Euroleague fantasy tips – group D 2015 is the final article in our series before the season start. You can find our earlier articles on our Euroleague Fantasy page. Also please note that we will reveal our official Fantasy Sports info EFC team tomorrow on twitter and we will also create a league which you are more than welcome to join. So please check back later to find a code if you are interested. Now without further ado, let’s reveal our fantasy tips from Euroleague group D.
Euroleague fantasy tips – group D 2015
Maccabi FOX Tel Aviv
Jordan Farmar: Definitely one of the best guards in Europe at the moment and a true Euroleague fantasy gold. Farmar has got a lot of NBA and Euroleague experience. He already played for Maccabi back in the 2011-2012 season. He was one of their best players at the time and I expect nothing less this season. I’ve watched a few of their preparation games and he looks to have a lot of authorities on this team once again. He is a great scorer who has the capacity to score 20+ points on any defense in Europe. Maccabi’s style suits him very well and he should be one of Euroleague’s top performers. He will cost you 70 fantasy credits, but he is worth every last penny you pay for him.
Dragan Bender: Bender is a 17 year old Croatian prodigy that should be making his Euroleague debut this season. His position should be PF as he is more the 210 cm tall (no accurate data as he is still developing, some say he is even 216 cm tall!?), but coach Goodes even used him as a SF in some periods of the game. The only other true PF on the team is Brian Randle, so I guess Bender will mostly be playing as a PF. No matter what position he will be taking, this kid is an amazing talent. Great shooter, rebounder, shot blocker and, most importantly for professional basketball at this level, already very tough. He is not a weak spot when it comes to defense and that fact should get him a lot of playing time for such a young player. Maccabi played two preparation games against Milano and coach Goodes instructed Bender to guard Alessandro Gentile. Yes, Bender guarded a much quicker player and did an excellent job, not allowing him to make the layup. He is player that has already been projected as a top 5 NBA draft pick. He is still very young, but an amazing talent that already looks ready for the highest European level. Worth considering for your Fantasy Euroleague team because he will cost you only 28 credits.
Arinze Onuaku: This is a bit risky pick, but I’m willing to try Onuaku out for a small price of 34 credits. Onuaku is a real beast of a man that covers PF-C positions. It seems that Vitor Faverani is having some injury problems, so Onuaku should get some playing time right away in Moscow, even though he signed with Maccabi just the other day. He has the experience of a few NBA teams as well as a few NBA D-league teams. Could Onuaku be the surprise of the Euroleague Fantasy round 1 for such a small price? Maybe…
CSKA Moscow
Kyle Hines: An undersized American center with great tenacity and toughness. Hines looks to me as if somebody took a 215 cm tall and slim center and compressed him into a 198 cm and bulk guy. Hines is very powerful and stable on his feet, so it is very hard even for Europe’s biggest centers to push him under the rim. He is a great rebounder and a real team player, which makes him a player that every coach would love to have in his team. He should get a lot more playing time this year, since Sasha Kaun is no longer a CSKA player. Hines should be a valuable asset to your Euroleague fantasy team.
Nando De Colo: One of the most expensive players you can get, but how to ignore him after his performances in the Euroleague last season as well as at the Eurobasket. He was the only non-NBA player among the French starting 5, but that did not stop him in finishing the tournament as their best player. De Colo returned from the NBA last season to join CSKA and he immediately proved to be a bullseye for the Russian powerhouse. He is an amazing shooter and a great penetrator that has the size for the NBA. He is a legitimate NBA player that without any exaggeration belongs on the other side of the Atlantic. While he is still on this side I’ll be glad to put him in my Euroleague fantasy team. If you have enough credits left, you should too.
Arron Jackson: Of course the best PG (one of the best in Europe) on this team is Milos Teodosic, but he costs 90 credits. So if you have that much to spend you should definitely take Teodosic instead, but for 55 credits you can get Jackson. He is an Experienced Euroleague guard that should have an even more significant role on the team, since a great scorer like Sonny Weems is out of the picture. Jackson is a very good backup PG that sometimes plays along side Teodosic as a SG. He is worth considering for 55 credits.
Unicaja Malaga
Richard Hendrix: Hedrix seems to fit very well in coach Plaza’s system, although he is a newcomer. He is similar type of player like Vladimir Golubovic who had a very good year in Malaga last season. Hendrix should be Unicaja’s primary option on the center position in front of two veterans: Fran Vazquez and German Gabriel. Hendrix is not among the very best in the Euroleague, but he should have a formidable role in this team. For 51 credits Hendrix is a good Euroleague fantasy purchase.
Will Thomas: A player that could have little bit bigger role on this team then he did last year, especially at the very start of the season. He is a reliable player and I see him as coach Plaza’s soldier. 46 credits is not too much for Will Tomas.
Edwin Jackson: I expect a much better season for the French guard then the one he had with Barcelona last year. He is one of the best shooters on this team, if not the best. He should get more minutes in Unicaja and more shots to fire, especially because he a better shooter then most of Unicaja’s guards like Markovic or Nedovic. He could easily be one of the main offensive weapons of this team and he is worth considering for 47 credits.
Dinamo Banco di Sardegna Sassari
David Logan: You could say that Logan is the leader of the team from Sardinia. He is an experienced SG that has played in some of Europe’s best teams like Maccabi, Panathinaikos and Baskonia. It is obvious that he enjoys playing for this team, because he does not have to play extremely hard defense in order to earn his playing time. He is deadly shooter that will knock down almost every open shot, but he can also score form very difficult situations. He has been with the team for some time now and as I said he could be considered as leader of this team. 54credits is a bargain for such a good player with a lot of scoring potential.
Christian Eyenga: An athletic SF-PF, who’s main strength is rebounding, but can also shoot from distance. He played for Zielona Gora during their 2013-2014 Euroleague campaign. I had him on my fantasy team throughout the regular season back then and he was one of my top performers. He is now a member of Sassari, a team in which he should fit very well. The team from Sardegna is made from athletic players that like to run, shoot and rebound. Eyenga should thrive in that kind of game style. He is a very good Euroleague fantasy purchase for 46 credits.
Rok Stipcevic: Croatian PG who should also be a perfect fit for this team. He is a player that is made for run and gun game which Sassari practices. He just loves to shoot threes and play fast basketball. He had a a great season last year in Roma and I expect him to have another good year in Italy.
Brose Baskets Bamberg
Bradley Wanamaker: Probably the best player on this team that does not cost too much. 54 credits for a player who should be one of the leaders in this team and certainly one of the top performers. Despite the fact Brose has a tough away game against Unicaja, Wanamaker should deliver.
Janis Strelnieks: Another PG from the German team. Strelnieks is a member of the Latvian national team and one of their best players. He is a sharp shooter much like all other Latvian players. You will have to spend just one credit more then on Wanamaker, but he is also worth considering as he too should be one of the leaders of this team.
Niccolo Melli: An Italian PF that has got a lot of Euroleague experience with Armani Milano. He came to Bamberg this season and it seems to me that coach Trinchieri found a way to get the best out of him. I expect him to have a much bigger role in this team then in Milano these past few years. You can get him now for 47 credits, but I think his role on this team deserves a few credits more. Melli is worth considering for your Euroleague fantasy Challenge team.
Darussafaka Dogus Istanbul
Luke Harangody: Definitely my first pick from this team. Harangody is a player with probably the ugliest shot in the entire Euroleague. His shot may be ugly be he knocks down corner three pointers on regular basis. He is stretch 4 that goes for every rebound and plays with amazing energy. He is a hard worker and a great team player. You can always expect him to pull down some rebounds and make a few threes. He had significant roles in teams like Unics and Valencia. There is no doubt in my mind that will earn his minutes in Darussafaka as well and become one of the best players of this team. This is almost a brand new team with just a few players from last year. I think that he is heavily under priced with 45 credits, especially since they are playing against Sassari in the first round. Sassari is a team that does not protect their paint well and it is always a good idea to get a big guy from the opposite team. I will offer you players from this team with that taught in mind.
Semih Erden: Only 47 credits for a player of his talent and experience. He played very good with the Turkish national team this summer on the Eurobasket, so his form should not be an issue. He played last year for Fenerbahce and had really good performances from time to time. Coach Obradovic dosed his appearances and managed to use his talent when he saw a good opportunity for Erden to dominate over his defenders. Erden has got the potential to be one of the leaders among Euroleague centers when it comes to val. points, presuming coach Mahmuti manages to get the best of him. Player with a lot of great teams on his career sheet that could be considered as reinforcement to almost any team in Europe looks like a good Euroleague fantasy asset as well.
Oguz Savas: Another big guy from this team and another former Fenerbahce player. You obviously won’t take all three players that I’ve offered from this team as they are all big men, but they all have a good chance to increase their value in the first round against Sassari. As I said my first pick from this team is Harangody, because I see him as one of the best players on this team, not just in the first round. If you don’t like Erden, you should consider Savas as he is a heavy center and those kind of players often perform very good against teams like Sassari.
Conclusion
Today, in our final pre season Euroleague Fantasy Challenge tips article I presented three players from each of the Euroleague group D teams with fantasy appeal. If you like or dislike our picks, please let us now in the comments below and please share if you like this article. And finally we would like to remind you that our official EFC team will be published tomorrow.