Last thing: Always remember to trust yourselves instead of some random internet website right? Have fun

Signed: Mid-range Maven

Round 14

Time to win

Welcome to our weekly Euroleague - Eurocup Fantasy weekly column. If you want to  check our Fantasy Approach please click on the following link 

     For the third time in a row, our coach selection in Round 13 was a disappointment. London Lions lost to Niners Chemnitz, and once again we received a negative score from our chosen coach. Combined with the no-show from KIRKWOOD, our team finished with 150.95 points and a 1-credit gain. It is a pity, as we made two very successful transfers: GIBSON instead of FLYNN and NOUA replacing two mediocre Forwards.

For Round 14, our focus is clear: we want a positive contribution from the coach position and to capitalize on two opportunities that could further boost our team’s budget with minimal risk. Unfortunately, our top target, Devante JONES, will have to wait for another round.

Starting with the coach position, we return to the basics. Hamburg is playing away against U-BT Cluj-Napoca, so we selected the coach of the Romanian team, Mihai SILVASAN (6.7 CR). There is not much more to add here, as we expect nothing less than a 20-point return.

The two players we want to bring into our team are Joe THOMASSON (7.5 CR) from Panionios and Ross WILLIAMS (10 CR) from Hamburg. THOMASSON is listed as a Forward despite being a Guard in reality. Regardless, THOMASSON made an impressive debut last week with 29 PIR for Panionios while playing 30 minutes. He clearly has the trust of Panionios’ new coach, Markovic, as he once again logged 30 minutes in the domestic league game, even though his shooting percentages were very low. His value of 7.5 credits appears extremely low considering his role and all-around contribution.

On the other hand, WILLIAMS has recently joined the German team and he is already the main point of reference in the offence. He is playing approximately 30’, taking more than 15 shots per game, while drawing a lot of fouls from his opponents. His current value is 10 so even if he wont manage to have a 20 PIR performance, he still easily increase his value.

To make room for these two additions, we replaced VELICKA, who is a consistent player but slightly overpriced given his limited 20+ PIR upside while he has a difficult game in front of him, and KIRKWOOD, who did not show up also for this week domestic game.

The third transfer concerns our second Center position, with MOCKEVICIUS leaving the roster. Having some remaining budget, we decided to target a dominant Center playing in Turn 1. We selected Zacharie PERRIN (11.2 CR), a highly productive Center who consistently scores between 20 and 25 PIR. Cluj-Napoca has shown some defensive weaknesses against big men in recent matches, and PERRIN contributes across the board by scoring, grabbing rebounds, and drawing fouls.

Other players were also checked for various reasons such as Kostja MUSHIDI (5.9 CR) who hurt us in the last Round and seems to be more active in his team while his value is still really low and Jackson KREUSER (9 CR) who he is positively affected by the new coach. To be honest, our final selection includes two players from the weakest team of the tournament, but we still think they are valuable to support our plan.

Once again, GIBSON will be our captain for Turn 1, with HARPER available for Turn 2. We have four players in Turn 1, but expectations are high for all of them. Overall, as mentioned in the previous Round, we remain confident in our team. Round 14 feels like a reset point after several frustrating coach decisions. The roster is stronger, the risks are controlled, and the upside is clearly there. Hopefully, this time we will not be as unlucky.