There is already a lot of buzz ahead of the 2022-23 7DAYS EuroCup Regular Season after the group-stage draw. There are 20 teams set to take part in the competition this year, with each team playing 18 regular season games before the top eight from each group take part in the single-game knockout stages. Here's what to expect from the 10 teams in Group B.
Group B at a glance
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Hapoel Tel Aviv
The 2022-23 EuroCup welcomes Hapoel among its five new teams, three of whom will battle in Group B. Hapoel has brought back former team captain Tomer Ginat on a long-term deal while head coach Danny Franco is entering his second season on the bench. As the top-seeded team in Group B, Hapoel will have its eyes on a playoff berth this season.
Gran Canaria
Gran Canaria finished last season with the best record in Group B and comfortably beat Slask Wroclaw in the eighthfinals before coming unstuck in the quarterfinals against MoraBanc Andorra, losing by 2 points. Expectation returns to Gran Canaria for the new season following the appointment of Jaka Lakovic as head coach. The club has also secured a new floor general in Ferran Bassas, who will be looking for EuroCup Rising Star center Khalifa Diop, meaning there will be plenty of reasons to get excited at Gran Canaria Arena.
Buducnost Voli Podgorica
Last season saw Buducnost reach the EuroCup Eighthfinals after finishing fifth in Group B with a record of 10-8, but in the playoffs it failed to advance past Andorra. The Montenegrin League champion is entering its fourth successive year in the EuroCup, and it will be aiming to at least match its best-ever finish as quarterfinalists, which it achieved in 2011-12, 2012-13, 2017-18 and 2020-21.
Dolomiti Energia Trento
Trento struggled significantly during the 2021-22 EuroCup season, winning just one game during the regular season as it finished bottom of Group A. But, with the start of a new season, Trento has the chance to turn things around. Star player Diego Flaccadori has committed his future to Trento, and he will be determined to lead his team to a much-improved record in 2022-23.
Turk Telecom Ankara
Despite having an impressive home record during the 2021-22 EuroCup regular season, Turk Telecom's struggles on the road saw the team finish with a 9-9 record. Then, in the playoffs, it failed to get beyond the eighthfinals, losing to Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana in Slovenia. Five new additions have already been announced, including point guard Tony Taylor, who is expected to be one of the team's leaders in the coming season.
Promitheas Patras
There were not a lot of positives to be taken from the 2021-22 EuroCup season for Promitheas, which ended with the worst record in Group B (4-14) and failed to make the playoffs. The big problem that Promitheas had was away from its home court, as it won just one road game all season. Promitheas has kept faith with head coach Makis Giatras, who is entering his 11th year in charge of the team, while it has already made some alterations to its roster in an attempt to turn things around next season.
Paris Basketball
A new addition to the EuroCup, Paris is ready to make a splash from minute one. With star guard Kyle Allman committing his future to the team, Paris will be hoping that he can help the team make an immediate impact in the competition. Paris has big aspirations and will be eyeing qualification for the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague in the not-too-distant future.
Hamburg Towers
Hamburg made its EuroCup debut last season by finishing with a 6-10 regular season record in Group A and securing a place in the playoffs, where it was knocked out at the eighthfinals stage by Valencia Basket. Entering its second EuroCup season, Hamburg has decided to change its coach, as Raoul Korner has replaced Pedro Calles at the helm. Some changes have also been made to the roster, with there being high hopes that new additions Kendale McCullum and Yoeli Childs will make things happen right away in the EuroCup.
Slask Wroclaw
Slask Wroclaw snuck into the EuroCup Playoffs last season, finishing with a 3-13 record before losing against Gran Canaria in the eighthfinals, but will be looking to play with more consistency in 2022-23. A couple of new additions to the roster have already been announced, while head coach Andrej Urlep will remain in place for the coming season. All of Slask's wins came at home last season, so it will be keen to improve on its performances away from Hala Orbita.
London Lions
Yet another new addition to the EuroCup this year is London Lions, which is ready to upset the established order in the 2022-23 season. Ryan Schmidt, formerly of Toronto's G-League team, has been named as head coach, while London has brought top English talents back home in the form of Mo Soluade and Ovie Soko. Basketball is growing all the time in England and London holds dreams of becoming a Euroleague Basketball regular in the coming seasons.