Photo: baskonia.comTurkish Airlines Euroleague runner-up Real Madrid got even stronger on Friday by making one of the competition’s top performers last season, veteran forward Andres Nocioni, its first new roster addition. Nocioni (2.03 meters, 33 years old) joins Madrid for the next two seasons, the club announced. Last season with Laboral Kutxa Vitoria, he ranked fourth in the Euroleague in average performance index rating at 16.2 per game. Nocioni tallied 13.6 points, 6.6 rebounds and 1.2 blocks over 21 Euroleague games. He also produced 14.7 points and 4.7 rebounds in the Spanish League. Real Madrid becomes the second team of Nocioni’s Euroleague career after his seven seasons over two stints in Vitoria. Nocioni made a name for himself in the basketball world during three Euroleague seasons with Vitoria, then called Tau Ceramica, between 2001 and 2004. He was chosen to the 2002-03 and the 2003-04 All-Euroleague Second Team. His best Euroleague season came in 2002-03, when he compiled 16.8 points and 7.6 rebounds over 19 games. He won a Spanish League, two Spanish King’s Cup titles and was named the 2004 Spanish league MVP with Tau. Nocioni has also played for Manresa in Spain, Racing Club, Olimpia Venado Tuerto, Independiente General Pico and Penarol Mar del Plata in Argentina and for Chicago, Sacramento and Philadelphia in the NBA. He has been a regular member of the Argentinean national team, which he helped win the gold medal at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, Greece. Nocioni also won the silver medal at the 2002 FIBA World Championships and bronze at the 2008 Olympic Games.
