Euroleague Playoffs 58
Real Madrid turn crisis into control
No Edy, no problem. Real Madrid reminded us just how capable they are of adapting, even without Walter Tavares. On Friday night, missing arguably their most important player, they just plain decided they would beat Hapoel Tel Aviv in Game 2 of the Euroleague playoffs. Emmet Ryan on the sheer inevitability of Los Blancos. Losing […]
This is why Panathinaikos signed Nigel Hayes Davis
Has a 2-0 lead ever been so hard-won? Nigel Hayes Davis had an all-timer moment in a brilliant performance as Panathinaikos took full control of their series with Valencia in the Euroleague playoffs. Emmet Ryan on a second straight classic. Let me tell you something you already know. That was awesome. The only thing standing […]
Complacency is the biggest enemy for OIympiacos
After a thoroughly convincing Game 1 win over AS Monaco in the Euroleague Playoffs, Olympiacos look primed for a comfortable run to the final four. Emmet Ryan writes that their biggest obstacle might well be that sense of expectation. Let me tell you about 2011. Olympiacos were a year removed from making the Euroleague championship […]
Panathinaikos survive the battle but Valencia are here for war
If this goes the full five games, it may well go down as the finest ever series the Euroleague playoffs has ever seen. Valencia and Panathinaikos delivered pure drama in Game 1. Emmet Ryan writes that while Panathinaikos took the day, winning the series is a matter of survival. There was an extra dash of […]
Fenerbahce’s depth proves decisive against Zalgiris
You can plan and scheme for a lot in basketball. After one game of the Euroleague playoffs, Zalgiris Kaunas may have run into something they can’t simply outsmart. Emmet Ryan on how depth carried Fenerbahce to a comfortable Game 1 win. This looked on paper as the Euroleague playoff series with the most potential. Game […]
Ergin Ataman and the Theatre of Control
The mental limit is almost invariably misunderstood. Ergin Ataman is a walking demonstration of this. Considering all he has won and lost, it’s remarkable how significant one single series might be. His Panathinaikos side takes on Valencia in the Euroleague playoffs with the Turkish head coach as the centrepiece of the affair. I’ve got a […]
AS Monaco will not go gently into that good night
A roster cut to ribbons. Their star, Mike James, announced his departure the morning of the game. The future beyond this summer is uncertain at best. Yet AS Monaco not only refused to bow but looked commanding at times on Friday. FC Barcelona found out the hard way that there is nothing more dangerous than […]
The problem with expanding Euroleague’s post-season
Dimitris Itoudis wants to see more teams in the Euroleague playoffs, a lot more. Be careful what you wish for, warns Emmet Ryan, as the NBA example teaches a different lesson to what the great coach thinks. Dimitris Itoudis likes to talk about the format of basketball competitions. That immediately makes him someone this site […]
Kostas Papanikolaou guides Olympiacos to Berlin
Shaquielle McKissic came up big but Kostas Papanikolaou’s leadership was vital as Olympiacos overcame FC Barcelona to punch their ticket to the Euroleague Final Four. Well, this was quite a night. No matter what you like in basketball. No matter who you root for. This was, undoubtedly, a night. Kostas Papanikolaou nailed the final dagger […]
Nick Calathes rolls back the clock as Fenerbahce make history
In what should surely go down as Euroleague’s Waiting for Godot game, Nick Calathes picked his moment. Fenerbahce downed AS Monaco to, by a couple of hours, become the first road team ever to win a Game 5. This was a weird one. Samuel Beckett would certainly have approved of the surreality. Fortunately, BiE has […]
Kendrick Nunn punches the ticket to Berlin for Panathinaikos
The talk will be all about his offensive explosion in the fourth quarter. Emmet Ryan says that only tells half the story. The phenomenal workrate of Kendrick Nunn on both ends guided Panathinaikos past Maccabi Tel Aviv and into the Euroleague Final Four. “I don’t have to say much. We just let our game speak.” […]
Even on a bad night, Mike James was inevitable for AS Monaco
Fenerbahce’s dreadful endgame will be the story of the match. They only got in that situation because Mike James finally found a way to contribute and for a Game 5 at home for AS Monaco in the Euroleague playoffs. Mike James almost cost AS Monaco the game and their Euroleague season. Instead, dreadful endgame management […]