EuroLeague teams feature players from 37 countries, USA dominant again / News - Basketnews.com

There are 111 non-European players in total, marking an increase from the previous season's 103.

Credit: FIBA, Panagiotis Moschandreou, Angel Martinez, Tolga Adanali, Aitor Arrizabalagav/EuroLeague Basketball via Getty Images Credit FIBA, Panagiotis Moschandreou, Angel Martinez, Tolga Adanali, Aitor Arrizabalagav/EuroLeague Basketball via Getty Images

As EuroLeague action resumes after the national team break, BasketNews made an analysis of EuroLeague rosters, focusing on the nationalities of the 296 players.

Key points to consider:

The analysis is based on the latest roster data before EuroLeague Round 27, with some young talents yet to debut this season. Naturalized players are generally not considered local; for example, Shane Larkin is considered American, and Nikola Mirotic is Montenegrin. However, interpretations may vary. Ignas Brazdeikis, considered a naturalized player by FIBA, is listed as Lithuanian due to his birthplace in Kaunas. The primary criterion for a player's nationality is their birthplace to eliminate possible interpretations in certain individual cases. Israel and Turkey are considered European countries for EuroBasket participation and European club competition involvement.

According to collected data, players from 37 countries and five continents are registered for the EuroLeague competition.

The United States leads the charts with 84 players, followed by Serbia with 25. Spain (21), Germany (21), and France (20) make up the Top 5.

Lithuania (17), Greece (17), Italy (16), and Turkey (15) each have more than 10 players in the EuroLeague. Other countries have no more than eight athletes.

In total, there are 111 non-European players on rosters.

To provide context, the EuroLeague had 103 non-European players on provisional rosters last season, representing 39 countries and five continents. The USA led with 81 players, followed by Serbia and France with 24 each.

To put these numbers in perspective, the EuroLeague had 103 non-European players on rosters last season based on provision rosters data.

Players from 39 countries and five continents were playing in the 2022-23 EuroLeague. The USA had a league-leading 81 athletes. Serbia and France followed, with 24 players apiece.

Comparing the current EuroLeague rosters to NBA opening-night rosters from this season, the top European competition trails in the number of countries (37 vs. 40) and continents (5 vs. 6).

Number of players Country/countries 84 USA 25 Serbia 21 Germany, Spain 20 France 17 Lithuania, Greece 16 Italy 15 Turkey 8 Senegal 6 Israel 5 Croatia, Argentina 4 Canada 2 Montenegro, Slovenia, Poland, Nigeria, Latvia, Denmark, Estonia, Czech Republic, Brazil 1 Switzerland, New Zealand, Cape Verde, Chad, Congo, Russia, Cuba, French Guiana, Ukraine, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Iceland, Hungary, Luxembourg

In addition, all 18 EuroLeague teams feature at least five non-local players.

Speaking of 2023-24 EuroLeague head coaches, the situation is quite different.

With eight coaching changes this season, 9 of 18 EuroLeague teams have local head coaches leading their squads.

The list includes Chus Mateo (Real), Roger Grimau (Barcelona), Luca Banchi (Virtus), Oded Kattash (Maccabi), Georgios Bartzokas (Olympiacos), Zeljko Obradovic (Partizan), Alex Mumbru (Valencia), Ettore Messina (Milan), and Pierric Poupet (ASVEL).

Breaking it down further, there are five Spanish head coaches, three Italian specialists, two Serbian masterminds, two Greek tacticians, and one head coach each from Lithuania, Croatia, Montenegro, France, Israel, and Turkey.

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