After explaining the first transfers of Group A, I will take a closer look at group B today to see who did what and give you my opinion on these moves.
Montepaschi Siena
The Italian roster is at the moment mostly undefined. Coach Pianigiani could only announce the signing of Morris Finley officially, but Henry Domercant is apparently very close to coming to Tuscany. The story of the summer is, of course, Terrel McIntyre, who still has not extended his contract with the team.
Romain Sato and Shaun Stonerook are two key guys in the Siena game and have thus far been in some transfer talk already; seeing them leave would be a hard hit for the Mens Sana players. The team’s financial situation may also be a reason why no additional signings have been announced to this point, as management wants to watch how the market evolves.
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FC Barcelona
Barcelona is adding huge firepower to its team during this offseason. As it stands, they’ve replaced Denis Marconato with David Andersen, and Juan Carlos Navarro has joined the team in place of Gary Neal: sounds like a big improvement. But for the moment, the team is still looking to find their starting point guard, as Pepe Sanchez has left Catalunya for Real Madrid.
Another story is the case of Mario Kasun, who. according to rumors, is no longer wanted by management but wants to stay in Barcelona. This is why the team is seeking Kasun’s eventual replacement already, but the main recruiting option for Xavi Pascual’s team remains the point guard position.
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Panathinaikos Athens
As every year I want to say that Panathinaikos adds big big names to its roster and looks like a champion before the season even starts. The main additions this season are Nikola Pekovic, Antonis Fotsis and Drew Nicholas. So far. The eventual addition of Josh Childress to Piraeus may open up the owners’ cash box a bit wider, and why not look at Luol Deng flying in at the SF position, as he is currently seeking a new deal in the free agent market?
For the moment, Dusan Kecman is one of the only players able to play this position together with young Greek Stratos Perperoglou, who played himself onto the team during the course of last season. The backcourt, however, still looks like one of the best in Europe with Diamantidis, Jasikevicius and Spanoulis.
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Zalgiris Kaunas
The Lithuanians have been very quiet in the market so far, but will probably sign some last-minute additions in the coming weeks. Already the main structure of the team is set with Willie Deane at the point and Loren Woods in the paint. Around the two Americans, you’ll see the traditional Jonas Maciulis and Marcus Brown, as well as some younger guys that may see some minutes with the pros this year.
At present, Zalgiris management is actively searching for backups at center and shooting guard. With the case of Marko Popovic still unsettled, the backcourt may see some important changes in coming days. For the backup, the addition of a Lithuanian big man would not be a surprise.
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Prokom Trefl Sopot
In Poland, a whole new team will be built by the head coach Tomas Pacesas. So far, Prokom has only seen the arrival of David Logan and Ronnie Burrell, but head cases like Gurovic have left and will no longer make a problem for the team. Burrell played Euroleague ball with Cologne two years ago and he should be a nice addition for the team with his athletic play.
Of course, the team will look less flashy than at the beginning of last season, but with the new structure taken on, Polish fans will probably see more wins this season than in the previous edition of the top European competition. A lot of additions have to be made in order to create a team that has a chance to qualify for the Top 16 in this monster group, however.
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SLUC Nancy
The French team that will play in the Euroleague for the first time will feature some players from last season like the Greer brothers and Cyril “Wild Thing” Julian. But to survive in this tough group, the already-signed players look a bit weak. Of course, the financial possibilities are different here than in Russia or in Greece, and management is trying to sign the best players available from their local league.
The signing of Michael Morandais is one of the additions from which the coaching staff hopes the most will come. The French forward that has never played professionally in France will give SLUC the necessary offensive power on the wing where he will get support from Lamayn Wilson. The big gap is of course the center position, where Julian is getting older every day and the budget does not offer the team an opportunity to sign a great big man.
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