Round 5

Welcome to our Eurocup Fantasy Basketball blog for the 2026/27 season. We are very excited to present you with our revamped selection process. Each week, we’ll be breaking down our picks so we hope we can assist fantasy players everywhere. Enjoy the read and hope you stick around throughout the season - let's enjoy together!

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Round 4 – Still not rolling! 

     Our decision to trust Türk Telekom was definitely a mistake. The Turkish team suffered a home defeat, and BAKO had a disappointing night. Two expensive transfers not only failed to improve our team but also cost us valuable points and credits. We collected 127.85 points and gained just 0.5 credits.

In the global ranking, we have dropped to 1,803rd place, while we have climbed to 2nd place in the Real Hoopers Hub league. The Round winner was Mare Infinitum, with 176.55 points, who now leads the league.

CAN and BAKO will leave our team without a second thought. We will also replace McKNIGHT, who delivered both points and credits, but whose usage by his coach creates some uncertainty. Finally, we will cash out CAISIN to secure the increase in his value.

For this Round, we faced a dilemma: should we eliminate the risk in the coach position by selecting the most expensive option, SPANOULIS? Aris, still undefeated after a series of impressive wins, are playing at home against Cedevita, who have yet to win a game in this year's EuroCup. Or should we invest in players instead, giving us greater flexibility and more options in our roster?

In the end, we opted for the latter, sticking to the strategy we had considered before selecting CAN. Our choice is Mario FIORETTI (6 CR), as Tortona face the Rostock Seawolves in Italy. Tortona have won their previous home games, while Rostock have suffered two defeats on the road.

Before even considering any new player, Uros PLAVSIC (10.2 CR) is already part of our team. He has been impressive, and his latest score of 18 points does not fully reflect his impact in the game against London Lions. Remarkably, he had already reached 20 PIR by the end of the first quarter! PLAVSIC plays more than 20 minutes per game, scores consistently, collects rebounds and draws plenty of fouls. We did not select him in the previous Round because he was playing in Turn 2, and we did not want two Centers from the final Turn of the Round. In Round 5, however, he plays in Turn 1, fitting perfectly into our roster.

Then, we realised that Kostantinos' suggestions in the latest episode of the Real Hoopers Hub podcast (watch the episode here) fit our team's needs perfectly:

Yannick FRANKE (11.1 CR) is a consistent performer for Neptūnas, playing more than 25 minutes and regularly scoring in double figures. The home game against Napoli will be challenging, as Napoli top the group standings. However, we have noticed that opposing guards have still managed to perform reasonably well against them. FRANKE is also an excellent free-throw shooter (22/23) and draws an average of 5.5 fouls per game.

Ben BURNHAM (10.3 CR), like FRANKE, plays a key role for his team and has been a consistent performer, regularly delivering 17+ PIR. One potential drawback is that his team will have one fewer day of rest than their opponents, Bourg-en-Bresse. On the other hand, the Germans will be playing at home, where they have an unbeaten 2–0 record so far.

With these moves, our team looks well balanced across the two Turns. We have five players in Turn 1, including JOVANOVIC and RATAJ, two of our cheapest options. For Turn 2, we have four expensive players who should be able to compensate for any underperforming teammates.

We have decided to give RATAJ one last chance. If he fails to deliver a double-digit performance, he will have to leave the team. We will also try to avoid using WAHL, who seems to perform much better in home games. This Round, his team, Riga Zelli, face Burgos on the road.

In our radar remain a lot of players such as WOODS (not that efficient lately) and OLYNYK who made history with 53 PIR in his latest national league game. The captain for Turn 1 will be PLAVSIC. MANNION is playing against Bosna, and maybe we are biased because of our beloved coach Gjerja from his Belgian years, but we think Bosna can lead the game into low scoring affecting MANNION’s PIR. BURNHAM will be our choice for a back up captain in Turn 2 in case he is needed.

Round 5 is about learning from our mistakes and rebuilding a more balanced roster. We are moving on from the expensive Türk Telekom gamble and investing in players with consistent roles and strong potential. PLAVSIC, FRANKE and BURNHAM are key additions, while FIORETTI offers a budget-friendly option at coach. Let's hope this new strategy delivers better results and helps us climb the rankings!

Our team for this Round looks like this:

🏆 Round 1 winner / League leader: Mare Infinitum

👤 Manager: Emanuele Falconi

FPT: 176.65

🏆 League leader / League leader: Mare Infinitum

👤 Manager: Emanuele Falconi

FPT: 647.45

These fantasy picks are for entertainment only. No crystal balls, no insider info—just our best guesses. Sometimes we’ll look like geniuses; other times, like we drafted blindfolded. Trust your own instincts, play for fun, laugh at the misses, and celebrate the wins!

Signed: Mid-range Maven

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