BasketNews proudly presents its very first survey of the general managers from the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague clubs.
The majority of the EuroLeague GMs shared their opinions about off-season moves, took part in predicting what’s going to happen in the upcoming season, and revealed their possible strategies.
In the third part of the survey, we present answers from the GM questions category. The survey was anonymous, so the participants were able to be as genuine as possible.
You can find the first part of the survey here and the second one here.
If you were starting a team today and could sign any player in the EuroLeague, who would it be?
The reigning EuroLeague MVP Vasilije Micic received the most votes in this category. The Anadolu Efes Istanbul point guard got 36.4% of the votes. Nikola Mirotic from FC Barcelona came in second with 18.2% votes.
Behind them, we have five players that are tied with 9.1% votes each: Nikola Milutinov (CSKA Moscow), Nick Calathes (FC Barcelona), Luke Sikma (ALBA Berlin), Achille Polonara (Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul), and Victor Wembanyama (LDLC Asvel Villeurbanne).
| Player | Vote cast |
| Vasilije Micic | 36.4% |
| Nikola Mirotic | 18.2% |
| Nikola Milutinov | 9.1% |
| Nick Calathes | 9.1% |
| Luke Sikma | 9.1% |
| Achille Polonara | 9.1% |
| Victor Wembanyama | 9.1% |
If you were starting a team today and could sign any coach in the EuroLeague, who would it be?
The majority of EuroLeague GMs seem to value coaches with well-pronounced personalities. Barcelona’s coach Sarunas Jasikevicius and FC Bayern Munich’s general Andrea Trinchieri ran away in this category with 27.3% votes each.
Five other coaches were also mentioned, each of them receiving 9.1% votes: Ergin Ataman (Anadolu Efes Istanbul), Ettore Messina (AX Armani Exchange Milan), Aleksandar Djordjevic (Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul), Ioannis Sfairopoulos (Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv), and Aito Garcia Reneses, who stepped down from ALBA Berlin’s coaching duties after last season.
| Coach | Vote cast |
| Sarunas Jasikevicius | 27.3% |
| Andrea Trinchieri | 27.3% |
| Ergin Ataman | 9.1% |
| Ettore Messina | 9.1% |
| Aito Garcia Reneses | 9.1% |
| Aleksandar Djordjevic | 9.1% |
| Ioannis Sfairopoulos | 9.1% |
If you had to join any other organization as the GM, which club would you like to work for?
The votes were much more evenly split when it came to organizations. The majority of EuroLeague GMs would want to work for three teams: FC Barcelona, Zalgiris Kaunas, and Real Madrid received 18.2% votes each.
Five other teams got 9.1% votes each: Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul, AS Monaco, FC Bayern Munich, Crvena Zvezda mts Belgrade, and a team that returned to the EuroCup this season - Valencia Basket.
| Team | Vote cast |
| FC Barcelona | 18.2% |
| Zalgiris Kaunas | 18.2% |
| Real Madrid | 18.2% |
| Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul | 9.1% |
| AS Monaco | 9.1% |
| FC Bayern Munich | 9.1% |
| Crvena Zvezda mts Belgrade | 9.1% |
| Valencia Basket | 9.1% |
If you had a very rich sponsor that gave you money to start a basketball club in any city of your choice, which one would you pick based on the best market, basketball culture, and fans’ experience?
Most GMs agreed that they would like to start a new basketball club in one of two metropolitan cities: Paris and London. Paris was awarded 27.3% votes, while London was close behind with 18.2% votes.
Four more cities received 9.1% votes: The Slovenian capital of Ljubljana, the Spanish town Malaga, and Thessaloniki in Greece. Lastly, Germany was mentioned, too, getting 9.1% votes.
| City/Country | Vote cast |
| Paris | 27.3% |
| London | 18.2% |
| Paris or London | 9.1% |
| Athens | 9.1% |
| Ljubljana | 9.1% |
| Malaga | 9.1% |
| Thessaloniki | 9.1% |
| Germany | 9.1% |
Are you in favor or against EuroLeague teams playing in national championships?
Finally, the GMs were asked about a topic gaining traction since the EuroLeague format changed in 2016: whether EuroLeague teams should play in their respective national championships.
72.7% of GMs believe that the clubs should continue participating in their domestic leagues, while 27.3% disagreed and thought the teams should only focus on the EuroLeague.
| Opinion | Vote cast |
| In favor | 72.7% |
| Against | 27.3% |
