Euroleague Quarter-Finals

[mogrovejo]

The 8 best clubs in Europe battling for a place in the Final 4. Lots of former and future NBAers. Starts today. Best of 5 series. First team has HCA

FC Barcelona vs. Real Madrid (ESPN 360º)
CSKA Moscow vs. Caja Laboral Baskonia
Maccabi TelAviv vs. Partizan Belgrade
Olympiacos vs. Asseco Prokom

http://www.euroleague.net/

How to watch:
http://www.euroleague.net/main/tv/by-date
All games in Euroleague TV.


I have Olympiacos in 3
Maccabi in 4
CSKA vs Baskonia can go both ways, CSKA in 5 due to HCA
Barcelona in 5

Curious to see how Barcelona and Partizan do as they are less battle tested than their opponents, having faced extremely weak opponents in the Top-16 (previous stage).

[DAF86]

Agreed on everything except in the Barca- Real Madrid matchup. I think Madrid wins that one in 4 or 5.

[velik_m]

Real hasn't beat Barca this year yet, and i don't see that changing. It will be a sweep.

[DAF86]

Real hasn't beat Barca this year yet, and i don't see that changing. It will be a sweep.

It's easy to go for the favorite, just wait and see :hat

[DAF86]

Barca 37 - Real 36 at the half.

[velik_m]

It's easy to go for the favorite, just wait and see :hat

Well Barca won the first game.

I've seen quite a few of ACB&Euroleague games this season, especially of Barcelona, and Barca is just stacked with talent and other teams in ACB are not even close.

[DAF86]

Well Barca won the first game.

I've seen quite a few of ACB&Euroleague games this season, especially of Barcelona, and Barca is just stacked with talent and other teams in ACB are not even close.

Really close game though, Real couldn't buy a bucket in the last 3+ minutes of the game, I doubt that would happen again. I know Barca is the favorite and that they haven't lost a game at home this season but Real is pretty stacked too and IMO it will be a tougher series than what everyone is expecting.

[mogrovejo]

Really close game though, Real couldn't buy a bucket in the last 3+ minutes of the game, I doubt that would happen again.

Of course it will happen again, it's already happened multiple times this season. What won't happen again is Barcelona shooting 4/25 from behind the line, with Navarro going 0/6. That's what kept the game close.

I can see this series go 5 games because I'm expecting a couple of close wins to Real (the only kind of loss Barcelona had this season) in the 2 games at Madrid. But I see no way Real wins this series. I think Barcelona sweeping them is more probable.

This Barcelona team is in a class apart not just from the other ACB teams but from all the other European teams. I can see them losing in the final4, but in a 5 game series? No chance.

[mogrovejo]

Very surprised by the result of the game in Israel. Huge win for Partizan, they can now decide the series in Pionir. I'm going to watch that game now.

Almost as surprised by how close Prokom kept the game in Olympiacos.

[mogrovejo]

Day 2.

Game in Moscow about to start.

Maccabi fighting for survival.

Barcelona vs. Real in EPSN360 and NBA TV.

[mogrovejo]

CSKL is blowing out Baskonia for the 2nd consecutive game. It seems Caja is completely out of depth. Splitter is out of sync (came back from injury too soon?), their role-players are playing scared and their PG play is pathetic. I can see CSKA winning 1 in Vitoria.

[DAF86]

70-63 Real

[Kill_Bill_Pana]

70-63 Real

If Barca wins the series I will give good credit to them. To be honest I never thought they could even make it past top 16.

For their coach they have Pascual who is always known as a very bad coach. For their guards they have a 19 year old kid who is barely even good enough to be in the Euroleague (please ignore complete nonsense about him being some great player now) and then 3 of the biggest ball hogs ever with Navarro, Basile, Lakovic.

To be honest I am very surprised they had played so good this season. If they win the championship they have really over achieved with their team and their coach. But somehow against a real coach like Messina and a real point guard like Prigioni you can just see them falling apart. They won the first game on luck. Even if the beat real I do not see them to win against CSKA or Olympiacos but you never know.

When they played against PAO for example every crazy shot in the world you can imagine went in. No matter how crazy the 3 point attempt was by Lakovic, Navarro, Basile. So they can always get lucky and make those crazy shots but somehow I think this luck they had will run out same as it did last year.

[Kill_Bill_Pana]

CSKL is blowing out Baskonia for the 2nd consecutive game. It seems Caja is completely out of depth. Splitter is out of sync (came back from injury too soon?), their role-players are playing scared and their PG play is pathetic. I can see CSKA winning 1 in Vitoria.

Splitter is extremely overrated in this forum. He has never been able to carry a team. He really is not worthy of all the hype he gets here.

[mogrovejo]

If Barca wins the series I will give good credit to them. To be honest I never thought they could even make it past top 16.

For their coach they have Pascual who is always known as a very bad coach. For their guards they have a 19 year old kid who is barely even good enough to be in the Euroleague (please ignore complete nonsense about him being some great player now) and then 3 of the biggest ball hogs ever with Navarro, Basile, Lakovic.

To be honest I am very surprised they had played so good this season. If they win the championship they have really over achieved with their team and their coach. But somehow against a real coach like Messina and a real point guard like Prigioni you can just see them falling apart. They won the first game on luck. Even if the beat real I do not see them to win against CSKA or Olympiacos but you never know.

When they played against PAO for example every crazy shot in the world you can imagine went in. No matter how crazy the 3 point attempt was by Lakovic, Navarro, Basile. So they can always get lucky and make those crazy shots but somehow I think this luck they had will run out same as it did last year.


Panathinaikos is even worse than I thought, being eliminated by such a weak team. :(

[mogrovejo]

What won't happen again is Barcelona shooting 4/25 from behind the line, with Navarro going 0/6. That's what kept the game close.

It did happen again. Navarro, Basile and Lakovic combined to 2/15 from behind the line. Atrocious shooting. Great game from Tomic. That's why I put this going 5 games, Real is good enough to take advantage of bad nights from Barcelona.

[mogrovejo]

Splitter is extremely overrated in this forum. He has never been able to carry a team. He really is not worthy of all the hype he gets here.

I thought that European basketball was superior to the NBA because concepts such "a star carrying a team" didn't exist. :depressed

I mean you said that LeBron James wouldn't carry an Euroleague team to success; why would you expect Splitter to do it?

[Kill_Bill_Pana]

Panathinaikos is even worse than I thought, being eliminated by such a weak team. :(

Panathinaikos had endless injuries all year long. So yes they were very weak this year in Euroleague. As soon as some of their players started to get healthy they won at Partizan, beat Maroussi using the second unit and beat Olympiacos also.

Of course since you have never watch any Euroleague games you would not know that Panathinaikos had almost the whole team injured during the first part of Euroleague top 16.

Do not worry they will win Greek championship even if Olympiacos is Euroleague champion they will lose. Your precious Barca could not have a prayer to beat PAO in a playoff. Only team that could even be competitive is CSKA and they would still lose.

So I am hope that Olympiacos wins Euroleague so that PAO can crush them in Greek finals and prove once again they are the best team in Europe after they got past the injuries.

[Kill_Bill_Pana]

It did happen again. Navarro, Basile and Lakovic combined to 2/15 from behind the line. Atrocious shooting. Great game from Tomic. That's why I put this going 5 games, Real is good enough to take advantage of bad nights from Barcelona.

For Navarro. It is a typical night for him. He is either 7/7 from 3 or 0/7. If he ever wins a championship as the best player I will be very surprised. In Europe he is called a "game killer" and not a "killer". A killer is a player that kills the the opponent and a game killer is a player that kills his own team.

Some players known as "killers" in Europe is Jasikevicius, Spanoulis, Siskauskas, "game killers" are players like Navarro and Lakovic. Lakovic has rep of being biggest loser in Europe and Navrro of being biggest choker in Europe.

But you do not know this because you do not follow Euroleague. It is obvious by your ridiculous comments "Rubio is best point guard in Europe". Barca is like the Phoenix Suns of Euroleague or maybe you could compare them to Colts of NFL if you want.

They are the biggest chokers in Europe.

[Kill_Bill_Pana]

I thought that European basketball was superior to the NBA because concepts such "a star carrying a team" didn't exist. :depressed

I mean you said that LeBron James wouldn't carry an Euroleague team to success; why would you expect Splitter to do it?

You have never follow Euroleague and watch it. Maybe now you have seen a few games on ESPN of Rubio. You just do not understand the Euroleague. Splitter is so overrate in US it is just funny. In US they talk about him as if he was better than Scola. Truth is he could not ever be Scola in his wildest dreams.

Yes he is a good player, a very good player in his own way, but please this talk on him "best big man in Europe" is so stupid. He is top 5-10 big man and no better than that.

[mogrovejo]

Panathinaikos had endless injuries all year long. So yes they were very weak this year in Euroleague. As soon as some of their players started to get healthy they won at Partizan, beat Maroussi using the second unit and beat Olympiacos also.

Of course since you have never watch any Euroleague games you would not know that Panathinaikos had almost the whole team injured during the first part of Euroleague top 16.

:lmaoThey lost to Barcelona, then they lost to Barcelona again and three days later... they beat Oly because they were finally healthy. 3 fucking days. They played the same guys. And 4 days later or so they beat Maroussi. Because only lack of health prevented them from beating Barcelona, sure. :rollin

[Kill_Bill_Pana]

:lmaoThey lost to Barcelona, then they lost to Barcelona again and three days later... they beat Oly because they were finally healthy. 3 fucking days. They played the same guys. And 4 days later or so they beat Maroussi. Because only lack of health prevented them from beating Barcelona, sure. :rollin


Like I said you do not know Euroleague issues but talk like you do. Panathinaikos players were all injured. You will see. Olympiacos will be easily beaten once again in Greek finals, even if they are Euroleague champion.

Is no point to discuss with you when you can't even understand a team full of injured players will lose games.

[mogrovejo]

So, who were the players injured when Barcelona humiliated them in Athens that were healthy when they beat Olympiacos?

[Kill_Bill_Pana]

So, who were the players injured when Barcelona humiliated them in Athens that were healthy when they beat Olympiacos?

70-67 is "humiliation"...............

right. no point in even discuss with you anymore.

[mogrovejo]

So, you don't have an answer? Not surprise. I knew this "they were injured!" lame-ass excuse had no legs, especially considering your failed predictions.

And yeah, being swept, losing at home and failing to qualify for the quarter-finals is humiliation for a title holder.

[Kill_Bill_Pana]

So, you don't have an answer? Not surprise. I knew this "they were injured!" lame-ass excuse had no legs, especially considering your failed predictions.

And yeah, being swept, losing at home and failing to qualify for the quarter-finals is humiliation for a title holder.

You cannot be an expert in things you have no knowledge of. Try to learn that and maybe it will be possible to discuss with you in the future.

And please keep talking crap. If Olympiacos wins Euroleague as soon as PAO beats then in the Greek playoffs it will just make you look foolish. Maybe some people here believe you know what you are talking about. If you are smart you will want to keep up this charade. So smart thing to do would be to quit while you are leading as they say.

[mogrovejo]

Still no answer?

You need to put your act together. First the Pekovic and top center in Europe hilarious debacle. Now you can't even explain whose comeback made PAO more healthy in that 3 days span. Or why did you predict PAO would eliminate Barcelona and Partizan - ridiculous then, still ridiculous now.

What's the problem with Oly winning the Euroleague and losing the Greek league?

[Kill_Bill_Pana]

Still no answer?

You need to put your act together. First the Pekovic and top center in Europe hilarious debacle. Now you can't even explain whose comeback made PAO more healthy in that 3 days span. Or why did you predict PAO would eliminate Barcelona and Partizan - ridiculous then, still ridiculous now.

What's the problem with Oly winning the Euroleague and losing the Greek league?

I am just from now on never responding to you again. I am sick of your troll posts.

[DxB]

Barcas too stacked not to win the Euroleague... and the Champions league for that matter!:P

FORZA BARCA

[mogrovejo]

Great article from Truehoop on Qyntel Woods:

Qyntel Woods: From Portland To Poland (http://espn.go.com/blog/truehoop/post/_/id/14531/qyntel-woods-from-portland-to-poland)


By Marc Stein


It'll take three wins in the next four games against a big-spending European powerhouse that can double-team him with Josh Childress and Linas Kleiza.

That's how near and far away Qyntel Woods is from getting back to one of basketball's biggest stages.

Getting to the prestigious Euroleague Final Four will require Woods to rally his Asseco Prokom team out of a 1-0 deficit in the Polish champions' best-of-five series with mighty Olympiacos, which had the financial resources to convince Childress and Kleiza to leave the NBA and which threw its riches in recent years at Chris Webber and Allen Iverson to try to lure them to Greece.

Getting to the Euroleague Final Four, though, first required Woods to lead unheralded Prokom to the Euroleague quarterfinals for the first time in the club's history. Which pretty much no one expected.

Last seen on these shores in 2005-06, Woods is quietly rebuilding his career in Poland as one of the most successful Americans in Europe. Olympiacos is heavily favored in this series, which continues Thursday with Game 2 in Greece, but Prokom nearly stole Game 1 on the road, led by 23 points and 11 rebounds from the former Trail Blazers first-round pick with the troubled past.

So ...

The obvious question: Is Woods, at 29, playing his way back to the NBA?

The answer: Yes and no.

Talk to NBA personnel folks about Woods and you get a mixed response. Some are quick to say that Woods' baggage -- after pleading guilty to an animal-abuse charge involving dogs in October 2004 that ended his career with the Blazers -- outweighs any potential payoff from giving him another shot.

Said one Western Conference general manager: "Samsonite."

Yet Woods has also won a few admirers around the league for his willingness to go to Poland and keep refining his game after his own unsuccessful stint with Olympiacos and a stop in Italy with Fortitudo Bologna.

"He's been playing great for Prokom," one veteran personnel man said. "He's been solid overseas. I think someone will take a chance on him."

Said another GM out West: "He's an NBA talent for sure. And he's grown by leaps and bounds as a person."

The reality Woods faces is that the only two teams to employ him domestically since his NBA demise in Portland are Miami and New York, where he was brought in by two of the league's few bulletproof names: Pat Riley and Larry Brown. But even Brown proved not to be bulletproof with the Knicks, as both he and Woods were swiftly ousted after New York's disastrous 2005-06 season.

Another factor likely to keep Woods abroad is money: He's a seven-figure player for Prokom as he enters free agency this summer. Not only does Prokom hope to re-sign him, but Woods, according to one well-connected source in the European market, is already attracting interest from Spanish giants Real Madrid for next season.

Because of the current risk-averse financial climate in the NBA and the potential PR hit any team faces by signing him if things go wrong, Woods would almost certainly be asked by any interested NBA team to play summer-league ball and/or come to training camp on a contract that isn't fully guaranteed. Which wouldn't be an easy call for Woods given the financial level he's reached in Europe.

"I think I'm closer [to the NBA] than I was," Woods said in a phone interview this week. "But mostly I don't even think about [the NBA]. It doesn't help to think about it. I try to focus on the season over here.

"I want the best situation for me. I would love to play in the NBA again, but if I'm not going to be a productive player and just be there, I don't want to be there. I'd rather be somewhere playing [regularly]."

Asked if he thinks NBA teams are prepared to finally pardon him for his Portland transgressions and lack of off-court discipline in his younger days, Woods said: "So far they haven't let go, but I think they should let go in my opinion. A lot of people make mistakes. Mistakes are made and people get wiser and get older and get better as a person."

There's little doubt that the 6-foot-8, 230-pound swingman has improved his game in multiple areas (ballhandling, rebounding, shot selection) since we last saw him as a Knick. There's likewise little doubt that he'd be an NBA rotation player if talent were the lone consideration. But Woods insists he'll cope just fine if he ends up staying in Poland or moving to another Euroleague club.

"It's definitely different," Woods said of life in the Polish city of Gdynia, where Prokom plays in a 5,000-seat arena.

"It's OK. It's not as bad as people would think. The weather is cold, but it's not bad at all. ... Everybody [in Poland] accepts me. They're behind me. They support me."

Woods says that he mostly stay indoors in his spare time, dodging the cold by watching movies or connecting with friends back in the States on Skype.

The 5,000-plus miles that separate Poland from Portland, furthermore, provide a different kind of insulation.

"The past never comes up over here," he said.

------------

Woods isn't a NBA player though. Too slow to play against NBA wings. Too ball-dominant and selfish to be a role-player. Mike Harris type of talent.

[mogrovejo]

I am just from now on never responding to you again because I feel to embarrassed by my incoherent babbling and my pathetic thesis that Panathinaikos lose two games in a row to Barcelona because they were dealing with injuries and yet won vs. Olympiacos 3 days later with the exact same players because they were healthy. I just hate Barcelona and Spanish teams almost as much as I hate the NBA and they're completely owning my sorry ass this season.

That's fine, we all go through bad moments in our lifes.

[mogrovejo]

Olympiacos lost a game vs. Prokom. This has been a horrible year for Greek teams.

Caja Laboral and Splitter with a comfortable win over CSKA. Splitter had a very good game.

Partizan a home win away from eliminating Maccabi. Vesely is very underrated as a draft prospect.

Barcelona with a 14 points lead over Real midway the 3rd quarter.

[yavozerb]

Thanks mogro, glad to hear splitter is doing well..even if its only against the greek teams :lol

[velik_m]

Barcelona, Olympiacos, CSKA and Partizan made it to final4

[mogrovejo]

I went to the game in Vistalegre. Rubio, Navarro and Lorbek are superb. Real played well, but this Barcelona team is a different kind of animal, they have NBA-like athleticism. As I've said, in a F4 everyone can win and lose but others team have to expect a bad game to Barcelona to have a chance to beat them.

Great win for Partizan, amazing story. I'll be pulling for them in Paris.