All-EuroLeague snubs team: who were left out? / News - Basketnews.com

Credit: Nikola Krstic - Getty Images, BNS | BasketNews illustration/M.Didė Credit Nikola Krstic - Getty Images, BNS | BasketNews illustration/M.Didė

With the EuroLeague season coming to an end, the two All-EuroLeague teams were announced last week, creating some buzz as usual.

Dwayne Bacon

MIN:25.3PTS:13.9 (51.09%)REB:3.1As:1.14ST:1BL:0TO:1.17GM:29ProfileEuroLeague2021/2022

While for the players involved in the selection, it's always a good recognition for what they did during the season, most of the talks are often dedicated to the ones left out of the two teams.

With Mike James, Shane Larkin, Sasha Vezenkov, Nikola Mirotic, and Walter Tavares forming the All-EuroLeague first team, the All-EuroLeague second team was composed of Vasilije Micic, Kostas Sloukas, Shavon Shields, Vladimir Lucic, and Georgios Papagiannis.

So now it's time to switch the conversation to the names of other players who might have been involved in the selection but, for various reasons, were left out.

Who are the biggest All-EuroLeague teams snubs? Let’s try to find out some candidates.

Scottie Wilbekin(PG,Maccabi Tel Aviv)

After a disappointing first part of the season that led to the decision to part ways with coach Ioannis Sfairopoulos, Maccabi Tel Aviv bounced back with coach Avi Even on the bench, winning 8 of the last 10 games played in the regular season and gaining a spot in the EuroLeague playoffs.

Scottie Wilbekin was hands down one of the main factors for that great final part of the season. Once again, the American point guard took most of the team's offensive load on his shoulders and delivered in the most important moments.

The former Darussafaka player averaged 15.4 points, 4.1 assists, 2.1 rebounds, and 1.5 steals, playing almost 30 minutes per game, and was the most used player on Maccabi Tel Aviv's roster.

Offensively, we're talking about one of the most impactful players in the competition.

Guerschon Yabusele

Team:Real MadridPosition:PFAge:26Height:203 cmWeight:118 kgBirth place:FranceProfileNewsStatistics

Since Maccabi Tel Aviv reached the playoffs for the first time after several years of absence, Wilbekin making at least the All-EuroLeague second team wouldn't have been a surprise.

Dwayne Bacon(F,AS Monaco)

Despite joining the team only in November, former Charlotte Hornets forward Dwayne Bacon didn't need much time to leave a mark on EuroLeague basketball.

The American forward quickly turned into one of the key pieces for the Principality side, forming a lethal offensive duo with Mike James. During his first EuroLeague season, Bacon averaged 14.0 points, 3.1 rebounds, 1.1 assists, and 1 steal per game while shooting 42% from 3-point.

In the playoffs series against Olympiacos, he was a constant threat for the Greek side, scoring 23 points in Game 3 and adding 21 points in Game 4, forcing Olympiacos to go to Game 5 to advance to the Final Four.

In a recent interview, Bayern Munich head coach Andrea Trinchieri said that Bacon has 'the best first step in the EuroLeague', a very important commendation from one of the best coaches in Europe.

Nicolo Melli(PF,AX Armani Exchange Milan)

In his first season back in Milan, Nicolo Melli immediately impacted the Italian side. He was named co-captain of the team together with Sergio Rodriguez. His great IQ made Milan's defense even better than before, creating one of the most brilliant and most versatile frontcourts ever seen at the EuroLeague level with Kyle Hines.

Melli started every single EuroLeague game this season and averaged 8.1 points, 6.7 rebounds, 1.3 assists, and 1.1 steals per game. His all-around effort was always present for Ettore Messina's side.

Although offensively, Melli's impact on the game went down a bit compared to his experience with Fenerbahce, the Italian forward had an outstanding season from a defensive standpoint. His 97.7 defensive rating was among the best in the competition this season.

When he went down with an injury in Game 1 of the EuroLeague playoffs against Anadolu Efes, Messina immediately realized that for his team, it would have been almost impossible to win that series without his captain.

For all the reasons above, Melli would have probably deserved at least a spot in the All-EuroLeague second team.

Guerschon Yabusele (PF, Real Madrid)

In his first season in Madrid, the French forward had an impressive resumè to sell for a spot in the All-EuroLeague teams. He was the best scorer of Real Madrid during the EuroLeague season, averaging 11.9 points per game while shooting 41% from 3-point.

In the first part of the season, he was one of the main factors that led Real Madrid to the higher side of the standings. His ability to be a constant threat, both on the perimeter and inside, was absolutely crucial for Real Madrid, especially in a season in which the Spanish side struggled to have some real creators off the dribble.

Yabusele also had some excellent advanced numbers, finishing the regular season with an offensive rating of 118.7 and a defensive rating of 102.5. Numbers that put him among the elite players of the competition.

The decline in Yabusele's performances in the final part of the season when Real Madrid started to struggle in the EuroLeague and in ACB probably cost him the spot in one of the two All-EuroLeague teams.

Despite some off-the-court issues, which led him to be fined by the club, Yabusele had a pretty impressive season for Real Madrid and was among the main contributors for Los Blancos.

Ante Zizic (C, Maccabi Tel Aviv)

The decision to pick Georgios Papagiannis as the starting center in the All-EuroLeague second-team left a deserving candidate for that spot like Ante Zizic out of the selection.

Papagiannis had pretty good numbers and finished the regular season as the best rebounder in the competition, but he was part of one of the worst teams in the EuroLeague.

Panathinaikos had a terrible season, and despite the good numbers from Papagiannis, it would have probably been better to reserve that spot for a player on a more winning team. From that perspective, Ante Zizic would have been a good choice.

Together with Scottie Wilbekin, the Croatian big man was the driving force behind Maccabi's great run at the end of the regular season. He averaged 12.2 points and 5 rebounds per game during the regular season. Zizic also had one of the best offensive ratings in the competition, with 129.1 points per 100 possessions.

Once again, Zizic confirmed himself as one of the best big men at the European level, and after helping Maccabi Tel Aviv reach the playoffs, he could have made the All-EuroLeague second team.

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