Sportando European Team of the Week: Week of May 27

No matter where you were in Europe last week – in Italy or Austria, Spain or Ukraine and just about everywhere in between – you were likely to be treated to nail-biters, cliffhangers, buzzer-beaters and overtimes in playoff series. The cream of the 2012-13 crop is rising to the top all over The Continent – but not without a fight in most quarters. This week’s Sportando European Team of the Week pays heed to those guys who made a crucial difference in fighting for to play another day…

First team

 
Daniel Hackett, PG, Montepaschi Siena. Siena stayed alive in Italy’s Serie A playoffs, fighting off Armani Milano in consecutive elimination quarterfinal games last Monday and Wednesday thanks to Hackett’s highlight reel-filling 18- and 25-point showings. On Saturday, Hackett got some much-needed rest against Cimberio Varese, but still contributed 10 points and two steals in 19 minutes of court time.

Video: Daniel the hacksaw against Milano

Richard Chaney, G, Oberwart Gunners. Call this guy the human sparkplug: As Oberwart pursue the Austrian title, the Puerto Rican national has *averaged* 38.5 minutes per game in the best-of-five series against BC Vienna thus far. And Chaney helped his Gunners force a final decisive match with one of his finest all-around performances of 2012-13 in game four on Saturday: 20 points on 7-of-14 shooting, 11 rebounds and three steals.

Video playlist: Chaney’s highlight collection, courtesy Basketball Without Borders

Justin Doellman, F, Valencia BC. After turning in a respectable 13 points in 18 minutes in his team’s ACB quarterfinal game one win over CAI Zaragoza, Doellman produced a career game on Sunday in the second meeting between the clubs. “Game,” we said? You bet: The European veteran played no fewer than 42 minutes in the 122-120 three-OT thriller, going for 29 points and nine rebounds. Anyone else pleased that Spanish basketball avoided the threatened player strike…?

ACB video: Doellman and the rest of the Zaragoza-Valencia “partido histórico”

David Lighty, F, Nanterre. Lighty might’ve made the Team of the Week based purely on his 25 points, then 27 points to eliminate Elan Chalon, but his freaky stat line in the latter deserves special notice: Check out a performance index rating of 40 based on *11* drawn fouls in 43 minutes of court time in the OT decider.

Video: Nanterre and Lighty: “Can’t Hold Us”

Miroslav Raduljica, C, Azovmash Mariupol. Over in the Ukraine championship series, Azovmash is involved in a heck of a dogfight with their Eurocup rivals and no. 1 seeded Budivelnyik. And none have been bigger for the Mariupol squad than Radulica: In the past week’s three games, the Serbian center was good for an average 20 points and 8.3 rebounds, peaking with a 23/13 performance on Wednesday in which he was 13-of-14 on free throws – talk about giving up the body…

Euroleague video: A random dunk by Raduljica from 2011 – just because


Second team

Tony Parker, PG, San Antonio Spurs, who probably should have made Sportando’s first team again but geez, we’ve got to give someone else a chance … so we’re denying him this week like Kelly English – not to mention the Memphis Grizzlies – wish they could have;

Zoran Planinic, G, who’s been a catalyst for BC Khimki Moscow region as they seek to recapture the VTB United League title they took in 2011 – his huge 25 points on Saturday led Khimki past defending champs CSKA in Saturday’s squeaker while his 13 points and five assists kept the team competitive in a second cliffhanger the following night;

speaking of the VTB, we’ve also got Vladimir Micov, F, CSKA Moscow, who bookended his week with a pair of 18-PIR showings, first helping the ‘Army eliminate Krasnye Krylya from VTB play and then putting in 18 points to get his team past Khimki in game two of the semis

Vladimir Jankovic, F, Panionios, who’s keeping his team in the Greek League championship discussion (and the semifinals) with three solid games against Aris Thessaloniki for a double-double average of 14.7 points and 10.0 rebounds; and

James Thomas, PF/C, Maccabi Haifa, who made the most of 26 minutes in his Ligat Ha’Al match against Hapoel Eilat, namely 10 points and a massive 15 boards (six of them offensive).


Honorable mentions

Matjaz Smodis and Ludovic Vaty. With so many leagues closing up shop for the summer, ‘tis the season for player retirements. A couple such announcements caught our attention last week, one somewhat expected and the second sadly not. The 33-year-old Smodis went out on top after bagging a Slovenian League Finals MVP award with KK Krka, capping a storied professional career which included three Euroleague titles with Virtus Bologna and CSKA Moscow.

Video: A tribute to Smodis’ seasons in Bologna and Moscow

In contrast, Vaty announced mid-week that a pulmonary condition would force him to retire from the game at just 24 years old – an abrupt termination to a career after a season with Gravelines Dunkerque which represented his individual best. BallinEurope and Sportando wish both men best of luck in their future endeavors.

Video: Vaty’s work with Dunkerque

– 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.

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