By Aris Barkas/ barkas@eurohoops.net
The surprising results were many this week in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague, but with all said and done, the trio of CSKA Moscow (7-0), Real Madrid (7-0) and Fenerbahce (6-1) lead the race in standings.
Behind them, AX Armani Exchange Olimpia Milan, Anadolu Efes, and FC Barcelona Lassa are still turning heads, however, the MVP of the week comes from the roster of the 2017 champions.
MVP
He finished the game against Olympiacos with 20 points, five rebounds and four assists leading Fenerbahce to the win. Against his former team, Sloukas proved once again that he is a bonified leader and helped his team get the win, despite the absence of Jan Vesely who stayed in Istanbul near his newborn son. The Greek guard is more mature than ever, more focused than ever and more than the brains of Fenerbahce.
BEST FIVE
- Rodrigue Beaubois: He scored 19 points, grabbed five rebounds and also made four blocks (!) while dishing three assists. Not bad at all in Anadolu Efes‘ win over Panathinaikos OPAP.
- Kostas Sloukas: He had, if not the best, by far the most valuable performance of this week.
- Edwin Jackson: His team had a record night and he was one of the main reasons for that. By the numbers, he just missed the MVP award of the week with a 31 PIR thanks to 24 points and 6/9 threes in Buducnost’s win over Baskonia.
- Alec Peters: In just 17 minutes of action, he was the second best scorer of CSKA Moscow on the road against Bayern Munich with 13 points on 3/4 threes and six rebounds. A real asset.
- Eulis Baez: The 36 years old Dominican is playing for Gran Canaria since 2012 and he finally got his big moment in the win over Maccabi Tel Aviv. He finished the game with 16 points, 10 rebounds, four assists and one steal for a 32 PIR, good enough for the official MVP award of the week.
Coach of the week: Svetislav Pesic
Barcelona got the overtime road win in Kaunas and Pesic prevailed over Sarunas Jasikevicius, who for many years was reportedly a target of the Catalans. What’s even more important however is that Barcelona has a solid 5-2 start and seems to be on the right track in order to get first to the playoffs and then who knows?
Last word: Rocky start for the Greeks
The EuroLeague has opened a new investigation for Dimitris Giannakopoulos, Panathinaikos accuses Olympiacos and Olympiacos filed a suit in Greek courts against the Greens. Meanwhile, Panathinaikos was defeated on the road by Anadolu Efes and has a 4-3 record, while Olympiacos is currently at 3-4.