjoying a strong campaign in this season’s BKT EuroCup, and one of the main reasons is Jones, the leader of this team both in terms of scoring and impact on the game. After a couple of weaker performances at the start of the season, DeVante’ found an incredible rhythm, scoring 19 or more points in six of the last seven competition games.
He is an excellent scorer, great at two-point shooting and from the free-throw line, and it helps that he loses just over one ball per game, which is great given his role in the team. He was outstanding in the last round, scoring 33 points against the London Lions, and shared the MVP award with Fatts Russell with a performance index of 37. Trento is on a four-game winning streak, aiming for a direct spot in the quarterfinals, and Jones is the main reason for that.
Honourable mentions: Mitch Creek, Kevin Yebo, Bryce Jones, Dusan Miletic, Aleksej Nikolic, Arnas Velicka