PART 2
FC BAYERN MUNICH
Maodo LO / DeMarcus NELSON
Nihad DJEDOVIC / Petteri KOPONEN / Diego FLACCADORI
Vladimir LUCIC / Paul ZIPSER
Josh HUESTIS / Danilo BARTHEL
Greg MONROE / Mathias LESSORT / Leon RADOSEVIC
Coach – Dejan Radonjic
First team for part two of EuroLeague 2019/2020 teams presentation is Bayern Munich. Although the German powerhouse have changed their lineup a bit, it looks like it’s roughly the same qualitative category as last season. In the other words they’re not a favorite for the PO, but it wouldn’t be too much of a surprise to find them there. A serious problem is the position of the guard, where the first solution was to be a long-term injured Bray whom they bought after the Bundesliga playoffs. Bayern succeeded in rehabilitating Derrick Williams, and we’ll see if something like that can be accomplished by a once-serious NBA player, Greg Monroe, who hasn’t changed much in modern basketball.
The guard positions look modest, but let’s say there are plenty of fighters in the forward positions. We know the defensive game style by Dejan Radonjic. There will certainly be problems in the attack, especially if Monroe does not fit in, or Huestis proves to be an insufficiently good solution. EuroLeague mediocrity is another name for this team, but there are more. Tiny things decide, and the defense could be Bayern’s trump card.
FENERBAHCE BEKO ISTANBUL
Kostas SLOUKAS / Muhammad OR / Leo WESTERMANN
Nando DE COLO / Melih MAHMUTOGLU
Nikola KALINIC / Luigi DATOME / Egehan ARNA
Derrick WILLIAMS / Joffrey LAUVERGNE
Jan VESELY / Ahmet DUVERIOGLU
Coach – Zeljko Obradović
Fener hit the wall last season, primarily due to severe injuries. Even at the beginning of this season, the situation in this segment is not fabulous, in fact the situation is so bad that Stimac had to be hired as a transitional solution until Vesely and Lauvergne recover. The starting five is brutal on paper, and there is enough ammunition on the bench for any EL rival. De Colo is a surefire option to score points, and it would be no surprise that he and Sloukas develop serious chemistry.
There are perhaps more attractive options, but it’s hard to imagine a tougher and confident tandem. Fener knew he missed the choice of Americans, but this time they went for a proven name. Williams and Vesely under the basket like two rocks! The goal for this team is clear, in EuroLeague 2019/2020 F4 should not come into question with a team like this, unless injuries continue to take a toll over the long season.
KHIMKI MOSCOW REGION
Stefan JOVIC / Dairis BERTANS
Alexey SHVED / Chris KRAMER / Egor VIALTSEV
Janis TIMMA / Sergey KARASEV
Jonas JEREBKO / Jeremy EVANS / Anthony GILL
Timofey BRAIN / Devin BOOKER
Coach – Rimas Kurtinaitis
This team has 100 points in the hands. Truly a paper team that can handle everyone, even the biggest favorites. Khimki played solidly last season until the injury to Europe’s first gunslinger, Shved, and the rest of the team wasn’t strong enough for the offensive to end the season without him. Now they have players at each position to play hurricane pace for 40 minutes, and position 4 is brutally covered. However, there are too few characters here to work for the team, and much of the organizing burden will be on the chronically torn backs of Stefan Jovic. Maybe too much.
This will be a very interesting team to watch, especially if Shved focuses a little more on passing the ball, as his teammates are better than they were last season. They belong to the group of teams that will struggle to fight for PO, and they certainly belong to the quality. This could be a really dangerous crew. Until then, they go into that group with Armani, Maccabi and others who are serious about investing but no one should bet on them.
KIROLBET BASKONIA VITORIA-GASTEIZ
Pierria HENRY / Luca VILDOZA
Nick STAUSKAS / Matt JANNING
Shavon SHIELDS / Patricio GARINO
Tornike SHENGELIA / Achille POLONARA / Ajdin PENAVA
Michael ERIC / Youssoupha FALL / Ilimane DIOP
Coach – Velimir Perasovic
Baskonia, by default, make a solid and compact team that, again by standard, will play a significant role in the EuroLeague. They do not have the quality to go all the way, but they are regularly in the PO in addition to some more sophisticated and bombastic rivals. An interesting selection of new players, led by the best Eurocup player last season, the polyvalent Henry, as well as the NBA renegade Stauskas. We’ll see if Eric and the huge Fall can make up for Poirier’s departure to the US. Shengelia does not have the right replacement as Polonara is a modest player for this level.
We hope will see some progress from Penava that he did not play much last season. Shields and Garino are solid forwards that can play power forward as well. Granger seems to have been crossed off for the next 6 months, so it would not be unexpected for Baskonia to sign another player in his style for a short-term deal. Perasovic is a coach who has his name in Vitoria, so this team should be in PO combinations, although it does not seem so attractive.
LDLC ASVEL VILLEURBANNE
Jordan TAYLOR / Theo MALEDON
Edwin JACKSON / Antoine DIOT
Charles KAHUDI / David LIGHTY / Charles GALLIOU
Amine NOUA / Jean-Charles LIVIO
Adreian PAYNE / Ismael BAKO / Tonye JAKIRI
Coach – Zvezdan Mitrovic
President Tony Parker’s money and influence allowed the Lyon team to be Euroleague, but still not enough to make them anything more than an outsider. There are interesting veterans here who are looking for a return to the front pages of the magazine. Such as Jackson, Diet or Payne, but most attention will be focused on developing the talented Maledon and Nouae. The team is made for run&gun type of basketball, and they should not lag behind anyone athletically.
However, there is no player here who will take the ball when it breaks and decide the game. Nothing indicates that he will be a more successful Euroleague than some previous French representatives, but they are not an understatement because it seems that the team has a head, a tail and a concept. Therefore In a competition like this, it’s really hard to predict more than 7-8 wins for an Asvel team.
MACCABI FOX TEL AVIV
Scottie WILBEKIN / Nate WOLTERS / John DIBARTOLOMEO
Tyler DORSEY / Elijah BRYANT
Omri CASSPI / Yovel ZOOSMAN
Quincy ACY / Danny AUDIO / Jake COHEN
Tariq BLACK / Othello HUNTER
Coach – Ioannis Sfairopoulos
Maccabi now already has a serious continuity of disappointment in EuroLeague. The team has been refreshed by a handful of new Americans. Strength and athleticism are expected from Acy and Hunter. Dorsey and Wolters should primarily contribute offensively, and there is Elijah Bryant who has had a good season at Hapolel Eliat. After a long time, Maccabi has an Israeli major player, and it was realistic for Casspi to return to Tel Aviv. There is even greater hope for the very talented Avdija.
He should come in a few minutes as he should be one of the leaders of the club in the years to come. Head coach Sfairopoulos has solidly led the team he took in mid-season after a disastrous start under Spahia. Maccabi has traditionally been ranked among the teams like Armani and Khimki, which are attractive on paper but always lack something on the floor. Because they will no longer depend so much on Wilbeck’s scoring performance we should count them for some 7-10 place.
Euroleague 2019 – 2020 team presentation first part
