MIES (Switzerland) - It's time to continue the MVP Race for the tenth time in our history.
The checkpoints are in no way official, it's more of a tool for you to keep up with the biggest favorites to win the MVP of the Season award on the final weekend of the season in May.
To figure out who has the best chance to win the award, we have to take a look at the profiles of previous MVPs in the Basketball Champions League.
Jordan Theodore (Season I), Manny Harris (II), Tyrese Rice (III), Keith Langford (IV), Bonzie Colson (V), Chima Moneke (VI), TJ Shorts II (VII) and Marcelinho Huertas (VIII, IX) all reached the Final Four, all played crucial roles in their teams getting there, all made clutch shots during the seasons and had the numbers to prove they were the Most Valuable Players.
With that in mind, during the MVP Race, we will have four serious questions to help us figure out who the leader is at each checkpoint:
(1) Does his team have a winning record?
(2) Is he the reason why?
(3) Does he have the numbers to be the MVP?
(4) If his team's season is on the line and they need one shot to save it, is he the one taking it?
Since this is a column and - we repeat - not in any way an official ranking, we need the grand separator to figure out the leader.
That's why the fifth question will always be random, to give you a hint of who's the guy in the lead.
This week, it's pure and simple:
(5) Does he have a nickname relating to the country where he just picked up a BCL win?
(See? Number five is just random.)
#10 Jeremiah Hill (Elan Chalon)
(1) Does his team have a winning record? Nah, down to 1-2 now, with a pair of blowout defeats in Spain. (1.33) Why is he here then? Because, if Elan Chalon manage to turn their season around and reach the Final Four, he's a legit MVP candidate. (1.66) Okay, but he's not the leader of the race this week? Nope.
#9 Johnny Berhanemeskel (Le Mans Sarthe Basket)
(1) Does his team have a winning record? Yes! Six straight BCL wins, 3-0 in the Round of 16!!! (2) Okay, man, don't shout. Is he the reason why? Ehm... (2.25) That doesn't sound promising. Well, he kinda is, and also, kinda isn't. (2.5) Kinda explain then. Well, he does average 15.2 points, best in the team. However, Trevor Hudgins is probably their best player. (2.75) So... Why isn't Trevor here instead of Johnny? Because Johnny is on a hotter run right now, over the last four BCL games especially, he's been at 19.0 points per game, shooting 13-of-24 from beyond the arc in that run. So yes, he's hot right now, but Trevor is probably more important, and this discussion is gonna get bigger if they keep winning. Nice discussion to have. (With myself.)
#8 Jerrick Harding (Rytas Vilnius)
(1) Does his team have a winning record? Nope. 1-2 in the Round of 16. (1.33) Do you even care about the first four questions? I do, that's why we're having Jerrick here, because he does have the numbers to be the MVP, leading all remaining scorers in the competition at 19.0 points per game. (1.66) He doesn't have all the numbers. The ones in the W column are missing in the standings. Exactly. That's why he's not a leader here, but if Rytas go crazy and win the group, Jerrick's MVP case gets stronger.
#7 Frank Bartley (AEK BC)
(1) Does his team have a winning record? Yep, 3-0. (2) Is he the reason why? Well... (2.33) Oh dear lord, now what!? He is the reason why, but also, he's not the biggest reason why. (2.66) Okay, got it. He's elite, but he's got a teammate higher up the MVP Race, right? Yep. Frank's 17.6 points, 3.4 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game aren't to be underestimated, though.
#6 Ricky Rubio (Joventut Badalona)
(1) Does his team have a winning record? Yep. Unbeaten in all BCL games this season. (2) Is he the reason why? Sure, he's got the best numbers on the best team, and is clearly their leader. (3) Does he have the numbers to be the MVP? 14.0 points, shooting 49-50-91 percent, 4.8 assists, 2.5 rebounds, 1.3 steals, 17.0 efficiency rating per game, all done in just above 18 minutes of action. (4) If his team's season is on the line and they need one shot to save it, is he the one taking it? Nope. That's why he's not the leader of the MVP Race this week.
#5 Errick McCollum (Galatasaray MCT Technic)
(1) Does his team have a winning record? Yep, 2-1. (2) Is he the reason why? Yep, extremely important buckets down the stretch in their last two come-from-behind wins. (3) Does he have the numbers to be the MVP? 18.5 points, 3.8 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 16.5 efficiency rating per game. (4) If his team's season is on the line and they need one shot to save it, is he the one taking it? Of course. Probably a one-legged runner from the logo or something that others define as "tough shot," and Errick defines as "money." (5) Does he have a nickname relating to the country where he just picked up a BCL win? Well, they picked up a win in Bulgaria this week. Errick Bulgarian McCollum doesn't sound right, sorry... Not the leader at checkpoint VI.
#4 Kendrick Perry (Unicaja)
(1) Does his team have a winning record? *Titanic movie old lady voice* "it's been 84 years since his team did not have a winning record." (2) Is he the reason why? He's always the reason why. (3) Does he have the numbers to be the MVP? 13.5 points, shooting 63-52-78 percent, 4.8 assists, 1.1 steals, 15.9 efficiency rating, all done in under 20 minutes of action. (4) If his team's season is on the line and they need one shot to save it, is he the one taking it? Yep. He just hit a clutch shot for the win in Spain last weekend, that's your evidence. (5) Does he have a nickname relating to the country where he just picked up a BCL win? They won in Spain, and Kendrick Spaniard Perry does sound nice, but nope, not the correct answer. So not the leader this week.
#3 Cameron Hunt (Joventut Badalona)
(1) Does his team have a winning record? He's on the same team as Rubio, so yes, still unbeaten half a scroll later. (2) Is he the reason why? Yep. Very yep. (3) Does he have the numbers to be the MVP? 14.3 points, 3.2 assists, 1.8 rebounds, 1.2 steals, 13.6 efficiency rating per game. (4) If his team's season is on the line and they need one shot to save it, is he the one taking it? Oh yes. Not one, not two, but THREE game-winners this season in the BCL, two of them being at the buzzer. (5) Does he have a nickname relating to the country where he just picked up a BCL win? They won in Wurzburg this week. He did play in Germany, but nobody calls him Cameron German Hunt.
#2 Jack Kayil (ALBA BERLIN)
(1) Does his team have a winning record? Yep, 2-1 in the Round of 16. (2) Is he the reason why? Oh yes. Simply sensational in the Round of 16, back-to-back games of 20 points, including a series of clutch moves to see off Karditsa in Berlin this week. (3) Does he have the numbers to be the MVP? 10.7 points, 3.9 assists, 2.3 rebounds, 1.1 steals, 11.4 efficiency rating per game for the season. (3.5) Doesn't sound too convincing. We've been through this last week. He's the youngest player on the list, just turned 20, and it was a struggle for him to figure stuff out early in the season. But over the last five games, he's averaged 15.8 points, shot 51 percent from the field, dished out 4.6 assists per game, grabbed 2.6 rebounds, with 1.4 steals, giving him an efficiency rating of 17.4 per game over the last five encounters. (4) Okay, fair enough. If his team's season is on the line and they need one shot to save it, is he the one taking it? Yep, just had a gigantic three-pointer and a bunch of free throws to ice the game in a close one in Berlin. (5) Does he have a nickname relating to the country where he just picked up a BCL win? They won in Berlin, but Jack German Kayil is not that cool. Come to think of it, he could have amazing nicknames, like: Jack Licensed To Kayil, like License to Kill, the 007 movie. Jack Hard To Kayil, like Hard to Kill, one of the weirdest movies ever made, with Steven Seagal. Anyway, he's up to #2, but he's not the leader. Yet.
#1 RaiQuan Gray (AEK BC)
(1) Does his team have a winning record? Yep, 3-0 in the Round of 16, 8-1 for the season! (2) Is he the reason why? Oh yes. Leads the team in efficiency rating, rebounds and assists, is second to Bartley in points. Big guy leading the team in assists, has MVP written all over it! (3) Does he have the numbers to be the MVP? 13.6 points, 55 percent shooting, 5.8 rebounds, 4.0 assists, 1.4 steals, 17.8 efficiency rating per game. That's also 20 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists, 21 efficiency rating per game since the start of the Round of 16. (4) If his team's season is on the line and they need one shot to save it, is he the one taking it? This is the best part about him, because he already has clutch shots to his name, but he can also have that clutch assist, or better yet, that clutch defensive play that you may not even notice, but the offense noticed and failed to execute their play. Anyway, he will be there on the court, for sure, and he'll impact the biggest play of the season. Ask Tofas if you don't believe me. (5) Does he have a nickname relating to the country where he just picked up a BCL win? They won in Türkiye, and get this, the best player on the court was none other than RaiQuan Turk Gray!
To be fair, his nickname probably has nothing to do with Turks. According to my best friend Google, "Turk is an English-language nickname traditionally bestowed upon individuals exhibiting traits such as a swarthy complexion, dark hair, or a robust, stubborn demeanor, stemming from medieval European perceptions of Ottoman Turks as fierce and unyielding warriors."
The last four words are so RaiQuan. Fierce and unyielding warrior.
Also, the MVP Race leader after three weeks of the Round of 16!
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