# Top 2 Euroleague Teams ... in the NBA



## luther (Nov 2, 2007)

At the moment, the two top Euroleague teams are Panathinaikos (7-0) and CSKA Moscow (6-1).

While I think most any sane person would acknowledge that even the best Euroleague teams are not NBA-caliber, I think realistic people would also say that the gap is narrower with these teams than it has often been in years past. So, which of these two Euro-powers would be better suited to play in the NBA, and why?

Here are their euroleague.net team sites, so you can check rosters, stats, etc.

Panathinaikos:
http://www.euroleague.net/competition/teams/showteam?clubcode=PAN

CSKA:
http://www.euroleague.net/competition/teams/showteam?clubcode=CSK

I've got my opinion, but I'm going to hold off to see if anyone else is into this.


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## croco (Feb 14, 2005)

Panathinaikos has more talent on the team in terms of NBA potential, I like them a bit better. CSKA style of play doesn't fit at all, they would probably get hammered by about any team.


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## luther (Nov 2, 2007)

While I do think Panathinaikos has more athletic talent, I don't think they have more talent. And the problem I see with them is, their bigs...well, _aren't._ Maybe if they went small they could compete in an uptempo game, hoping Diamantidis, Jasikevicius, Spaniouslis, Winston and Becirovic could wreak havoc while Batiste, Tsartsaris, Dikoudis and Tomasevic do just enough inside despite their lack of height. But really, I know Tsartsaris really isn't an inside player anyway. I admit to not having seen a lot of Dikoudis, so I can't comment too intelligently there. But I know he isn't big enough to compete on a size-basis.

On the other hand, CSKA could possibly win some games in a halfcourt offense. Their perimeter players are not athletic enough to thrive against NBA perimeter guys on a regular basis, but by controlling tempo, that might be something they could minimize.

In addition, they have the big players to match up better. Andersen and Savrasenko are not high-quality bigs by NBA standards, but they're both borderline NBA players, which is more than Panathinaikos has. What's more, Smodis is a legit NBA finesse 4, in my opinion, and Goree can offer a different style with decent athleticism. Add to that young talent in Zabelin and your frontcourt isn't so bare.

The backcourt, well, it's something else. Holden would have to play point, with Zisis helping out. Neither is really an NBA athlete at that spot, but both are good enough to play. Langdon is an elite shooter, and so you hope that by using a halfcourt system, you can run sets that get him open looks. Papaloukas is the guy who can really set it up. Again, he's not athletic enough to play a running game, necessarily, but he could be an effective point forward with his wit and passing. Siskauskas and Kurbanov, hopefully, could give decent minutes.

So that's my pick: CSKA, I think, would make the better NBA team. 

But sadly, by "better," I mean they'd win something like 10-15 NBA games, tops. Maybe 10 if playing NBA rules and 15 if FIBA. I think Panathinaikos would be dominated inside to the point where for them, winning 7-10 games would be a successful season.


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## Krstic All-Star (Mar 9, 2005)

If CSKA picked up a couple of guards in the draft, I could see it growing into a decent middle of the pack NBA team.


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## croco (Feb 14, 2005)

Krstic All Star said:


> If CSKA picked up a couple of guards in the draft, I could see it growing into a decent middle of the pack NBA team.


A lot of NBA teams feel the same way :biggrin:


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## Krstic All-Star (Mar 9, 2005)

croco said:


> A lot of NBA teams feel the same way :biggrin:


Lol. That's for sure!


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## HB (May 1, 2004)

I was expecting to see those rosters loaded with American players but I am pleasantly surprised thats not the case.


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## Krstic All-Star (Mar 9, 2005)

^ Yeah, some nice prospects


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## Kid Chocolate (Jun 17, 2005)

Theo Papaloukas is the truth.


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## Krstic All-Star (Mar 9, 2005)

^ Yeah, but will he ever come over to play in the US?


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## luther (Nov 2, 2007)

Probably not, because he's 29 or 30 already and just signed a 3-year deal with CSKA before this season. While I love his game, I can't imagine a lot of teams that interested in making a multi-year financial investment in a 33-year-old guard. And I can't imagine him coming over for a one-year, small-dollar contract. Unless he's bought out after this season and makes the trek, I doubt it will ever happen, and he'll go down like another Bodiroga: a should've-been-NBA contributor, but instead a Euro-only star.


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## Matiz (Jun 5, 2003)

it's all the matter of differences in the game different rules aply on each side of the ocean. Just as you were mentioning lack of height by Pana's big man, the way the game is played with 6.25 3 pointer line, different shape of the paint, no defensive 3 seconds and other stuff that imply fundamentals over size/athleticism, having a 7 foot 270 pounds center isn't a must to be succesfull in international game (as you've seen with the US team in the world championship when Brown played with Howard on center and Lebron/Carmelo on forwards). For the international game having 6'9 Mike Batiste playing center is beneficial with faster pace which is needed with all those pick and rolls, 3 different screens on the same set play than agility becomes handy as there is not as much free unguarded space on court as in NBA (due to rule differences I mentioned above). also for example Tsartsaris's (or any other PF/C; just as an example) ability to nail the three pointer becomes useful as well in order to prevent the opponent "building a bunker" in the paint.

As Luther mentioned several times in the post, most of those guys lack of athleticism for NBA standard, even if I personaly believe some of them would make it up with their all-round game and fundamentals advantage in the right system... but at the end we come to a conclusion that both styles (NBA and euro) are just different. Just as Panathinaikos/CSKA would have troubles getting in the playoffs while playing by NBA rules, Clippers or Knicks wouldn't get to euroleague's final four playing by international rules either. none of those teams are build for any other type of bball than their own.


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## luther (Nov 2, 2007)

Good post, and I look forward to seeing you post more often in the international forum.


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