Quite an interesting week in the Euroleague and so it is no surprise to see some movement in the BallinEurope.com Euroleague Power Ranking, as we have a new trio at the top of the table.
1. Montepaschi Siena (3-0) (+2)
The Italian team tops the Power Ranking now after beating the former leader FC Barcelona in an impressive way. As the team is also unbeaten in the Italian League so far, they took the first place in our rankings this week. Now, the will travel to Panathinaikos and this will be a tough game for Romain Sato and his teammates.
2. CSKA Moscow (3-0) (-)
CSKA continues to win in the Euroleague, this time in a tough road game at Real Madrid. But right now, Madrid is not the supposed powerhouse, and that’s why Montepaschi is at the top of this table.
3. TAU Ceramica (3-0) (+3)
What an impressive score TAU put on the table last week against ALBA Berlin! This huge win helped them improve in our rankings once again and get into the club of the unbeaten Euroleague teams for another week. Having no game in the ACB this weekend gave them enough time to prepare for the upcoming home game against Lottomatica Roma.
4. Regal FC Barcelona (2-1) (-3)
A tough week for Barca, as they got beat on the road in Siena and also lost against Estudiantes in the ACB. The losses stopped their Blaugrana reign over the BallinEurope Power Ranking, but the game this week against Prokom Sopot should bring the winning back to Catalonia.
5. Panathinaikos (2-1) (+2)
Panathinaikos showed what the trademark of a good team is during the week in Nancy, playing badly but winning. And with the return of Vassilis Spanoulis, the Greens’ backcourt gains another alternative while the players are hot for the reception of Montepaschi at OAKA.
6. Cibona Zagreb (3-0) (+6)
What an impressive run so far by the Croatian team from Zagreb! Cibona is still unbeaten in the Euroleague after their great home win against Olympiacos during the week, and remain without a loss in the Adriatic League as well, as they beat the Slovenian champs in their gym. Cibona really looks like one of the hottest teams of the moment.
7. Olympiacos (2-1) (-3)
Nobody expected Olympiacos to lose in Zagreb but they did. This is not the best for their place in the Power Ranking, and so comes the expected three-place drop. In the Greek league, the Reds were not really challenged this weekend by Kavala but the arrival of Maccabi in Piraeus should be the next real test.
8. Efes Pilsen (2-1) (-3)
A poor week for Efes Pilsen as the team lost at home against the winless Panionios team. However, the nice win in the Beko League against Besiktas puts them back on track, and so the team remains in our Top 10.
9. Lottomatica Roma (2-1) (-)
Roma comes off a nice win in Hala Tivoli of Ljubljana this week to confirm their upward trend. The mixture of talent and experience is slowly beginning to harmonize, even if the team lost their first game in the Lega this weekend on the road.
10. Fenerbahce Ülker (2-1) (-)
Another week in 10th place for the team from Istanbul, as they defeated a handicapped Joventut Badalona team on the road. In the domestic league, Fenerbahce continues to dominate against smaller teams but had some trouble overcoming Oyak Renault this weekend.
11. Partizan Belgrade (2-1) (-)
Pionir Arena is maybe the hottest arena on the continent right now, and it also features one of the most talented young squads in the Euroleague. Dusko Vujosevic’ team showed extraordinary will and pride in order to overcome a massive deficit against Milano and win the game in the final minutes.
12. Maccabi Tel Aviv (2-1) (+2)
Should I say “Thank you, Marcus Brown” or “Thank you, Le Mans”? Maccabi comes off an incredible win at Nokia Arena after a Brown three-pointer sent them into overtime this week. This made Tel Aviv a 2-1 team and they find their place in the race for Top 16 qualification.
13. Asseco Prokom (2-1) (+4)
This place may surprise but two home wins in a row gave the Polish team a positive record despite not being a very strong team this season. But the word “team” itself may be the proper one in demonstrating the value of these players. At least, they’ve won the games they had to win: at home against Nancy and Kaunas, the direct competition for fourth place in the group.
14. Real Madrid (1-2) (+2)
Real lost by only four points against CSKA Moscow in an epic game and managed to beat Joventut Badalona on the road in the ACB. That’s enough to put them two places higher this week and in an area of the table more in line with the theoretical potential of the team.
15. Unicaja Malaga (1-2) (-7)
The biggest drop in this week’s rankings comes from Southern Spain. Two road losses against so-called smaller teams bring back memories of Unicajism; the verdict in our Power Ranking is therefore immediate. Aito’s team has to react immediately if they want to reach their goals this season.
16. DKV Joventut Badalona (1-2) (-3)
Without Ricky and Pops, the Badalona team is a bit lost in the Euroleague and is on the way to decline a bit more. The crucial game in Berlin is ahead this week and it doesn’t look like the dynamic duo will be back any time soon. Luckily, they still have Demond Mallet to score.
17. Air Avellino (1-2) (+4)
A nice step forward for the Italians, who recorded a very tough road win in Malaga against Unicaja. As they continue to do so by winning in Bologna in the Lega, Avellino also moves upwards in the power rankings and is now very close to the Top 16 in our standings.
18. ALBA Berlin (1-2) (-3)
ALBA suffered the worst loss in its European history in Vitoria and needs to bounce back strong in order to keep their Euroleague hopes alive. A bye weekend in the domestic league gave them enough time to prepare for the important upcoming game against DKV Joventut.
19. AJ Milano (0-3) (+3)
Milano has still no wins in the Euroleague, but they showed in Belgrade what they are capable of doing. Unfortunately for them, it was not enough for the whole game but a tough road win in the Lega gave them the necessary credit to move upwards a bit in our rankings.
20. Union Olimpija (0-3) (-1)
Mirza Begic may be the story of the fantasy basketball game so far, but Olimpija is still winless and this even after having played two home games already. Now the team travels to Istanbul and it will be very difficult to start a winning streak there, especially after losing in the Adriatic League this weekend as well.
21. Panionios (1-2) (+3)
The Greek team comes back from last place one week ago but could have done even better. The surprising loss against Kolossos in the domestic league did not help them in improving their place in the Greek standings and also limited the number of places gained in the Euroleague Power Ranking.
22. Le Mans (0-3) (-6)
Le Mans is probably the toughest winless team to beat this season. But wasn’t Le Mans that team last year, too? At least they’re winning in their domestic league, or were, as they missed on their trip to Dijon by losing 82-80, a score that recalled the result in Nokia Arena a few days ago. Tough…
23. SLUC Nancy (0-3) (-)
Nancy improved dramatically this week but it may merely have been the fact that playing against Panathinaikos motivated them. A nice road win against Cholet in the French league showed them what to do to go for their first win in the Euroleague, as Wednesday the team host the current last-place team in our Power Ranking.
24. Zalgiris Kaunas (0-3) (-4)
The Lithuanians really need to step up if they want to win some games this season against Europe’s top competition. Two nice wins in the domestic league are nothing more than peanuts for Jonas Maciulis. Now they travel to France with the serious will to win their first game of the season. But Nancy is improving. A tough game to see who will be last in our rankings next week…
