Match Preview
Anadolu Efes received terrible news that Mike James will be sidelined for at least six months after suffering an injury in Belgrade last week, so they signed Cameron Payne as his replacement. They will need more than one player to stand up against the champions on Friday though.
Olympiakos Looking to Bounce Back
Olympiakos started the new EuroLeague campaign with a dominant 106-89 victory against Baskonia in Spain, while also edging Zalgiris in Kaunas last Tuesday 93-91, thanks to Evan Fournier's fantastic shooting (19 points).
The Red and Whites were tagged as favorites on Thursday in Italy against Virtus Bologna, but their winning streak surprisingly came to an end, losing 96-94 mainly due to poor control on the glass (34-41 rebounds).
They had no problems returning to winning ways last weekend in the Greek Basket League, outplaying Iraklis 78-68 as visitors. Their shooting was far from ideal here (45%), but star players were rested in the second half.
Anadolu Efes Struggling on the Road
Anadolu Efes looked solid in the first half of their EuroLeague opening match against Barcelona in Spain but failed to keep up and lost this encounter 89-82, with summer signings Mike James and Dario Saric combining for 49 points total.
Pablo Laso's side responded with a comfortable 94-82 home victory against Real Madrid last Tuesday despite losing the rebounds battle 26-41. PJ Dozier stepped up this time, scoring 18 points.
The Turkish side was shoulder-to-shoulder with Crvena Zvezda in Belgrade last Thursday but missed some clutch shots to take the lead, losing the encounter 77-72. James suffered a serious injury here and most likely will be ruled out for the rest of the season.