EuroLeague Primer: Round 33 - Thursday

EuroLeague Primer: Round 33 - Thursday

This article is part of our EuroLeague Primer series.

PREGAME UPDATES

THE SLATE

Anadolu Efes Istanbul at TD Systems Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz

Status Check: Tonye Jekiri (BAS)

Best Bets for Success: Sertac Sanli was Efes' top scorer in excellent away win against Real Madrid on Tuesday, scoring 17 points in just 18 minutes on the court. Sanli has settled into the primary center role for Efes, with ten starts in 2021 against just two before. He should spend plenty of time on the court Thursday to counter Baskonia's big men. Shane Larkin reached double figures last Round for the 15th game in a row and has not scored with a single digit in the scoring column since 2020 came to a close. Efes' star averaged 26.0 DFS points in last five and didn't miss a free throw in last eight, converting 26 attempts straight from the line. Baskonia, after winning four consecutive games and nine out of last 10, is on track to secure a playoff spot. Rokas Giedraitis averaged 33.4 DFS points in last four showings and is coming of his best fantasy game of the season. Against Panathinaikos, Giedraitis produced 45 DFS points and drained four three pointers. Pierria Henry recorded his fourth double-double in the same game with 11 points and 10 assists. He topped 30 DFS points in two in a row and averaged 27.4 over the last five games.

DFS Darlings: James Anderson regularly contributes from the bench but in last game he found himself in starting lineup against Real. Anderson averaged 13.9 DFS points in last five and is interesting budget option at just $4,500 on DraftKings. Zoran Dragic's form this season has been rather irregular, but in last two outings he scored in double digits with an average of 24.1 DFS points per game. He is peaking at the right moment for Baskonia and we will likely see Dragic involved again Thursday night.

AX Armani Exchange Milan at Panathinaikos OPAP Athens

Status Check: Malcolm Delaney (MIL), Jeremy Evans (MIL), Nemanja Nedovic (PAN), Georgios Kalaitzakis (PAN)

Best Bets for Success: Milan has qualified for playoff stage but will still fight to avoid playing top of the league teams in quarter finals.  After two quiet, for his standards, games Kevin Punter starred again in matchup against Red Star. He scored 23 points, including five times for down town, in just 23 minutes on court so should feature more on Thursday. Panathinaikos is second worst defense in the league against backcourt positions, very suitable matchup for Punter, who was his team's top scorer in reverse matchup. Shavon Shields has extended his double figures scoring run to 10 games after 14 points against Red Star. Milan's forward is averaging 23.4 DFS points in last five with a good chance to improve that number in Round 33. Konstantinos Mitoglou played his best game in weeks on Tuesday, recording 22 points and eight rebounds against Baskonia. He came very close to record third double-double this season and averages 23.0 DFS points in last five starts. Howard Sant-Roos keeps going strong for Panathinaikos with fourth consecutive over 20 DFS points performance. He is available at DraftKings slate at $8,400 and will most likely win eight in a row start in Round 33.

DFS Darlings: With Evans injured, Kaleb Tarczewski is again providing backup for Kyle Hines. In last Round he scored 14.8 DFS points in just eight minutes on the court and will probably see more action on Thursday. Lefteris Bochoridis averages 14.5 DFS points in last five games and worth a dart shot at just $5,300. He rarely start but contributes in all areas of the game from the bench.

Zalgiris Kaunas at FC Bayern Munich

Status Check: Augustine Rubit (ZAL), Arturas Milaknis (ZAL), Nick Weiler-Babb (MUN), Nihad Dedovic (MUN)

Best Bets for Success: Thomas Walkup is steadily contributing in fantasy contests, putting up 20 DFS points in five of his last six games. He won't have the easiest matchup Thursday, but he averaged 12.2 points and 4.7 assists over the last four outings and is taking more shots than he was earlier in the season, so he looks like a bargain at just $8,500. Marius Grigonis failed to impress in last Round, managing to record only six points, one assists and a steal against ALBA. In his defense, it was Grigonis' shortest showing this season with only 19 minutes on the court. He will be raring to bounce back on Thursday, and his basket in last second of the game gave Zalgiris win in reverse matchup against Bayern. Despite starting on the bench for first time this season, Wade Baldwin was his team's best player in last Round defeat against Fenerbahce. Bayern's ace averages 29.7 DFS points in last five and scored in double digits in last 11 outings. Vladimir Lucic has extended his run of scoring over 20 DFS points to six games now. Serbian forward is one of most consistent fantasy points producers with just one under 14 DFS points performance this season.

DFS Darlings: Lukas Lekavicius has his best outing this season in last Round with 33.8 DFS points produced in 21 minutes on the court. He scored in double figures in three out of last five games and is available at $6,000 for Thursday's slate. Karolis Lukosiunas and Martinas Geben also impressed by scoring 12 points each from the bench against ALBA. Paul Zipser averages 19.8 DFS points in last three, contributing regularly in points and rebounds columns. He scored 11.5 points per game in last seven home appearances, against just 6.4 in away games.

Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv at Crvena Zvezda mts Belgrade

Status Check: Othello Hunter (TEL), Yovel Zoosman (TEL), Corey Walden (RED), Quino Colom (RED), Duop Reath (RED)

Best Bets for Success: Ante Zizic was Maccabi's hero in overtime win against FC Barcelona in Round 32. He scored his season best 24 points, adding eight rebounds and dishing out three assists. Zizic averages 27.2 DFS points in last five and will continue to play in center position in absence of injured Hunter. Chris Jones started only for fourth time this year, yet he contributed heavily in Tuesday's win. Despite converting only once from the field, Jones scored 22.0 DFS points and now averages 19.2 in last five. He seems to be preferred to other backcourt players in Maccabi's roster at the moment and his time on the court improved significantly since start of March. Jordan Loyd again starred for Red Star again in defeat against Milan in last game, with 22 points in his account. Loyd averaged 31.2 DFS points over the last five and is most expensive play in this matchup at $10,800.

DFS Darlings: Dragan Bender exploded in last game with 16 points, six rebounds, four assists and four blocks. His average of 24.1 DFS points in last three outings makes him worth a shot at $6,700 and he is likely to start again on Thursday. Bender has scored 16 points in two games in a row. Ognjen Dobric has provided 14 points in just 15 minutes on the court in Round 32 and seems to be good budget option again. He regularly delivers from the bench for Red Star with 14.7 DFS points average over last two months.

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. Maciej Bogdanski plays in daily fantasy contests using the following accounts: kmag115173.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Maciej Bogdanski
Maciej is a former RotoWire contributor.
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