Top 3 most interesting EuroLeague playoff teams to watch / News - Basketnews.com

As another EuroLeague season is drawing to a close, the URBONUS crew picked the three teams that can make one last push or lose ground in the final stretch, focusing on their strengths and weaknesses.

Credit: Luca Sgamellotti/GettyImages, Imago images – Scanpix, Partizan Mozzart Bet/Dragana Stjepanovic Credit Luca Sgamellotti/GettyImages, Imago images – Scanpix, Partizan Mozzart Bet/Dragana Stjepanovic

With seven rounds remaining in the EuroLeague regular season, the playoff race gets heated.

Our URBONUS crew looked at the three teams to watch, focusing on their general outlook, schedule, and current form.

Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade

"They're currently 11th. Last year, they made a really great last-minute playoff push in the last part of the season," Augustas Suliauskas said. "They were 13-12 until March and then went 7-2 in their last nine games after the domestic cup break."

According to Suliauskas, Partizan have an average schedule remaining. Their strength of schedule is 51%, it's quite in the middle of the table.

"They have a lot of games at home, and it won't be easy. They will face Barcelona, Milan away, Baskonia, Real Madrid and Olympiacos at home. They finish the season by playing ALBA away and Valencia in their last game," he continued.

PartizanCredit Partizan Mozzart Bet/Dragana Stjepanovic

Suliauskas thinks their crowd will give them a huge boost, but the tough Real Madrid and Olympiacos games will decide their fate.

"I think they're going to make that push and be in the Play-In, although they've disappointed me," Suliauskas argued.

"I think Mathias Lessort's departure has been too big, and they haven't been able to replace his defense, rebounding, and energy. He was the connector between the fans and the team. I think Valencia or Baskonia are going to be out," the analyst predicted.

Host Donatas Urbonas said he'dbe surprised if Partizan weren't to make the Play-In tournament and added that the only concern is that the season's transition hasn't been smooth.

"Mathias Lessort isn't walking through that door, and PJ Dozier isn't as consistent as Dante Exum used to be. Compared to last year, it's the toughest challenge for them," he opined.

Virtus Segafredo Bologna

"The Italian side is 17-10 right now. They were in the Top 3 throughout the season, but since Round 17, they have the third-worst offense in the league," Suliauskas said.

Suliauskas noted that Virtus had some injuries but added that the Italian team has started to regress, an indication that they most probably overperformed in the first part of the season.

Moreover, what's most concerning about Virtus' future is the fact that their schedule looks pretty hard in the end.

"They have the 5th-strongest schedule," Suliauskas observed.

"I think they're falling below the 6th place and then will have to play in the Play-In. So, can this season's fairytale make the playoffs?" he wondered.

Tornike ShengeliaCredit ZUMAPRESS.com - Scanpix

"They have Olympiacos away, Real Madrid at home, Zalgiris in Kaunas, Crvena Zvezda away, Panathinaikos at home, the Italian derby against Milan away. So, basically, it's six games in a tough environment. I think they're getting two games out of those seven, but that's not going to be enough for 6th place. They will probably not have the tie-breakers over Fenerbahce and Olympiacos," he predicted.

Urbonas pointed out that Virtus have two of their three home games against top clubs.

"I want them in the playoffs because they represent the Cinderella story and beautiful team basketball, but I'm really concerned about their schedule," he stressed.

"It's not going to be easy."

AS Monaco

"They have the easiest remaining schedule of all 18 teams, even before they played Barcelona away," Suliauskas noted. "They're tied for 3rd with Panathinaikos and Virtus. They have five games at home and two away games against ALBA and ASVEL. They're playing against non-playoff teams at home: Zvezda, Milan, Valencia, Zalgiris, and Bayern."

"However, the real difference-maker has been Mike James, who's playing like the absolute MVP this season," he added.

"Jordan Loyd finally looks healthy. They have the second-best defense in the entire league since the new year and the second-best team in net rating. All things are aligned for a strong finish," he continued before giving his final predictions.

"I have Real Madrid one, Monaco in second place. Barcelona will be third, Olympiacos fourth, Panathinaikos fifth," he said.

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