BasketNews presents its very first EuroLeague players ranking, in which 33 players, head coaches, scouts, general managers, and media members from Europe ranked the best players in the competition.

Credit: Srdjan Stevanovic, Panagiotis Moschandreou, Roberto Finizio, Tolga Adanal - Getty Images | BasketNews illustration
Credit Srdjan Stevanovic, Panagiotis Moschandreou, Roberto Finizio, Tolga Adanal - Getty Images | BasketNews illustration

BasketNews presents its very first EuroLeague players ranking, in which 33 players, head coaches, scouts, general managers, and media members from Europe ranked the best players in the competition.

The survey participants were given a list of around 100 EuroLeague players, and after combining all the results, we present you the BasketNews Top 50 EuroLeague players ranking.

The respondents were given such ranking scale:

  • 10 points: MVP contender.
  • 7-9: All EuroLeague 1st and 2nd team contender.
  • 5-6: starting five member on a contender team.
  • 3-4: solid role player.
  • 1-2: best of the rest.

We begin our EuroLeague players ranking by presenting 50-31 places, while the rest of the list will be published in the upcoming days.

50. Marko Guduric (168 points)

After an underwhelming stint in the NBA with the Memphis Grizzlies, Guduric returned to Fenerbahce and once again established himself as one of the core team members.

Guduric also didn't disappear in the star-stacked Serbia team in the EuroBasket 2022, being among the Top 5 players in scoring.

49. Donta Hall (169 points)

Just like AS Monaco, Donta Hall made a strong debut in the EuroLeague, establishing himself as one of the most athletic and explosive players in the competition.

Hall was the most efficient Monaco player after Mike James, averaging 8.4 points and 12.7 PIR.

48. Achille Polonara (171 points)

He was close to signing with Virtus when Ergin Ataman showed up and, in fluent Italian, explained why he sees him as a great fit in Efes.

Polonara messed up Virtus' free agency plans, putting them in a tough situation due to the foreign players limit in the Italian league (with most of the Italians on the team being backcourt players), and switched from Fener to Efes.

Polonara will make the paint less crowded for Micic, Larkin, Clyburn, and Zizic.

47. Darrun Hilliard (172 points)

He appeared in only 39% of Bayern's games last year. But when Hilliard was healthy, he showed up as the biggest perimeter weapon for Andrea Trinchieri. With him on the court, Bavarians' offense improved by 5.4 points per 100 possessions (per Bballytics).

46. Marius Grigonis (173 points)

The only Lithuanian who made it into the BasketNews EuroLeague players ranking. After a shaky season with CSKA Moscow, Grigonis has a chip on his shoulder to prove his worth again.

The 28-year-old guard is coming off a successful EuroBasket campaign, where he averaged 14.5 points, 3.8 rebounds, 3.3 assists, and 13.3 EFF.

45. Sergio Rodriguez (175 points)

Chacho makes his return to Real Madrid, but it will be a completely different team than the one he left, as only his long-time buddies Rudy Fernandez and Sergio Llull are left.

Despite being a 36-year-old, Rodriguez can still produce. He was among the Top 10 in assists last season (4.5 APG) and began the Spanish ACB campaign with 8.5 points and 4.0 assists averages.

44-42. Vincent Poirier (176 points)

Another Real Madrid member who was a key piece leading Los Blancos to the EuroLeague final last year.

Poirier averaged 17.3 minutes last season but still managed to accumulate 11.7 PIR on average and always brought his energy on the court, which resulted in blocks or offensive rebounds.

44-42. Iffe Lundberg (176 points)

After reaching the top of European basketball in a blink of an eye, Lundberg fulfilled his NBA dream with the Phoenix Suns.

Although it wasn't a groundbreaking stint, Lundberg built a solid reputation in his two seasons with CSKA and is seen as one of the Virtus leaders.

44-42. Moustapha Fall (176 points)

One of the best all-around centers in the EuroLeague. Per Bballytics, only three bigs had a better defensive rating than Fall last year: Kyle Hines, Jan Vesely, and Walter Tavares.

Who was ahead of Fall in the overall net rating? Nobody.

41-38. Milos Teodosic (182 points)

Maestro is back. One of the most experienced players in the Top 50 returns to the EuroLeague after five years. Teo turns 36 in March but remains very important in Sergio Scariolo's game plan. He is coming off a season where he led EuroCup in assists (7.9 APG).

41-38. Elie Okobo (182 points)

The highest-scoring EuroLeague rookie of the last season (14.5 PPG). Okobo is coming off the toughest calendar of 2021-22.

He finished his 10-month season on June 25, joined the French national team at the end of July, and played in the EuroBasket final on September 18. Now he's facing the challenge of finding chemistry with Mike James and Jordan Loyd without a single preseason game in Monaco.

41-38. Jordan Mickey (182 points)

The 28-year-old faces his fifth EuroLeague campaign and built a reputation as one of the best power forwards in Europe.

Mickey already was Virtus' top scorer in the Italian Super Cup final and Italian league game against Napoli, in which he accumulated 23 points, 5 rebounds, and 30 EFF.

41-38. Chris Jones (182 points)

Jones finished his 10-month season with ASVEL on June 25, and four days later, he was already leading Armenia to the throne of the European championship for small countries. A tireless 29-year-old guard was drawing NBA interest but stayed in Europe as one of the highest recruited point guards in free agency.

37. Johnathan Motley (184 points)

Highest ranked EuroLeague rookie and the only rookie that made the BasketNews Top 50 after averaging 21.2 points and 7.0 rebounds in the EuroCup last season.

"I know all the big dogs that come from all the Final Four teams. He's that type of talent," his former teammate Errick McCollum assured.

36. Jordan Loyd (191 points)

Back in the 2020-21 season, Loyd was a Top 3 player in points per game, establishing himself as one of the most prolific scorers in the EuroLeague.

Now, he joins an ambitious Monaco project, forming a deadly duo with Mike James. As Loyd said, he knows Monaco can achieve a big dream, and the 28-year-old can be a big part of that dream.

35-33. Ante Zizic (193 points)

After being a dominant force with Tel Aviv Maccabi last season (12.2 PPG, 5.0 RPG, 15.5 PIR), Zizic joined back-to-back champions Anadolu Efes Istanbul.

The Croatian big man was the most efficient Maccabi player, allowing him to make EuroLeague Top 10 in efficiency during the regular season. Only Walter Tavares, Jan Vesely, Sasha Vezenkov, and Giorgios Papagiannis put better numbers among forwards.

35-33. Luke Sikma (193 points)

In the last year's BasketNews survey, EuroLeague GMs named seven players they would pick to start a franchise. Luke Sikma was next to Vasilije Micic, Nikola Mirotic, and Nick Calathes.

Unique skill and PG's floor vision for a big, including a great personality, make him a cornerstone player in ALBA.

35-33. Georgios Papagiannis (193 points)

The lowest ranked All-EuroLeague Team member in this Top 50. He was the only non-playoff team representative that made the 1st or 2nd team. Papagiannis, 25, was on the NBA radar this summer but stayed in Panathinaikos for the last season of his five-year deal.

32. Kevin Punter (194 points)

We all knew Kevin Punter as a top-class scorer when he played his best EuroLeague season in Milan (14.3 PPG). But he flourished as the group leader, becoming a role model for the young Partizan players and getting giant trust from Zeljko Obradovic. With Partizan looking for an improvement in the 2nd year with Zeljko, a lot will go on KP's shoulders.

31. Thomas Walkup (198 points)

Walkup's numbers don't look as sexy as most of the players in this ranking. However, it's not the numbers that make Walkup such a valuable player.

His dedication to defense and ability to fulfill almost every coach's task allow Walkup to be highly appreciated by his peers.

You can find all the BasketNews EuroLeague players' ranking editions here:

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