Looking down on the competition is normal for Walter Tavares, one of the tallest players in Turkish Airlines EuroLeague history. The 2.20-meter center, Euroleague Basketball’s choice for MVP of November, now has Real Madrid enjoying the view from the top, too.
At the end of October, Real was in the middle of nine teams who had won between four and six games. A month later, Real now shares first place at 10-2 with archrival FC Barcelona, both sitting two victories clear of the pack barely 10 days ahead of their first El Clásico of the season.
Tavares played a central role in the stellar November surge of Real. He posted performance index ratings of 13 or more in all five victories, ultimately leading Real for the month in total PIR (90), rebounds (35) and blocks (9).
He also scored the team’s second-most points (56) while hardly missing any shots all month long, finding the bottom of the basket in 31 of his 40 attempts – all in less than 25 minutes per game. With his near-perfect play during his team’s perfect month, Tavares stood heads above all EuroLeague players in November.
The MVP of the Month honor is now in its 17th season. Although statistics and performance index ratings are taken into consideration for the award, they alone do not determine who is honored.
The winner is named by Euroleague Basketball based on his and his team’s performance during the month in question. November marks Tavares’s second MVP of the Month honor. He previously won the award in October 2018.
