This article is part of our EuroLeague Fantasy Challenge Picks series.
The most exciting weekend of the EuroLeague season is upon us, which means we are nearing the finish line of the EuroLeague Fantasy Challenge. We will have just two more chances -- one Friday and another Sunday -- to rack up points and catch our fantasy rivals in front of us. There are only four teams remaining, but we still have plenty of quality options to choose from.
If you have any questions or comments about strategy or the picks below, feel free to drop those at the bottom of this article or reach out via @RotoWireEuro.
And now, for the players!
Guard
Kostas Sloukas, Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens (16.1 credits)
It is a mystery whether to select Sloukas or not. He picked up a calf injury in the series-clinching victory over Maccabi a little over two weeks ago and has not taken the court since. He was able to train this week, and he will almost certainly suit up Friday, but the injury opens up the risk for limited minutes and an early exit. Sloukas was great against Maccabi and will no doubt be pushing to play as much as possible in the Semifinal, but I am not entirely convinced of his prospects and wish we had more certainty.
Facundo Campazzo, Real Madrid (15.6 credits)
Campazzo averaged 15.7 points, 7.0 field goal attempts, 6.0 assists, 5.7 fouls drawn and a 24.0 PIR in the playoff matchup with Baskonia -- all while playing just 24 minutes per contest. He will face a tough test against the newly-crowned Best Defender in Thomas Walkup, but this wasn't a big problem during the regular season, as Campazzo posted PIR marks of 21 and 15 in the two matchups with Olympiacos.
Kendrick Nunn, Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens (12.9 credits)
Nunn got up at least 15 shots in each of the final three games of the series with Maccabi, and 22 more in his club's last domestic contest. We have plenty of confidence he will play a lot and will not be shy about putting the ball in the air. Nunn also contributes when it comes to rebounds, assists and fouls drawn, and he is more than solid when it comes to options at the guard spots.
Nick Calathes, Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul (10.7 credits)
Calathes played a major role during the Playoffs for head coach Sarunas Jasikevicius. He played just under 30 minutes per night and averaged 11.8 points, 9.2 FGA, 4.8 rebounds, 4.8 assists, 1.7 steals and a 13.8 PIR in the five-game set against Monaco. It's clear he is contributing in many ways, which is naturally preferable for a fantasy pick.
Sergio Rodriguez, Real Madrid (5.2 credits)
This is a risky option and he could even end up with a negative PIR, but let me try to explain. First and foremost, he might end up playing only a dozen minutes or so, and he would need to be super efficient to deliver a useful PIR. On the other hand, Rodriguez was just that in the last two games against Baskonia, putting up 12 PIR over 16 minutes and 15 PIR over 13 minutes. There is risk, but he is also plenty worth considering at this price.
Forward
Nigel Hayes-Davis, Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul (14.5 credits)
Hayes-Davis has not recorded a great stat line recently, over the last 3 games in a series against Monaco he had 9.0 PPG, 32/31/100% shooting splits, 8.0 PIR. However, he still has his playtime, 30+ minutes in each of the last 3 matches. Despite the bad stat line he is having recently in EuroLeague, it is at least a good consideration to include Hayes-Davis in the fantasy team due to those top-high minutes he gets.
Dzanan Musa, Real Madrid (13.8 credits)
Gabriel Deck will miss the Final Four due to injury, and Musa has been one of the standout guys to step up when the team is missing Deck. During the nine games when Real was missing Deck, Musa recorded 26 MIN, 10.4 FGA, 5.4 FTA, 4.0 FLS RV, 20.7 PIR. A possible red flag, though, is a very tough defensive matchup.
Mario Hezonja, Real Madrid (12.8 credits)
Hezonja is another Real Madrid player who is usually getting more opportunities when Deck is missing games: more minutes, shot attempts, rebounds - all this leads to higher chances to record more PIR. However, there are concerns, as Hezonja is not having a great run recently (recorded 9.7 PIR only in the last 3 games in a series against Baskonia). Also, games in the Spanish ACB league are up and down (8, 10, 9, 10, 5 PIR in the last 5 ACB matches). Last but probably the biggest concern - their next opponent Olympiacos is a tough defense and a slow pace team (allowing their opponents 60.3 FGA per game, that is 3rd-least in the league this season).
Kostas Papanikolaou, Olympiacos Piraeus (9.8 credits)
This will only be an option if the illness that has slowed Shaquielle McKissic keeps him off the court Friday, but Papanikolaou has been getting up a few more shots lately, and he likely won't lack for minutes in the semifinals.
Ioannis Papapetrou, Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens (6.5 credits)
Papapetrou costs only 6.5 credits, but he overperformed his fantasy value in a series against Maccabi: recorded -2, 15, 19, 4, 7 PIR. Also played 25+ minutes in 4 out of 5 games in that Playoffs matchup. However, the last couple of games were 4 and 7 PIR. Also, games in the domestic league were not fancy. This brings a little concern. All in all, he is a really strong candidate for up to 7 credits.
Tarik Biberovic, Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul (5.1 credits)
Biberovic had a heroic couple of games (G3 and G5, 15 and 17 PIR respectively) in a series against Monaco. Also, he continued this great run in the domestic championship too. If we would have a look at all the championships (EuroLeague and domestic), he is shooting 18/38 47% from behind the arc, on average attempting 3.8 shots per game in the last 10 matches. Biberovic is not only shooting but contributing in rebounds too (3.6 RPG in a series against Monaco).
Center
Mathias Lessort, Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens (18.6 credits)
Based on the playoff series against Maccabi, we can comfortably guess Lessort will play tons of minutes in a Final Four semifinal against Fenerbahce unless it becomes a one-sided game or he will foul out. Lessort contributes in shooting, rebounding, blocking, and drawing fouls. The slight concern is his free throw shooting (40% only in the series against Maccabi), but that shouldn't discourage us from strongly considering adding him to our fantasy team(s).
Walter Tavares, Real Madrid (15.1 credits)
Tavares is another player from the Real Madrid team who usually steps up once Deck is OUT: plays more minutes which leads to a boost in PIR. Also worth mentioning, that Tavares did shift the gear up in the playoff series against Baskonia. We also remember last year's Final Four MVP performance by him. The red flag is their opponent Olympiacos, which is one of the toughest defensive matchups this season.
Nikola Milutinov, Olympiacos Piraeus (13.2 credits)
Milutinov played 20+ minutes in the last two EuroLeague games and recorded 18 and 26 PIR against Barcelona. He continued a great run in the domestic championship. Milutinov is one of the most effective rebounders in the league and is also solid at drawing fouls. He is back, and he is a good pick.
Head Coach
Chus Mateo, Real Madrid (12.1 credits)
Real did win against Olympiacos in both matchups this season, but that's history and does not mean too much at this stage of the season. I do not have real arguments in favor of Mateo's Real against Olympiacos as both teams could win. If I had to pick one of the two, I would go for Mateo as they are former champions, they know how to win, their roster is so deep, and core players remain unchanged from the previous season.
Sarunas Jasikevicius, Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul (8.4 credits)
If you want to give people a hard time, ask them to pick coaches in EuroLeague Final Four semifinal games, it's tough. It will be the 4th straight Final Four for Jasikevicius, which is plenty of coaching experience. On the other hand, he will play against Ergin Ataman who has plenty of experience too, which even includes two EuroLeague championships. It's a 50-50 pick in my eyes. I would rather pick none, but if I had to I would go for Saras.
Drop Candidates
Moses Wright, Olympiacos Piraeus (11.1 credits)
Since Milutinov is fully back, recorded a nice game 4 and 5 against Barcelona, and had a couple of big games in the domestic championship, we just can't talk ourselves into picking Wright, especially when he costs so much. Moses is at high risk to play only few minutes or not to play at all.
Tyler Dorsey, Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul (7.5 credits)
Dorsey had a nice couple of first games in a series against Monaco and then he stopped. To be correct, he lost his minutes, which eventually led to low PIR games. If you consider picking the player, you are at high risk that he may play only 15ish or less minutes.
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