Here are Javier Gancedo's recommendations for this week's games in the EuroLeague Fantasy Challenge.
EuroLeague Fantasy tips: Bring on the playoffs!
It's playoff time in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague! The best eight teams in the competition are set to battle in best-of-five series with only one goal in mind: making it to the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Final Four in Berlin, Germany. With 10 teams already eliminated, there are fewer options in the EuroLeague Fantasy Challenge but don't worry, there are plenty of chances to put together a good team. Here are my recommendations before Game 1 of the playoffs:
Mike James, AS Monaco (17.9 credits)
James is my superstar of choice at the start of the playoffs. Monaco plays at home, so that is always a plus. Moreover, James has played well against Fenerbahce so far this season, getting 24 points and 5 rebounds for a PIR of 25 in Istanbul and 23 points and 6 rebounds for a PIR of 29 in Monaco. Honestly, what's not to like about him?
Matt Costello, Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz (10.2 credits)
Costello has been sensational lately, helping Baskonia punch its playoff ticket. Against Virtus last week, Costello had 6 points, 9 rebounds, 4 assists and a PIR of 18 in over 25 minutes. He followed that up with a PIR of 26 in his team's Spanish League game over the weekend. If Chima Moneke remains unavailable, Costello will play even more.
Nico Laprovittola, FC Barcelona (11.1 credits)
Barca managed to beat Olympiacos twice this season mainly because of its three-point shooting, which was excellent in Pireaus and pretty good at Palau Blaugrana, too. In his only game against Olympiacos this season, Laprovittola had 17 points and 7 assists for a PIR of 22, missing just a couple of shots. He is expected to play a leading role in this series.
Dzanan Musa, Real Madrid (14.9 credits)
It's hard to pick just one Real player ahead of the playoffs. Musa has played well against Baskonia in both games this season and that leads me to recommend him. He had 13 points and 7 rebounds in Real's season opener in Vitoria-Gasteiz and had 16 points and 4 rebounds for a PIR of 17 when they met in the Spanish capital. Expect him to stay strong from now on.
Lorenzo Brown, Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv (11.9 credits)
The man of the moment! Brown took Maccabi to the playoffs with a stellar performance against Baskonia: 29 points on 7 of 8 three-pointers and 5 assists for a PIR of 35. Brown struggled a bit at times this season, but not against Panathinaikos, averaging 13.0 points, 9.5 assists and 3.0 steals for a PIR of 17.5 against the Greens.