Javier Gancedo shares his recommendations for Round 14 in the EuroLeague Fantasy Challenge
Fantasy tips, Round 14: Back after a small break
Fantasy Challenge
3 Mins read
After a rare eight-day gap without EuroLeague games, action resumes with Round 14, and that is another opportunity for EuroLeague Fantasy Challenge managers to continue climbing in the standings - and gain wins in the Trophy Cup. There is just one win between the top-ranked and ninth-place teams and with parity like that, anything can happen. I have some ideas that should improve your teams, but first, let's take a look at my recommendations from last week.
As always, there were good and bad picks. Theo Maledon of Real Madrid heavily underperformed against Hapoel and caused his fantasy managers to lose 0.5 credits. Bad move. Ercan Osmani of Anadolu Efes Istanbul had 10 fantasy points and his value did not change, so I will call it even. Armoni Brooks of EA7 Emporio Armani Milan had 22 fantasy points, pushing his value half a credit up. Well done! Kobi Simmons of Kosner Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz has 12 points and his value went slightly up 0.1 credits. Hey, it made people get money, so I am calling it a win. And Azuolas Tubelis of Zalgiris Kaunas did not have the same numbers as in previous weeks, but his 11 fantasy points saw him keep his value. So two good picks, two average and a bad one.
I don't know, fantasy managers out there. Give me one more week and if I don't get at least three wins, I will make someone else write this column. Deal? I am using a bigger budget this time to avoid being replaced. Here are five fantasy recommendations for Round 14:
Shavon Shields, EA7 Emporio Armani Milan (14.7 credits)
My superstar of choice this week. He plays against Baskonia, his first EuroLeague team, at Buesa Arena. Shavon Shields comes off a fantastic performance with 42.9 fantasy points, which earned 1.1 credits for the lucky managers who were ahead of the curve. My guess is that Shields will keep rolling in Round 14.
Kostas Sloukas, Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens (12.8 credits)
Where do I start? Kostas Sloukas is averaging 5.5 assists and just 0.9 turnovers this season. That's a crazy assist-to-turnover ratio of 5.92. He had at least a PIR of 14 in his last five games despite a poor three-point percentage for his great standards (31.8%). His PIR average in that period is 17.2!
Sterling Brown, Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade (11.3 credits)
It was a difficult week for Partizan with a very sub-par second half against Panathinaikos, but Sterling Brown keeps posting good numbers. In the last three games, Brown has averaged 21.0 points and a PIR of 19.7. Partizan could bounce back against Bayern and needs Brown to bring his A-game, and that's what I expect.
Derek Willis, Paris Basketball (9.2 credits)
We have to have at least one or two recommendations under 10.0 credits, right? Where is the fun of just picking superstars? Derek Willis has been amazing lately, and posted career-highs of 22 points and a PIR of 27 against Dubai in Round 14. Paris travels to Monaco, and that's a great opportunity for him to keep going.
Matt Morgan, Virtus Bologna (8.9 credits)
Slowly but steadily, Matt Morgan has proved he has a lot of fantasy value. He has scored in double digits in Virtus's last five games and seven of the last eight. In the last three games, Morgan has averaged 15.0 points and a PIR of 16.0 despite playing only 18 minutes per game. Keep a good eye on him.