Two historic clubs sitting close in the standings will have a key mid-season showdown on Thursday.
Olympiacos, Maccabi meet in key playoff battle
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Two of the best and most successful teams in the last 50 years meet again when Olympiacos Piraeus (12-9) hosts Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv (11-10) at Peace and Friendship Stadium in Round 22 on Thursday at 20:15 CET.
Crossed paths
Both teams combine for nine continental titles: Maccabi won the top European competition in 1977, 1981, 2004, 2005 and 2014, as well as claiming the SuproLeague title in 2001. Olympiacos lifted the top continental trophy in 1977, 2012 and 2013. Since 1988, both teams have combined for 24 Final Four appearances, getting there 12 times each. Remarkably, Maccabi and Olympiacos have never made it to the same Final Four. Of course, that doesn't mean that Olympiacos and Maccabi have not faced each other in high-pressure games. Indeed, this is a pivotal matchup, as Maccabi ranks sixth and is one win ahead of Olympiacos, deep in the fight to reach the playoffs and avoid the Play-In Showdown.
Maccabi and Olympiacos went against each other in the 2006 EuroLeague Playoffs. It was a best-of-three series that went down to the last game, in which Maccabi edged Olympiacos 77-73 behind 18 points from Willie Solomon. Both teams have faced each other closer to the title since their first matchup in 1976. Olympiacos has a 15-13 EuroLeague record against Maccabi. Earlier this season, Olympiacos topped Maccabi 74-79 at home behind 13 points each from Thomas Walkup and Alec Peters.
Frontcourt: Milutinov on the spotlight
Olympiacos faced bad news this week, as center Moustapha Fall will miss three weeks with a knee injury. Fall is having his best season, averaging a 16.6 performance index rating since November 1. He leads the EuroLeague in two-point accuracy this season at 78.3%, also averaging 7.7 points, 4.6 rebounds, 2.7 assists (leading all centers) and 1.2 blocks. Fall be missed but Olympiacos has depth at the center position, and it is time for Nikola Milutinov to see extended playing time and rise to the challenge.
Milutinov is averaging 8.1 points, 5.0 rebounds and a PIR of 14.0 in 19 minutes per night. When Milutinov plays 22 minutes or more, however, those numbers go up to 13.0 points, 7.8 rebounds and a PIR of 23.3. As such, it should be a priority for Maccabi to stop him. Josh Nebo is the fifth-best rebounder in the competition (6.5 rpg.) and ties for 10th place in blocks (0.8 bpg.), so he will be head coach Oded Kattash's first option against Milutinov, with Ronan Sorkin, Jasiel Rivero and Jake Cohen offering different alternatives at the 'five' position.
Backcourt: Baldwin and the former team rule
Wade Baldwin is one of 16 players who worked for both Maccabi and Olympiacos in the past. The list includes illustrious names such as Nikola Vujcic, Theo Papaloukas and Sofoklis Schortsanitis. He is one of two active players in this season's EuroLeague to play for both teams: Tyler Dorsey is the other. His matchup against Thomas Walkup should be one of the biggest keys to the game, and it is an intriguing one, since Baldwin missed the game against Olympiacos earlier this season. It is a golden rule that players usually do well against former teams. We can go back into the 2023-24 season and see how Baldwin did against two of his former teams, and also against Olympiacos last season.
Baldwin started his EuroLeague career with Olympiacos and went on to play for FC Bayern Munich and Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz before joining Maccabi in 2022. This season, he had 12 points, 3 assists, 6 turnovers and a PIR of 14 in a 93-90 home victory against Bayern. He also led Maccabi to an 89-81 win against Baskonia, getting 10 points, 7 assists and a PIR of 9. Last season, Baldwin played against Olympiacos twice, averaging 18.0 points, 5.0 assists and a PIR of 17.5. So even when Baldwin did not have monster performances against his former teams lately, Olympiacos needs to focus on defending him, with Walkup and Nigel Williams-Goss leading the way.