This article is part of our EuroLeague Picks series.
Best EuroLeague Bets for Sunday, May 26
Well, it was a less-than-stellar debut Friday with a 1-3 record. If you told me Johnathan Motley started and Mario Hezonja had nine points four minutes into the game I would have told you we were going to have a great day. Unfortunately Motley was pulled within three minutes for reasons unknown and Hezonja did not need to do much the rest of the night. On top of that, Nikola Milutinov lost the entire fourth quarter after being struck in the face. That's the nature of the game, though. Let's end the season with a bang!
All odds for EuroLeague player props current as of 10:00 AM ET Sunday.
Tyler Dorsey Over 6.5 Points (-135)
The first game on Sunday's schedule is a consolation game between Olympiacos and Fenerbahce, who both will begin semifinal matchups in their respective domestic leagues Thursday. Dorsey has not suited up for a Turkish league playoff game yet due to the restrictions on foreign players, so I wouldn't be surprised to see him eat into the minutes of Scottie Wilbekin and Nick Calathes on Sunday. If that doesn't end up being the case, Dorsey could still see some action in three-guard lineups against an Olympiacos club that likes to utilize that setup.
Nick Calathes Under 16.5 Points+Rebounds+Assists (-115)
If we believe the above scenario plays out, we want to take the under on some of Calathes lines. Olympiacos will throw some pesky defenders at him, including recently-named Best Defender Thomas Walkup as well as the long and agile Nigel Williams-Goss.
Mario Hezonja Over 13.5 Points (-125)
Some may think this is stubborn, but I'm going right back to well with Hezonja for multiple reasons. As noted above, he started hot Friday but eased up as Real Madrid raced out to a big lead. Assuming Sunday's matchup is tighter, I think they go to him more frequently with him having the most favorable defensive matchup. Secondly, some are aware of -- but some aren't -- the love Hezonja has for Panathinaikos and that their fans have for him. Just watch this clip from 2021. He gets up for this matchup more than others, and with a championship on the line I will go with Hezonja against Panathinaikos every time with zero regrets. He averaged 15.5 points over just under 24 minutes per game against them during the regular season, and he can now be expected to get 30 minutes with Gabriel Deck out.
Kostas Sloukas Over 19.5 Points+Rebounds+Assists (-110)
He wasn't asked to do much Friday as they had the game in hand from start to finish. Now, however, Panathinaikos faces one of the best EuroLeague teams I've seen in my lifetime. Sloukas is one of the most clutch players in league history, and I think he and Mathias Lessort will be involved in plenty of pick-and-roll to get Walter Tavares out of the paint. That will create an abundance of scoring and assist opportunities for Sloukas, and if he gets at least 25 minutes like I expect he could grab some extra rebounds with Lessort trying to keep Tavares off the glass. Sloukas is already averaging an extra rebound per game since the postseason began.
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