MIES (Switzerland) – Joe Ragland just turned 33 last November, but shows no signs of slowing down. He led Hapoel Atsmon Holon to a place in the Round of 16, and earned his second MVP of the month this season in the Basketball Champions League.
Holon’s point god was already selected as MVP of October, he’s now added the MVP of January trophy to his already impressive collection. Since the MVP of the month award was introduced in 2020, Joe Ragland is the only man to win it twice in a single season.
“It is an honor to receive this award once again, my individual success is a direct reflection to our great coaching,” Ragland handed out another assist, this time off the court, in his statement to championsleague.basketball.
He started the month with a 12-point, 14-assist double-double to give Holon a 1-0 lead over Igokea m:tel in the Play-In Series. If the BIH champs had any ideas of tying the series at home, Ragland made them disappear in 36 minutes of work – he finished with 20 points, 13 assists and 4 steals.
The month ended with another big game for Ragland in Strasbourg. It took two overtimes for SIG Strasbourg to edge out Holon, but despite the defeat, the point guard had one of the best individual games in BCL history with 27 points, 8 rebounds and 8 assists, becoming only the second player to get 27+, 8+, 8+ in a game, after Norris Cole had done it with 33, 8 and 9 back in 2018.
“Credit to coach Guy Goodes for allowing me to be myself, while being an extension of him on the court, and also to my teammates and trainers who continue to help me be productive,” he said.
Ragland is now up to 10 double-doubles of points and assists, tied with Marcelinho Huertas for most all-time in the BCL and four double-doubles ahead of everybody else on that list.
However, knowing Joe’s personality, it’s clear that he would trade all the individual accolades for Holon to reach the Final Four once more.
“This is a group effort here in Holon! We will continue to fight together to achieve our goals,” he said with the first game in February on his mind – Holon are up against Hapoel Bank Yahav Jerusalem in an all-Israeli affair in the BCL on Wednesday.
It also marks the start of the next chapter for Ragland. His 2022 was a year to remember, but the way 2023 started, it seems like he could be on his way to even greater things. Still improving at 33, the way the greats do it.
Ragland will receive his second monthly award of the season in person, in front of Holon fans, right before the Wednesday game tip-off.
