BallinEurope is previewing all 18 Euroleague Basketball teams over the next 18 days. Yesterday it was the turn of AS Monaco. Today it’s Joan Penarroya and Baskonia.
With Baskonia we expect shock results, both good and bad. Surprises are somewhat the norm with this club in Euroleague Basketball. Can Joan Penarroya ensure that they get the best of the breaks on balance?
Last season
Euroleague record: 18-16
Regular season position: 9th
Playoffs: N/A
ACB record: 28-6
Regular season position: 2nd
Playoffs: Lost first round 2-0 (Joventut Badalona)
Other: Lost Copa del Rey quarter final (Joventut Badalona)
Who’s gone?
Ousmane Ndiaye (Palencia), Sidy Cissoko (San Antonio Spurs, NBA), Steven Enoch (Turk Telecom), Rokas Giedraitis (Crvena Zvezda), Darius Thompson (Anadolu Efes), Max Heidegger (Chicago Bulls, NBA), Arturs Kurucs (Promitheas), Daulton Hommes (Free agent), Pierria Henry (Free agent).
Who is new?
Chima Moneke (AS Monaco), Nico Mannion (Virtus Bologna), Codi Miller-McIntrye (Gazientep), Khalifa Diop (Gran Canaria), Nikos Rogkavopoulos (Merkezefendi).
Who stayed?
Joan Penarroya (Coach), Dani Diez, Markus Howard, Matthew Costello, Maik Kostar, Vanja Marinkovic, Tadas Sedekerskis, Sander Raieste.
BallinEurope is ramping up its YouTube game this season. Subscribe to our channel now for player exclusives, analysis videos, and much more.
Need to know
There’s really no club like Baskonia. There are overachievers in Euroleague Basketball. There are teams that have great home advantage. There are even sides prone to the odd hot run here and there.
With Baskonia, unpredictability is the one certainty. You can take it to the bank now that they will have more wins as underdogs than expected. Unfortunately, you can be just as certain that they will have more losses as favourites than expected too. It’s the Baskonia way.
Read our look at the future of basketball in the Philippines and the need for Puso to evolve now.
What the bookies think
The sportsbooks really don’t like Baskonia. I’m not exactly singing their praises by 50/1 seems long in basketball betting. It’s unlikely this club will be competitive in Euroleague Basketball but this price puts them with the big outsiders in the competition.
What we think
This club finds a way to make the most of rebuilding after losing big names. That said, the outgoings really do look far more substantial than the incomings here. The overall team is far from bad. It’s just also a long way from a contender.
Fearless prediction
The need to know section showed you what I expect from the team in terms of trends. On the whole, it’s not going to be enough for them to be in the playoff conversation late in the season.
Pick: 14th place in the regular season
BallinEurope has a book, a real life actual book called I Like it Loud, and you can buy it on Amazon now. It’s here as a book and here in Kindle form.
Leave a Reply