MIES (Switzerland) - The Ninth Symphony season has started in the Basketball Champions League, with 32 teams aiming at continental glory.
They are divided in eight groups, but in our Power Rankings, we mix them all together to figure out which teams are having the best runs at the moment.
That is why the domestic results are also taken into account when ranking these 32 teams - you'll feel better about a team that's on a five-game winning run in all competitions, than about a team that's potentially at 2-0 in the BCL, but 0-3 in their national championship.
#32 Kolossos H Hotels (-2)
A massive road defeat to Saint-Quentin was followed by a narrow road defeat to Panionios, 67-65, and we're not quite sure which one is worse. The one where they had no chance at all, or the one where they were up until the closing minutes and let it slip out of their hands...
#31 King Szczecin (+1)
They lost their season opener to Aliaga Petkimspor, but they move up a place because they weren't all that bad, and they actually won the second half by 10 in that game. Also, they bounced back in Poland with a win over Górnik Zamek Książ Wałbrzych, getting a win being easier than pronouncing that name. Big test this week, road game against the defending champions Unicaja.
#30 SL Benfica (-5)
Let's just attribute the 28-point defeat to Manresa to fatigue. Wait, what!? Fatigue in the opening week!? Well, yeah, kinda. Because they had to go through an exhausting Qualifiers run, and then played an overtime game against arch rivals Porto in the Portuguese Supercup. Just a bit tired, but they'll be fine soon. Until then, we're pushing them into 30s here.
#29 Promitheas Patras (-12)
Losing at home is a big no-no. Because not only did they hand Nymburk a rare road win, Promitheas now also find themselves in a pickle, because they need to make up for that home defeat, and they've got a road game at RASTA Vectha this week. Not a lot of clubs are winning there, next to the legendary Rasta mascot.
#28 Maccabi Ramat-Gan (+3)
They rise despite their defeat to AEK, because they made it interesting for a while. And also because we didn't acknowledge their solid performances in the League Cup, defeating Hapoel Tel Aviv in overtime and following it up with a ten-point win over Bnei Herzliya. They are taking a week off in the BCL, but the next game against VEF Riga will give us a better clue if they are a legit Round of 16 threat here.
#27 Peristeri Domino's (-13)
They obviously have an acronym problem, because they lost to FMP and then to PAOK. Bad news for them, they've got UCAM coming up this week.
#26 WKS Slask Wroclaw (+2)
Okay now, let's ignore the defeat to Falco-Vulcano Szombathely, even though it could be crucial, and even though they allowed Zoltan Perl to hit a dagger three to make it a nine-point defeat. Let's put all of that on the side right now. The important thing is that we finally got to witness a BCL game in that legendary Centennial Hall in Wroclaw. Beautiful.
#25 RASTA Vechta (-3)
Should we be worried about three straight defeats in all competitions? Probably not, as all three were road games. But still, it's a bit too early in the season to have a slump, right? Right?? Right. Okay, playing Fun Lovin' Criminals - We Are All Very Worried About You the rest of the day.
#24 Nanterre 92 (-6)
See, this is the reason why we include national championships in here. Because Nanterre did not look like #24 on this list against Igokea, they were good, solid, looked like they could win a road game in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and had to settle for a narrow six-point defeat. In theory, that's like #17 to #20 kind of performance. But that -25 defeat to Bourg in France, that's not. Snap out of it, Nanterre.
#23 Hapoel Netanel Holon (-12)
Good news? Holon opened up their season with three straight wins. Bad news? They've got back-to-back defeats now, and a game against a hungry Nanterre 92 team this week. Make or break for both of these clubs, even though we're only in Week 2 of the season.
#22 Telekom Baskets Bonn (+1)
We said they are a way better team that #23 last week, and it turns out that "way" is just an alternate way of saying "one." Telekom Baskets Bonn struggled a lot against VEF Riga last week, but they still climb the Power Rankings because of their highly successful weekend, as the 2023 champions took down ALBA Berlin 91-87. They'll look for something similar this week, facing Bayern Munich in the German Cup.
#21 Karsiyaka (-15)
Don't want to talk about this abysmal start with two double digit defeats to Tenerife and Bahcesehir. Nope. Not talking until they get into the W column because the team on the paper looks better than the team on the court right now.
#20 NINERS Chemnitz (-5)
The first win of the season arrived, an 11-point win over Vechta in the German Bundesliga, snapping what was a three-game losing streak in all competitions. The L Train was also the reason we dropped them by five spots this week.
#19 Rytas Vilnius (-14)
This was a memorable performance in front of the sellout crowd in Vilnius, just a beautiful display of what the men in black are capable of, and Jayvon Graves had his typical Jayvon Graves drive to seal the deal. Just a brilliant, courageous win, against the biggest rivals, always what you want to see and feel.
One problem, though. It was in the Lithuanian League, so despite being an impressive team and having a Final Four contender of a squad, you're still down at 0-1 to begin this BCL chapter.
#18 Filou Oostende (-5)
Probably a good time to share what we had last week:
Noah Meeusen followed up his 18-point game against Unicaja with another solid output, getting 16 in a close win over LWD Basket in the BNXT League, while stealing the ball five times in 27 minutes on the court. Also, Oostende nearly pulled off an upset against Unicaja last week, so keep an eye on them in Turkiye this week, as they face the newcomers Aliaga Petkimspor.
#17 UCAM Murcia (-14)
Life is all about balance, so sometimes you lose a game you thought you were supposed to win, i.e. the one against Manisa, and sometimes it comes back to you as you win a game in which your opponent has a free throw to make it +3, misses, and you've got Jonah Radebaugh to sprint and force OT at the other end.
One reminder: Murcia lost their first game of the season a year ago, too. And we know how that one ended, right.
#16 FMP SoccerBet (+5)
Hey now. FMP are having a fine start to the season, at 1-0 in the BCL, and winning two of their three ABA League games, with Ognjen Kuzmic averaging a monstrous 12.0 rebounds per game there, including nearly five offensive boards per game. They became the first Serbian team to win a BCL game since Partizan defeated PAOK in February 2017, and in a bizarre twist of Monday, FMP are actually the favorites to get to 2-0 in their group. Stay tuned, we'll explain in about six spots.
#15 Aliaga Petkimspor (+11)
How does one go up by 11 spots in a single week? Well, a road win helps. Plus an impressive domestic result, such as a 108-85 blowout against Darussafaka. With those two wins, Petkimspor are up to 5-0 in all competitions and if they go to 6-0 against Oostende this week, rest assured their next Power Rankings spot would be in single digits.
#14 Igokea m:tel (+6)
The champions of Bosnia and Herzegovina suffered their first defeat of the season, dropping a game at home to Buducnost VOLI in the ABA League, but even in that one, and especially in their win over Nanterre 92, they showed some signs that this could be their best year in a while. A trip to Wurzburg will be their toughest test of the season so far.
#13 ERA Nymburk (+14)
Just here to tell you that Nymburk were down by 17 to Pardubice at the start of the fourth quarter. On the road, too. Allowed 79 points in 30 minutes, it looked concerning to say the least.
Also here to tell you that Nymburk won that game, thanks to a 32-10 final quarter.
Also here to tell you it's gonna be one of those "OMG, they won again!?" years for the Czech champs, as they opened up their 2024-25 account with six straight wins across all competitions.
That's how you get promoted by 14 spots in the Power Rankings.
#12 Falco-Vulcano Szombathely (+7)
Speaking of a strong domestic champion jump starting their season, the Hungarians are looking impressive, too. Led by the best player nobody talks about:
To make it a perfect week, Zoltan Perl was also named the Player of the Week, receiving more than 50 percent of the fans' votes in our online poll.
#11 VEF Riga (+5)
You know everything about Dairis Bertans getting his new career-high last week, but let us tell you about the biggest two reasons we feel like Riga could have a fine season. It's their two Ukrainians.
Issuf Sanon brought so much aggressiveness on both ends of the floor, while Vyachelsav Bobrov secured the boards in the BCL, getting to double digits there, and probably thinking, "man, with Dairis and Issuf like this, there's no need for me to force the issue and try to score," and finished with zero points on his BCL debut with VEF.
However, Bobrov is a beast. He nearly got a triple-double over the weekend, bothering Valmiera with 13 points, 9 rebounds and 7 assists. Different kind of VEF with these two, for sure.
#10 Manisa Basket (+19)
Remember that bizarre twist mentioned in FMP's section? Well, FMP and Manisa Basket are tied at 1-0 at the top of their group, with a direct matchup scheduled in Belgrade on Wednesday.
However, the rumors about Saben Lee leaving Manisa became a lot louder on Monday, and he could actually leave with an all-time record in points per game in the BCL, as he only played one game and went off for 36 points in their road win over Murcia.
Then, there were more rumors about Javon Freeman-Liberty going to the NBA, also after just one BCL appearance.
If they really leave, are Manisa still a top 10 team?
If they really leave, could Manisa still find a Lee 2.0 and a Freeman-Liberty 2.0 on the market?
Bizarre, after just a single BCL game.
#9 Pallacanestro Reggiana (+15)
Triple success for Reggiana, as (1) they defeated the mighty, previously mentioned Rytas team in the BCL, (2) they had a tough, exhausting overtime win over Cremona, in which they allowed a total of 16 points in the final 15 minutes of the game and erased an eight-point deficit, and (3) the schedule gods smiled upon them.
Reggiana will enjoy a week off in the BCL, catching their breath before a busy mid-October, facing Treviso, Szombathely and Trieste in seven days' work. Here, enjoy some of the highlights by their teen sensation Mouhamed Faye:
#8 Bertram Derthona Basket (+4)
Bandwagon: a wagon used for carrying a band in a parade or procession.
Jump on the bandwagon: what we're gonna do with Tommy Kuhse all season long.
We're at a point where we hype him up so much and he keeps delivering that it's hard to keep up and guess the next station of this bandwagon. Started with 13-7-7 against Cremona in Italy. Followed it up with 22-9-2 against Chemnitz in the BCL. Then with 31-7-6 (!!!) against Varese in Italy.
So... 13 to 22 to 31 points. Does that mean he'll get 40 in the next game?
#7 FIT/One Wurzburg Baskets (+3)
How strong are these guys? They lost the third quarter to Holon 27-18, still won the game easily, by nine points. Then they lost the fourth quarter to Rostock 32-19...
...and won the game 92-65.
Big chance for them to go to 2-0 in the BCL, as they have another home game, Igokea coming to town this week. Actually... They have Igokea, then Gottingen, then Hamburg, then Nanterre and finally Bayern. Would it be so crazy to win all of those and have a perfect month in October?
#6 BAXI Manresa (+2)
Talk about crazy dunks and highlights:
However, not even Derrick Alston Jr's poster was enough for Manresa to steal a win on the road at Girona, losing the game by four points. Their BCL comeback was impressive, a one-way street against SL Benfica, winning by 28 to make it clear to the rest of the continent - Manresa want that top spot and will do anything to get it.
Huge challenge coming up for them as they travel to Italy to face Derthona next week.
#5 Saint-Quentin Basket-Ball (+4)
The youngsters usually have problems with consistency. That's why we were focused on Nolan Traore's game against Nancy in the French League, to see if he could get another 27-point game, same as against Kolossos in the BCL.
The answer is no, he couldn't. He could do better, actually, with a 20-point, 10-assist double-double to muscle out a 104-96 win at home, and make it four straight wins for Saint-Quentin in all competitions to start the season.
SQBB had five other men in double figures, Khalid Moore picking up a 12-point, 11-rebound double-double, and they were composed once again offensively, taking care of the ball and turning it over just three times. These guys are for real. They are on the road in Karsiyaka next week, massive game there.
#4 AEK Betsson BC (+3)
The only reason why they aren't higher than this, is the PTSD we have from last season's start. Remember, they were hot as Hawaii, 5-0, to start the Regular Season, and we were discussing if their 2023-24 team is as strong as the BCL champs from 2018 or the Finalists from 2020.
Turns out, they had a miserable 2024 part of the season and now we're being extra careful with saying AEK are good. It seems they are. The Queen defeated Ramat-Gan easily and had a big 11-point win on the road in Thessaloniki, taking down Aris.
These are all good news and signs. Just a matter of doing it all season long now.
#3 Galatasaray (+1)
How unlucky are you on a scale of 1 to the way Galatasaray lost their game to Turk Telekom?
Anyway, consider it a minor setback. Plenty of Galatasaray's stars struggled with their shooting in Ankara, counting out James Palmer, they shot a combined 2-of-14 from beyond the arc, and you're not winning any game with those numbers.
But it's a much improved team this season, compared to their last few BCL campaigns. That matchup with Nymburk on Tuesday could push them to 2-0 or we could be in for additional question marks about them being potentially the biggest threat to the Spaniards.
#2 La Laguna Tenerife (0)
What do you do when you lack Marcelinho Huertas's playmaking, Giorgi Shermadini's efficiency and Kyle Guy's shooting?
You just replace it with Bruno Fitipaldo's playmaking, Fran Guerra's efficiency and Payton Willis's shooting.
The names change, but the system keeps delivering for La Laguna Tenerife, who were walking on water to make it to 3-0 at the start of the season. Literally. Because their game at Breogan was suspended, due to a slippery court and way too much water in the arena, meaning they'll have to finish it off some other time.
In the meantime, Tenerife get a whole week to prepare for their duel with Barcelona in the Spanish League. Should be a fun one, especially if Marcelinho makes it back from injury in time.
#1 Unicaja (0)
You really need an explanation? They won three games at the FIBA Intercontinental Cup, two at the Supercopa Endesa, two in the Liga Endesa, and one in the BCL.
That's their first eight-game winning streak of the season. Two major trophies already collected. Just a well oiled machine at this point.
Unicaja will look to make it nine in a row on Wednesday, when they welcome King Szczecin to Malaga, in a matchup which will see more players with a -ski last name in the Spanish team (Balcerowski, Osetkowski, Kalinoski) than in the Polish one (Kostrzewski, plus coach Miloszewski).
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The power rankings are entirely subjective and are in no way a true and accurate ranking system. All comments are purely those of the author.
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