Euroleague Basketball's annual mid-season survey polls Turkish Airlines EuroLeague general managers on a series of fan-centric questions about the competition. At the halfway point of the regular season, the GMs were asked about their Final Four favorites, the most surprising team, and the best head coach, among other questions.
FC Barcelona, Real Madrid, CSKA Moscow, and AX Armani Exchange were chosen as the main candidates to reach the Final Four.
Currently, only Barcelona and Real Madrid are in the top four in the regular-season standings, as Olympiacos Piraeus stand third, while Zenit St. Petersburg – fourth.
The reigning champions Anadolu Efes Istanbul also didn't make the list.
Main Final Four candidates
- FC Barcelona (94.4% votes)
- Real Madrid (94.4%)
- CSKA Moscow (66.7%)
- AX Armani Exchange Milan (55.6%)
Real Madrid are also the most fun-to-watch team, according to EuroLeague GMs. Efes free flow basketball and LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne also made the list.
Most fun-to-watch team
- Real Madrid (33.3%)
- Anadolu Efes Istanbul (16.7%)
- LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne (16.7%)
There were no surprises in the most surprising team category, as UNICS Kazan took the honor. The Russian team has an 11-7 record and currently stands in 5th place.
Most surprising team
- UNICS Kazan (66.7%)
As expected, the current leaders, Barcelona, are the most uncomfortable opponent for other EuroLeague teams. Jasikevicius team leads in the offensive rating has the third-best net rating in the tournament.
Most uncomfortable opponent
- FC Barcelona 33.3%
- Olympiacos Piraeus 22.2%
- Anadolu Efes Istanbul (11.1%)
Barcelona continues their dominance in this GM survey, as Catalans star Nikola Mirotic was selected as the best clutch player.
Mirotic averages 17.9 points, 5.7 rebounds, 1.4 assists, and 22.2 PIR per game.
Best clutch player
- Nikola Mirotic (33.3%)
As expected, LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne's guard Elie Okobo was selected as the player, having the best breakout season.
In his first EuroLeague season, the French guard averages 16.4 points, 3.2 rebounds, 3.7 assists, and 15.3 PIR per game.
Best breakout season
- Elie Okobo (55.6%)
Speaking of the best shooters in the tournament, ALBA Berlin's sharpshooter Marcus Eriksson edged out Barcelona's sniper Kyle Kuric in the race for the name of the best shooter in the tournament.
FC Barcelona / Schedule
Bitci Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz
FC Barcelona
CSKA MoscowEriksson averages 13.5 points per game, making 45.1% of his 3-pointers (32/71).
Meanwhile, Kuric scores 8.8 per game on a 39.7 accuracy from deep (23/58).
Statistically, Isaiah Canaan made the most 3-pointers so far (55). He is followed by Scottie Wilbekin (47), Tyler Dorsey (42), Billy Baron (38), and Nikola Mirotic (36).
Best Pure Shooter
- Marcus Eriksson (33.3%
- Kyle Kuric (27.8%)
GMs were also asked about their most desired players. As expected, Nikola Mirotic was the most popular choice again.
However, Vasilije Micic and Walter Tavares also received a fair share of votes as well.
Players you would sign
- Nikola Mirotic (27.8%)
- Vasilije Micic (22.2%)
- Walter Tavares (16.7%)
Speaking of MVP. Do you want to guess who got the biggest share of votes? You got it, it's Nikola Mirotic. Surprisingly, Barcelona's star wasn't unanimous selection in this category.
2021-22 Regular-season MVP
- Nikola Mirotic (88.9%)
Flashy dribbles, powerful dunks, or creative assists. What players come to mind first when you see such words? According to EuroLeague GMs, it's either Donta Hall or Shane Larkin who were selected as the most spectacular players to watch.
Most spectacular player
- Donta Hall (16.7%)
- Shane Larkin (16.7)
Speaking of the brightest youngster in the EuroLeague, Barcelona's newcomer Rokas Jokubaitis got the recognition. A 21-year-old Lithuanian was selected as the main candidate to win the Rising Star award.
Rising Star Candidate
- Rokas Jokubaitis (38.9%)
It's been almost two months since Nick Calathes stepped on the court, but EuroLeague GMs didn't forget them. 2/3 of voters selected the Greek point guard as the best passer of the EuroLeague.
This season Calathes averages 8.4 points, 5.2 rebounds, 5.7 assists, and 13.1 PIR in 10 games played.
Best Passer
- Nick Calathes (66.7%)
Barcelona and Nikola Mirotic continue their dominance in the GM mid-season survey. This time, Mirotic was selected as the best leader, receiving one-third of all votes.
Best leader
- Nikola Mirotic (33.3%)
Speaking of defense, Real Madrid's center Walter Tavares was unparalleled in the best defender category, racking more than 70% of the votes.
He is averaging 12.2 points, 7.3 rebounds, 1.9 blocks, and 19.8 PIR.
Best Defender
- Walter Tavares (72.2%)
The last category award is also going to Madrid as Pablo Laso was selected as the best coach of the competition. Despite the losses of Facundo Campazzo and Gabriel Deck from last season, Laso managed to keep Real at the top.
At the moment, Los Blancos lost only 3 games of 17 and could catch up with leaders Barcelona, which have a 15-3 record. There's no doubt that most of this season's success belongs to Laso.
Best coach
- Pablo Laso (44.4%)
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