MIES (Switzerland) - Season 8 of the Basketball Champions League starts on Tuesday. That gave us an opportunity to talk to people who follow the League 24/7, trying to find the most important answers before the first game even tipped off.

We called up:

• Diccon Lloyd-Smeath, who writes the Insider column for the official website;
• Cesare Milanti, sideline reporter for DAZN, author for Eurohoops.net and contributor to FIBA.basketball;
• Gerard Sole, DAZN's sports commentator, Gigantes del Basket contributor who has worked for ten years for ACB.com;
• Igor Curkovic, the writer and editor for BCL's digital content since day one of Season 1.

They all answered questions similar to last season, so let's get into it.

Continue this sequence: Lenovo Tenerife, AEK, Segafredo Virtus Bologna, Hereda San Pablo Burgos, Hereda San Pablo Burgos, Lenovo Tenerife, Telekom Baskets Bonn... Who will lift the trophy in May 2024?

Igor: Let's go by last season's experience. Telekom Baskets Bonn are the reigning champions, but they've gone through so many changes to their roster and coaching staff, it would be a miracle for them to go back-to-back. That's why I wanted to check the next best team from 2022-23: Hapoel Bank Yahav Jerusalem.

Not only did last season's runners up keep the core intact, they brought in some serious firepower to make it a rock solid 10-men rotation for coach Aleksandar Dzikic.

Think of it this way: Speedy Smith, Khadeen Carrington, Or Cornelius, Levi Randolph and Zach Hankins start. Then, you have Brynton Lemar, Chris Johnson and Maurice Ndour as new experienced options. Then, you have Yovel Zoosman and Gabriel Chachashvili joining Oz Blayzer as homegrown players ready to play their roles off the bench or as starters, if needed.

They were second best last year, and got better over the summer. It's only logical to think of them as the best team now.

Diccon: Continuity is king. If you have a group of players that are as together as they are talented, then add to that an excellent coach, the only thing left that you can give them is time. And time is exactly what Unicaja decided to give head coach Ibon Navarro and his talented team.

They had already extended most of the roster after winning the Copa del Rey last season and for this season the only change has seen Kameron Taylor come in for Dario Brizuela.

Unicaja also made the Final 4 in the BCL with this team and look to me like they have everything they need to go even further this season.

Cesare: I don't know how many people Ibon Navarro's van can take on board, but there should have been enough space to make twelve players (!) continue playing with Unicaja from last season.

Losing only Dario Brizuela and replacing him with Kameron Taylor, one of the most efficient guards in last year's Liga Endesa, perfectly explains the continuity process that has been initiated since joining the Basketball Champions League back in the 2021-22 season.

They have two orchestra conductors in Kendrick Perry and Alberto Diaz, two scoring baby-faced assassins like Tyson Carter and the newcomer Kameron Taylor, while also maintaining a versatile frontline that includes FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023 bronze medalist Melvin Ejim, Dylan Osetkowski, and veteran Will Thomas, among others. All this makes them my favorite to win it all.

Ibon tiene un plan, as they say near the Martin Carpena Arena. Let him patiently drive and deliver.

Gerard: Unicaja. Ibon Navarro's team is my choice for a title that will have many other established candidates such as AEK BETSSON BC, Hapoel Bank Yahav Jerusalem, Galatasaray EKMAS or BCL masters Lenovo Tenerife.

After falling just short of the final at 'their' Final 4, Unicaja are the main title contender this season. Same coach, same philosophy and only one change (Kameron Taylor for Dario Brizuela) on the most complete and talented roster in the whole competition.

However, their biggest strength will be their hunger for redemption. There is no more powerful enemy than one with a wounded pride and I can't imagine any other scenario than Unicaja getting the coveted trophy this year.

There are plenty of interesting teams returning to the BCL, and plenty of new faces which we will see for the first time ever. Which team will be the best newcomer in the League?

Diccon: Bursaspor Info Yatirim finished fifth in Turkey least season and were one of the buzz teams in Europe during the 2021-22 season as they rollicked their way to the EuroCup Final.

Anthony Brown is back with the team after his 2021-22 campaign and they have added some firepower with Jordan Floyd and David Michineau. They have size up front with Johnathan Hamilton and Michael Young to go with the veteran leadership of Semih Erden and don't sleep on youngster David Mutaf - he might catch a few people off guard this year.

Cesare: The escalating progress of Bertram Derthona Tortona towards the upper floors of Italian basketball was something really unprecedented. Promoted to the first division in 2021, the Semi-Finals in the LBA Playoffs, an Italian Cup final, and the third place in the championship came as a consequence.

Waiting for the new arena which will see up to 5,000 fans, this year marks landing into Europe. Playing your inaugural European season by first facing tough opponents like UCAM Murcia, Tofas Bursa and Igokea m:tel, isn't surely the easiest of tasks.

But with experienced assets like Kyle Weems, Leon Radosevic and Chris Dowe, while also implementing reliable pieces in Tommaso Baldasso, TaShawn Thomas, and Mike Daum, it sounds at least interesting. Coach Marco Ramondino is at work.

Gerard: Veni, vidi... vici? In just two years, Bertram Derthona Tortona have gone from being a second division team to being able to compete against Milano and Virtus in Italy. A powerful breakthrough that they can also replicate in this BCL. They do not start in the initial group of favourites, but nobody should be surprised if they end up playing in the Final 4.

They have the experience, they have the physicality and they have the ambition to dream big this season. The Chris Dowe-Retin Obasohan-Kyle Weems trio is a competitive guarantee.  A real darkhorse in Season 8!

Igor: Rio Breogan. The entire city of Lugo lives for this team, which is why they remind me a lot of Hereda San Pablo Burgos in terms of optimism, positivity, that enthusiasm to put their club on the basketball map of Europe.

They have a solid balance to the team, the 20-year-old Juan Fernandez is off to a great start this season, with help from a lot of the others who are around the same age: 22-year-old Momo Diouf, 23-year-old Stefan Momirov, 22-year-old Matej Rudan... Just a nice young explosive squad that could do great things in their first European season since 1985-86.

There is no "I" in team, but there is an "I" in "I am telling you, turn everything off and watch this guy go to work." Who are the two guys to watch this season?

Cesare: If PAOK mateco went so close to advance to the Round of 16 in last year's BCL, a great part of the credit must be given to Jaylen Hands, who managed to form a deadly duo together with Jalen Riley. He averaged 14.1 points per game, on eye-popping shooting percentages: 44.8 percent from two, 41.0 from deep, and 90.0 at the line.

This season, with playmaking masters like coach Vassilis Spanoulis and mastermind Joe Ragland, he can improve even more in Peristeri bwin.

Making a statement in the 2020-21 BCL season - his first-ever - with VEF Riga, Kyle Allman needed some time to adjust to Europe, developing into an explosive combo-guard who could take the last shot on any given night.

After two seasons in France, including an impressive 10-game span in the EuroCup in which he had 18.7 points per night, he decided to join former NBAer Mason Jones and LBA breakout guard Muhammad-Ali Abdur-Rahkman in Darussafaka Lassa.

Facing two-time champs Lenovo Tenerife, the newcomer Cholet Basket, and most importantly his former team in Riga, he can easily be among the leading scorers this BCL season.

Gerard: Simon Birgander (UCAM Murcia) and Hunter Hale (Promitheas Patras).

Remember their names, because they will be two candidates for the Star Lineup first team of the season. After five games, Birgander is the second-highest rated player in the Liga Endesa in Spain. Shades of a certain Georgian BCL legend, a fearless giant who has just started to shine, masterful in pick-and-roll situations.

Hunter Hale will be the top scorer in the BCL this season. Guaranteed. A limitless scoring machine. He has the charisma, talent and ability to turbo-charge his team and win games. And on top of everything else, he's left-handed!

Igor: I had like six or seven names lined up here. But since I liked my pick of Marcus Foster so much last year, I decided to go with the same math: Rytas' main threat, since I really think we will see at least Quarter-Finals basketball in Vilnius this year. Hence, RJ Cole takes the call. The lefty guard has a nice shooting stroke, a lot of strength and unique finishes from the paint, making him a legit 15-point, 5-assist threat for the season.

The other pick was about a team which seems like they have a rock solid chance of reaching the Final Four, and then picking their leader.

UCAM Murcia have a bunch of really big names at this level, the Swedish duo of Simon Birgander and Ludde Hakanson are currently leading their stats in Spain, but since this is a guard's league, I'm giving my vote to Ludde. He's still just 27, and after three seasons in Bilbao, he looks like a change of scenery suited him well.

Diccon: Ben McLemore of AEK BETSSON BC was such an obvious pick here. It's his first season in Europe, but you can't ignore a CV like that. There will be nights where McLemore gets it going from behind the arc and you want to be watching the firework show when that happens. AEK like to do special things for their anniversaries and McLemore is here to do special things for their 100th birthday.

Jonah Radebaugh might be the perfect Zvezdan Mitrovic player. He guards like a pitbull and has started the season scoring 12.5 points over his first two games for Galatasaray whilst also shooting 56 percent from both inside and outside the arc.

Add to that he's also been very active on the glass with 6.5 rebounds from the guard position and we could be looking one of the most impactful players in Europe this season.

Young guys look impressive on paper. Who are you picking to win the Best Young Player award this season?

Gerard: Tidjane Salaun, Cholet Basket. An 18-year-old phenom, 205cm/6'9'' and a future without any ceiling. Beyond the numbers, Tidjane is the most exciting young player to follow in this BCL season.

A formidable athlete with a very special innate talent. He is already getting minutes as a starter at Cholet Basket despite his youth, and his impact on the team is being very noticeable. "Showtime Salaun" will give us with some of the best dunks and blocks of the season.

Igor: Let's keep the Turkish vibe to this award. Furkan Korkmaz won it back in Season 1, Sadik Emir Kabaca won it last season, so let's dig deep through their pool of talent. Actually, no need to dig at all, because Ege Demir is standing tall right there in front of you.

He's 19, and he's getting regular minutes through his first three games of the Turkish League this season, flirting with double-doubles already. Big body, good hands around the rim, solid blocking feeling... As long as Tofas Bursa do their thing, he's keeping the Best Young Player award in Turkey.

Diccon: Winning this award is as much about opportunity as it is talent. Fortunately for Len Schoormann, it looks like he's got both for EWE Baskets Oldenburg this season.

He's averaged the best part of 22 minutes for Pedro Calles over the first three games of the season and responded to the trust from his coach with 10 points on 55 percent from inside the arc and 54 percent from deep.

Oldenburg could be a darkhorse to make a deep run this season and if they do, Schoormann looks well-set to be a big part of that.

Cesare: Opting for his name in last year's roundtable, I was obviously biased. And despite both his and Reggio Emilia's season entering the darkest side of the room, I'm still going with Mouhamet Diouf for the Young Player of the Year award.

Rio Breogan saw young gems like Dzanan Musa and Justus Hollatz finding their way up after playing there. I trust Momo to follow in his predecessors' steps. It's time to bring back some Italian pride after Giordano Bortolani received this award in Bilbao one and a half year ago.

Finally, let's talk about the playcallers. John Patrick, Roel Moors, Oren Amiel, Zoran Lukic, Pedro Martinez and Tuomas Iisalo have all won the award for the best coach in BCL, who will be the next one in line?

Igor: I'll tell you this - the coaching tree in Germany is in full bloom. We already had two award winners from German teams here, with John Patrick in Season 2 and Tuomas Iisalo last season, and two other BCL coaches of the year are currently in the Bundesliga - Roel Moors with Telekom Baskets Bonn, Oren Amiel with Brose Bamberg.

That's why I'm picking Pedro Calles to win the Coach of the Year award. He already won it in Germany in 2019 for creating a monster of a team in Rasta Vechta, and entering his second season with EWE Baskets Oldenburg, he could have a low-key Quarter-Finals contender in his hands.

Diccon: I just have a good feeling about Vasilis Spanoulis and this Peristeri bwin squad this season. They just look so well made for each other. Not sure whose idea it was to allow the meeting of basketball minds that will be Joe Ragland and Kill Bill, but once they get on the same wavelength they are going to be a nightmare for every team they meet this season.

They have some excellent domestic pieces with Leonidas Kaselakis, Nikos Chougkaz, and veteran Vassilis Xanthopoulos, then you throw in the likes of Jaylen Hands, Nate Renfro, Elijah Mitrou-Long, Nemanja Dangubic, Trevor Thompson and Kenny Williams and there are no limits for Spanoulis and Peristeri this year.

Cesare: Let's all be honest here: everybody was expecting a different outcome for Galatasaray EKMAS last season. Isn't that true, Igor and Diccon? Well, I should include myself as well in that nonsense, since I picked Andreas Pistiolis as the 2022-23 BCL Coach of the Year.

But things just didn't click. This year, however, the foundation can lead to different results, at least on paper. Bringing in three guys straight from the EuroLeague like Corey Walden, Jonah Radebaugh, and Jarell Martin looks like a statement. A pretty good one, if you also add last year's Young Player of the Season Sadik Emir Kabaca, Bugrahan Tuncer, and Akwasi Yeboah to the mix. 

That's why I'm staying consistent, going once again with Galatasaray EKMAS' bench leader Zvezdan Mitrovic for the Coach of the Season, hopefully bringing back the Turkish powerhouse to old glory days. I wanna hear Cimbombom more than once this season, starting from Wednesday against PAOK mateco. For all their fans' and my pick's sake.

Gerard: Joan Plaza, AEK BETSSON BC. A very significant season. With their centenary anniversary, AEK have created one of the best rosters in the BCL (McLemore and Kabengele are two names to follow) and the Spaniard will have the tough and, at the same time, extraordinary job of arranging all their components to try to win the title.

Plaza is an experienced and methodical coach. He is just what is needed for a project that will have no middle ground this season. It's Final 4 or failure. And I don't think it will be a sad year in Athens... again.

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