Sportando European Team of the Week: Week of May 6

Things are heating up in Europe, and we’re not talking about the weather. Across The Continent, everything’s coming to a head with regular seasons ending and playoffs starting/finishing everywhere. Clutch play, leadership intangibles and surprising contributions caught the eye in making up the Sportando European Team of the Week this week; who was excellent in tournament play or on the home stretch in the previous seven days? Read up on our selections – and check out the video links – below.

First team

John Roberson, PG, Sodertalje Kings. On Tuesday night, Roberson led the Sodertalje Kings to a decisive game six Swedish league championship series victory over the Sundsvall Rabbits in an apparently pretty odd 109-104 shootout. In a game which saw a combined 136 shots launched, Sodertalje drew some 32 trips to the line against a mere 11 for the Dragons; Roberson’s point total reflected the Kings’ game itself: 42 points (Europe’s individual high-scoring performance for the week) on 13-of-20 and 14-of-15 shooting.

Video: Celebrating a championship the Swedish way (with a chorus and possibly a Viking funeral, that is)

Jason Smith, G, CAB Madeira. Portugal’s league playoffs are in full swing, and no one is tearing it up over there right now like Smith. The former Alabama-Huntsville Chargers/Levski Sofia guard was good for an average of 21.0 points and 4.0 assists in three playoff games this past week; right now, Smith’s Madeira is locked in a 1-1 tie with Academica in the semifinal round there.

Video: Instant nostalgia from 2013 as Madeira does the Harlem Shake

Mindaugas Kuzminskas, F, Žalgiris Kaunas. All Žalgiris did the past seven days was go up 3-0 on rivals Lietuvos Rytas including a 27-point game three win. You can pick your Greens player for Team of the Week; we’ll go with Kuzminskas and his averages of 14.6 points and 7.3 boards in the series thus far.

Video: Kuzminskas shredding Lietuvos Rytas in game one

Joakim Noah, PF/C, Chicago Bulls. “Gritty” doesn’t begin to describe Noah’s performance in games six and seven of the Bulls’ first-round NBA playoff series against the Brooklyn Nets. Hobbled by nearly enough injuries to make him an honorary Los Angeles Laker, the big Frenchmen proved that a Noah-at-70% is still mighty scary: The deciding game saw the man go for 24 points, 14 rebounds and six blocks. The monsters of Miami might not want to sleep on these Bulls yet…

Video: The title says it all – “How Joakim Noah outplayed Brook Lopez (Badly)”

Marc Gasol, C, Memphis Grizzlies. Gasol the Younger did European basketball fans proud in 2012-13, ultimately taking home the NBA’s Defensive Player of the Year honors. It was once again Memphis fans swelling with pride last week as Marc helped put the Los Angeles Clippers on the ropes last Tuesday with a nice 21-point, eight-rebound show before going for 39 minutes in game five of that series. Unfortunately for the Grizz, Gasol’s 20/10, three steals and two blocks weren’t enough against the Oklahoma City Thunder, but with him and Z-Bo holding back OKC big men Kendrick Perkins and Serge Ibaka to 2-of-18 shooting in the game, no one’s counting out Marc, Memphis and the Western Conference’s best D yet.

Video: Marc Gasol and the inevitable Eye Of The Tiger

Sixth man

Marko Todorovic, F, FC Barcelona. With Xavi Pascual resting his key players before the Euroleague Final Four this week, the just-turned 21-year-old got a rare opportunity to shine. In 27½ minutes – far more court time than he’s seen in a top club level game for Barça in 2012-13 – Todorovic led a 80-59 whupping of his former club Joventut with a neat 12-point, 12-rebound performance.

ACB video: Barcelona cruises in Catalan derby

Second team

Martin Zeno, G, Nilan Bisons, who came up huge in a Finnish league semifinal series-ending game four to the tune of 32 points and nine rebounds;

Drew Sullivan, F, Leicester City Riders, for helping his team to the BBL championship with a sweet overall performance including 24 points on 10-of-19 overall shooting to go with six assists, four rebounds and three steals;

Kamil Svrdlik, PF, BK Prostejov, who chased his near double-double of 13/9 on Wednesday with a big 22/10 game to get his team past Levice and into the Czech league finals;

Milan Macvan, PF, Galatasaray, for two double-figure scoring efforts bookending the week and helping bag the TBL regular-season title for Galatasaray; and

Maciej Lampe, PF/C, Laboral Kutxa Baskonia, for his huge 20-point show against Gescrap Bilbao Basket and his 15 in another Baskonia win over UCAM Murcia three days later.

Honorable mention

Stephane Lasme, F, Panathinaikos. Lasme played just four minutes in PAO’s only game this week, but we must acknowledge the man’s magnificence in for formally receiving the Euroleague Defender of the Year award. Kudos to a true sight to see on the court!

Video: Lasme makes Greens’ opposition see red

– compiled by Os Davis

Os Davis writes/posts/tweets for the ESPN TrueHoop Network site BallinEurope.com. He also co-produces the mostly European basketball-centered weekly podcast Taking the Charge with heinnews.com, and watches way too much basketball through online subscription packages and dodgy live streams.

BALLINEUROPE.COM

http://www.ballineurope.com/

TAKING THE CHARGE PODCAST

http://www.heinnews.com/category/taking-the-charge-podcast/


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