Check out some bold predictions from EuroLeague.net staff members for Rounds 15 and 16 of the 2023-24 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague season.
Bold predictions for Rounds 15 and 16
Article
5 Mins read
Tavares to dominate Zvezda and Partizan
by Javier Gancedo
It is an important double-round week for Real Madrid, which faces Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade in the Serbian capital and then hosts Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade for the first time since last season's electrifying playoff series between them. Real will need to be at its best to beat either of those opponents, and that means that Walter Tavares should be ready to step up. Tavares averaged 16.2 points, 7.5 rebounds and a PIR of 26.8 against Partizan in the playoffs. He also had a monster double-double against Zvezda last season in a 59-79 win in Belgrade, with 17 points, 12 rebounds, 4 blocks and a PIR of 35. Of course, it is a different season and Tavares is set to face different opponents, but Los Blancos at their best means Tavares in beast mode, and that is what I predict in Round 15 and 16.
Partizan to enjoy a fruitful trip to Spain
by Geoff Gillingham
After a rocky start to the season, Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade seems to have found its groove. Aided by a three-game home stretch, Partizan is in the midst of a four-game winning streak and has gone 5-1 overall in its last six games. That run has helped Partizan improve to an 8-6 mark and climb up to fourth place in the standings. I think Zeljko Obradovic's troops will vastly improve their 2-5 road record by grabbing two road victories in this double-round week. First up is a trip to an undermanned Valencia Basket on Tuesday before a rematch of last year's memorable playoff series against Real Madrid on Thursday. That game at WiZink Center will bring back all sorts of memories for Partizan's fans while the players will be looking to exact revenge after seeing the series turned on its head. If the visitors can keep their emotions bottled, I believe Partizan could be the first team to beat Real on its home floor this season and thus cement itself in the top four of the standings.
ALBA will pull off at least one upset
by Igor Petrinovic
ALBA Berlin has just two wins in the first 14 rounds of this season, and 2023's final double-round week brings a pair of EuroLeague giants to the German capital. First, ALBA will host FC Barcelona on Tuesday, and then on Friday it will welcome Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul. ALBA has gone through a series of injury blows in recent weeks, and the team struggled to maintain a competitive edge at times, but that situation allowed younger players to get more playing time and gain confidence. Make no mistake, ALBA is more than capable of still playing a type of basketball by which it can crush the opposition with its rhythm and its shooting. I believe at least one of ALBA's this week's opponents will learn that the hard way. With some of the veterans recovered and back in action for second straight week, ALBA will get (at least) a win on home floor against heavily favored visitors.
Baskonia's Markus Howard will blast off
by Frankie Sachs
The two-round week has pros and cons for Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz. One the one hand, it plays two road games. On the other, one of them is essentially at a neutral site, as it will avoid facing Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv at Menorah Mivtachim Arena and instead meet the Israeli champs in Belgrade. For Round 16, Baskonia heads to Istanbul where it faces a shorthanded Anadolu Efes. What Maccabi and Efes have in common is that they both play at a high pace and both allow plenty of points. Maccabi has allowed the second-most points in the league (86.6 ppg.) and Efes the fourth-most (86.4). Enter Markus Howard. Last season, he averaged 16.5 points against Maccabi despite some poor three-point shooting (5 of 18; 27.8%) and 17.5 against Efes on 36.8% shooting from deep. That in a season when he averaged 14.2 points. This season he is scoring more (second in the league in scoring with 17.9 points per game) and leading the league in triples with 3.4 per game at a 37.2% clip. The situation is ripe for a pair of big games. Howard will lead the league in scoring this week.
Fenerbahce will stay unbeaten under Saras
by Frank Lawlor
After shaking off last week's sudden coaching change to beat mighty AS Monaco by double digits, Fenerbahce (7-7) this faces a pair of struggling teams and a need to overcome its own negative streak away from home. New boss Sarunas Jasikevicius meets his old team, Zalgiris Kaunas (5-9), at home on Wednesday before Fenerbahce visits last-place ALBA Berlin (2-12) on Friday. The former might not be so bold, given Fenerbahce's dominance at home, but the latter is trickier than most. Fenerbahce is 1-7 on the road this season, including six defeats in a row away from home, and a healthy ALBA in Berlin is an upset waiting to happen. Fenerbahce is healthy, too, though, with the return this week of center Georgios Papagiannis, and all things considered has a deeper and much more experienced team. The win over Monaco gave Fenerbahce a boost and now it needs all the momentum it can get looking ahead to the first Istanbul derby under Saras in a week's time. Two wins this week will accomplish that and put Fenerbahce back in the hunt for bigger things.