Rise of Mathias Lessort: from forgotten in Tel Aviv to cornerstone at Partizan / News - Basketnews.com

In his latest article for the BN+ members, Augustas Suliauskas analyzes what led to an incredible season of Mathias Lessort and what glimpses he has already shown in Maccabi Tel Aviv.

Credit: Partizan Mozzart Bet/Dragana Stjepanovic Credit Partizan Mozzart Bet/Dragana Stjepanovic

From 5 games in the EuroLeague last year to second place in PIR (player index rating) this campaign. If you are searching for the most improved player in the tournament this season, look no further than Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade's center Mathias Lessort.

Unmatched energy, full confidence from Zeljko Obradovic, and a special connection with the Belgrade crowd - this combo has led the Frenchman to a dozen monstrous performances for the black-and-whites.

You could see glimpses of those things from Lessort in his short stint with Maccabi. Time, which lasted only five EuroLeague games before Ante Zizic came back from the injury, and his contract wasn't extended.

It wasn't like Lessort was playing badly. Quite the opposite - he showed fascinating efficiency in limited minutes.

In less than 12 minutes played, the big man posted averages of 7.4 points, 3.4 rebounds, and 9.2 PIR. That's even better than his per-minute numbers this year in Belgrade.

Despite excellent production, the situation in Tel Aviv wasn't the most generous. Ante Zizic and Jalen Reynolds were the obvious choices as #1 and #2 in his position. In the backcourt, there were many scoring-oriented or first-time in Europe rookies, and that didn't help, either.

Even the EuroLeague commentators made the same mistake twice, calling Lessort Jalen Reynolds on two different occasions.

Nobody seemed to expect this from Lessort, and nobody believed he was able to do it consistently for a longer period of time on the highest stage in Europe. But Partizan's front office had other ideas.

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