EuroLeague Primer: Round 18 - Wednesday

Written by

Kevin O'Brien

Updated on January 11, 2023 2:23PM EST

PREGAME UPDATES

Shane Larkin and Chris Singleton will suit up Wednesday for Efes.
Valencia's Chris Jones will not play in Round 18.
Nando de Colo, David Lighty and Alex Tyus will not play Wednesday for ASVEL.

STATS AND INFO.

THE SLATE

BAR FC Barcelona at ASV LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne

Status Check: Tomas Satoransky (BAR), Sergi Martinez (BAR), Alex Tyus (ASV), Joffrey Lauvergne (ASV)

The Breakdown: Neither team comes into this matchup on a roll, as Barcelona's Round 16 victory over Red Star was the only win either club picked up over the last three Rounds. Barcelona will be hitting the road and will be down its starting point guard, but they are still a comfortable 5.5-point favorite against a team 12 spots below them in the standings. Recent results suggest this contest could wind up closer than expected, as the French team won by one at the Palau a little over a month ago. There is little to suggest it will be a high-scoring affair, as Barcelona plays at the slowest pace in the league and the over/under on this game is roughly 10 points below the total points expected in the other two games. If ASVEL hopes to come away with another win, they will need to get the job done when they have the ball in their hands, as they rank 12.2 points below their counterparts in offensive rating.

Best Bets for Success: With Satoransky sidelined, Nicolas Laprovittola will join Nikola Mirotic in this space for Round 18. Mirotic did not put up more than 22.3 DraftKings points in any of the last four Rounds, but he put up 26.8 points on that website last time he saw ASVEL, and he's simply too talented -- and too affordable at $9,500 -- to omit. Laprovittola, meanwhile, dropped a double-double with Satoransky unavailable in Round 17, and he will get a chance to run the show again Wednesday. Plus, he averaged 28.8 DraftKings points over his last three matchups with the French club. It's tough to find a top-tier option on the ASVEL side, as only two players recorded more than 23.5 DraftKings points over the last three Rounds, and one of them -- Tyus -- may not play Wednesday. We will go with Nando de Colo, though, who shined last time these teams met and put up 31.0 points on DraftKings. de Colo has at least put up at least 20.3 DraftKings points in six consecutive appearances.

Fantasy Factors: It is not yet known if Tyus will be available, but it seems more likely than not that he will sit out, which brings Youssoupha Fall back into play. Fall recorded a respectable 17.0 DraftKings points in Round 17 and a season-high 37.5 DraftKings points when these clubs last faced off. On the Barcelona side, Kyle Kuric looks like one of the best bargains available at a mere $4,600, as he started in Round 17 and put up 21.3 DraftKings points and also topped the 20-point mark in the last matchup.

PAR Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade at MTA Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv

Status Check: Balsa Koprivica (PAR), Alex Poythress (MTA)

The Breakdown: This will be the first of two key games to close out the evening, as the winner of this contest will find themselves no lower than ninth in the standings at the end of the day. Neither club plays particularly fast, but they are also the two worst teams in the league when it comes to defensive rating, and thus the over/under is the biggest of the day at 167.5 points. These teams combined for 184 points in a Partizan victory back in Round 8, so the over is certainly in play. Partizan ranks second in offensive rating and has won four straight games, but they will have to buck a couple trends to keep that streak going, as they are 2-6 on the road and Maccabi is 7-1 on its home court.

Best Bets for Success: Both parts of Maccabi's dynamic backcourt should be at full speed for the first time in over a month, and they will both be in position to succeed Wednesday, as Partizan is ceding the most points to opposing guards and also ranks bottom-5 against players at those positions in assists, steals, three-pointers, field goal percentage and field goal attempts. Lorenzo Brown is the priciest player on the DraftKings board, but he is a little cheaper than he was his last time out, and prior to Round 17 he put up at least 29.5 points on that website in eight straight appearances. Wade Baldwin IV is listed at just $8,500 on the same website, and he tossed up 39.5 DraftKings points last time he saw Partizan. It's not certain that he will handle a full workload, but it could be worth including him in your lineup and finding out later. Maccabi is ceding the second most rebounds to opposing centers, so we can't go with anyone other than Mathias Lessort, who just missed a double-double in the last matchup between these teams.

Fantasy Factors: Lessort, Zach LeDay and Dante Exum all topped the 30-point mark on DraftKings last time they saw Partizan, so we have to mention the other two players, particularly with neither of them checking in above $8,700 on DraftKings. However, James Nunnally could be a sneaky play against his former team, and Yam Madar looks particularly appealing playing in his home country. Madar topped the 20-point mark on DraftKings in each of the last two Rounds and will run you just $6,500 on that website. There is not a lot of room for value plays on the Maccabi side when Brown and Baldwin are both 100 percent, but Partizan is allowing opposing forwards to make a higher percentage of their shots than any other club, so Jarell Martin will have a chance to keep rolling.

EFS Anadolu Efes Istanbul at VBC Valencia Basket

Status Check: Shane Larkin (EFS), Chris Singleton (EFS), Dogus Balbay (EFS), Jasiel Rivero (VBC), Jared Harper (VBC), Victor Claver (VBC), Sam Van Rossom (VBC), Martin Hermannsson (VBC), Millan Jimenez (VBC)

The Breakdown: The first of the two Rounds being played this week will come to an end in Spain, where a shorthanded Valencia club will take on an Efes team that could be as close to full strength as it has been all season. An Efes win would bump them to the seventh spot in the standings, and a Valencia victory would keep them just two wins out of a playoff spot. These teams last met all the way back in Round 3, and Valencia emerged as one-point winners. However, the experts are expecting a different result this time around, as the visitors are favored by as many as 5.5 points. Valencia plays at a far quicker pace than their opponent, and the over/under of 165.0 points suggests this game will be played at their speed, which it was last time when 183 points were put on the board. The Spanish squad has proven it can beat the two-time defending champions, but it will take a strong effort from a depleted roster to repeat that feat, as Efes ranks fourth in the league in both offensive and defensive rating and owns an 11.9-point edge in net rating.

Best Bets for Success: Both Vasilije Micic and Will Clyburn find themselves back below $11,000 on DraftKings, so they will be tough to avoid even if Larkin takes the court. Clyburn has the edge in the matchup, as Valencia is ceding the most points and the second most field goal attempts to opposing forwards and is also bottom-4 against players at those positions in rebounds, assists and steals. Micic did put up 20.0 more DraftKings points against Valencia in Round 3, though. Bojan Dubljevic is coming off his least productive game of the season, but with Rivero unavailable he and Chris Jones will both occupy space in this section Wednesday. Both players shined against Efes in the last matchup, putting up at least 28.3 DraftKings points apiece. Neither will have an appealing matchup, as Efes is allowing guards to score fewer points than any other team and also ranks top-3 against centers in points, rebounds and FGA, but both should have no shortage of opportunities.

Fantasy Factors: While Efes has fared well against several positions, they are allowing forwards to get up more shots and tally more rebounds and assists than any other club, which bodes well for James Webb III. Webb has not put up big numbers consistently, but he has put up at least 24.3 DraftKings points four times this season, and he will not run you all that much at $8,000. Harper's absence opens up some minutes in Valencia's backcourt, and Xabi Lopez-Arostegui seems most likely to claim the bulk of them. Lopez-Arostegui is averaging 21.1 DraftKings points when playing at least 20 minutes. Valencia has been just about as friendly to forwards as Efes has, so it could be another nice night for Amath M'Baye. You could also consider Singleton, who is plenty familiar in his surroundings and could step right into a key role.

The author(s) of this article may play in daily fantasy contests including – but not limited to – games that they have provided recommendations or advice on in this article. In the course of playing in these games using their personal accounts, it's possible that they will use players in their lineups or other strategies that differ from the recommendations they have provided above. The recommendations in this article do not necessarily reflect the views of RotoWire. Kevin O'Brien plays in daily fantasy contests using the following accounts: FanDuel: kevob100, DraftKings: kevob100.