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In long-distance running, some athletes serve as “rabbits” — pace-setters who start strong but fade before the finish line. In this season’s Fantasy, identifying them early — and letting them go in time — is key.
Published: 13/10/2025 12:36
In this second review piece, we’ll try to identify two categories of players: those who will remain steady, long-term fixtures in this year’s Fantasy game, and those who started with a bang but seem likely to lose steam quickly.
First of all, we’d like to thank you for welcoming this new column we’re trying to establish at BasketStories. As I mentioned last time, our goal here is to analyze trends, highlight players who will matter over time, and draw conclusions without the limitations of our own roster’s structure.
However, since the EuroLeague moves at a blistering pace, this piece — especially when a double week approaches — will also include a review of our team’s previous round, along with some early thoughts for the next one.
Round 3 went well for our team, which gathered 215.15 points, climbing several spots in the overall standings. Of course, that doesn’t mean much yet — positions can shift by thousands from one week to the next at this stage of the season.
We were rewarded, like most managers, for trusting three Olympiacos players — Vezenkov, Milutinov, and Dorsey. The star forward proved once again the ideal captain pick, Milutinov keeps delivering top performances, and Dorsey seems, perhaps for the first time in his career, to be finding true Fantasy relevance. Meanwhile, Rathan-Mayes and Hall added just 5 points each from the bench — a bit concerning, to say the least.
Looking ahead, Rathan-Mayes failed to seize the opportunity we gave him and, given Bayern’s overall picture, will be the first to go. De Larrea will return in his place — we had to sell him after reports of an injury, which, as it turned out, were false. Hall seems to have reached his performance ceiling, while Baldwin, even in a game where he shot 2/7 from the line and 3/11 from the field, still managed an impressive 11 PIR — proof of his quality. His free-throw struggles (around 45%) might worry some, but considering his career average is around 85%, that number should eventually normalize.
In the coach slot, Scariolo provided 20 points, and if Real Madrid hadn’t coasted through the final two minutes, that number could have reached 25 — along with some extra credits. Still, he’ll be leaving the team, even though we expect Partizan to lose comfortably in Madrid. Options for the coming round include Ataman, facing the weakest team so far (Villeurbanne) at OAKA, and Jasikevicius, who will look to bounce back from an unexpected home loss to Red Star, with two straight home games against Dubai and Bayern ahead.
These are our early thoughts, but we’ll wait for weekend news — injury updates, returns, and local league action — before locking in the final roster, which will be presented on Tuesday.
Now, let’s turn to some players who dazzled early, drawing Fantasy managers in with bright performances, only to fade quickly. One basic rule for every manager: before picking a player, you must know him — how he plays, how he earns his points. During the first two rounds, players like Dokossi, Wainright, and Seljaas impressed with strong stats and low prices. Yet in Round 3, they disappointed, losing the trust of managers just as quickly as they gained it. That doesn’t mean they can’t become hidden gems later — only that before buying, you should observe them long enough to see if their production is stable or circumstantial.
One case that continues to impress is Bonga, averaging 18.7 PIR across the first three games. He clearly has a defined role in Partizan this season, and his all-around play — rebounds, drawn fouls from post-ups — doesn’t depend solely on scoring. But before rushing to bring him in, let’s remember that last year he also started hot (14.2 average through five games) before fading into inconsistency, mixing great nights with plenty of negatives.
Conversely, some players considered early bargains have turned out disappointing so far. The clearest example is Biberovic, who currently averages -0.43 PIR, with his price now down to 7.1 credits. Still, I believe he’ll eventually become a solid option once he adjusts to Fenerbahce’s new setup. He’s trying to expand his game — adding on-ball actions he hasn’t quite mastered yet — but at that price range, he could later be a real bargain.
As we predicted last week, some of the top performers were bound to regress a bit — take Mirotic, for example, in Monaco’s offense loaded with scorers. And as expected, one of Partizan’s guards was bound to emerge, and that player has been Sterling Brown, with two standout performances. Still, speaking personally, I have bad memories from owning him last season, and it’ll take a lot to convince me at his current price of 11.3 credits — especially in away games.
Right now, the team with the most Fantasy intrigue among guards is Valencia. Beyond the promising De Larrea, they feature Darius Thompson, looking like his old Baskonia self, and Omari Moore, arguably the breakout of the season so far. As long as Montero remains out, every Fantasy team should consider a Valencia guard in their mix.
Finally, regarding coaches — as mentioned before, most teams are still far from their true form, so it’s better to pick coaches week by week rather than planning long-term. Many factors can sway a match: a new coach bump (see Red Star), a team’s reaction after a tough loss, home advantage, or even the “weight” of the jersey — Maccabi’s is not the same as Hapoel’s, for instance, and their derby last week carried its own peculiarities. What’s clear, though, is that Villeurbanne seems by far the weakest side this season, while Paris, though not at last year’s level, still has a solid roster and the tempo to upset slower opponents. If only I’d realized that a bit earlier, I might have avoided the disaster of picking Kattash in Round 2…
For comments or feedback: follow on X @NewEntryIlias
First of all, we’d like to thank you for welcoming this new column we’re trying to establish at BasketStories. As I mentioned last time, our goal here is to analyze trends, highlight players who will matter over time, and draw conclusions without the limitations of our own roster’s structure.
However, since the EuroLeague moves at a blistering pace, this piece — especially when a double week approaches — will also include a review of our team’s previous round, along with some early thoughts for the next one.
Round 3 went well for our team, which gathered 215.15 points, climbing several spots in the overall standings. Of course, that doesn’t mean much yet — positions can shift by thousands from one week to the next at this stage of the season.
We were rewarded, like most managers, for trusting three Olympiacos players — Vezenkov, Milutinov, and Dorsey. The star forward proved once again the ideal captain pick, Milutinov keeps delivering top performances, and Dorsey seems, perhaps for the first time in his career, to be finding true Fantasy relevance. Meanwhile, Rathan-Mayes and Hall added just 5 points each from the bench — a bit concerning, to say the least.
Looking ahead, Rathan-Mayes failed to seize the opportunity we gave him and, given Bayern’s overall picture, will be the first to go. De Larrea will return in his place — we had to sell him after reports of an injury, which, as it turned out, were false. Hall seems to have reached his performance ceiling, while Baldwin, even in a game where he shot 2/7 from the line and 3/11 from the field, still managed an impressive 11 PIR — proof of his quality. His free-throw struggles (around 45%) might worry some, but considering his career average is around 85%, that number should eventually normalize.
In the coach slot, Scariolo provided 20 points, and if Real Madrid hadn’t coasted through the final two minutes, that number could have reached 25 — along with some extra credits. Still, he’ll be leaving the team, even though we expect Partizan to lose comfortably in Madrid. Options for the coming round include Ataman, facing the weakest team so far (Villeurbanne) at OAKA, and Jasikevicius, who will look to bounce back from an unexpected home loss to Red Star, with two straight home games against Dubai and Bayern ahead.
These are our early thoughts, but we’ll wait for weekend news — injury updates, returns, and local league action — before locking in the final roster, which will be presented on Tuesday.
Now, let’s turn to some players who dazzled early, drawing Fantasy managers in with bright performances, only to fade quickly. One basic rule for every manager: before picking a player, you must know him — how he plays, how he earns his points. During the first two rounds, players like Dokossi, Wainright, and Seljaas impressed with strong stats and low prices. Yet in Round 3, they disappointed, losing the trust of managers just as quickly as they gained it. That doesn’t mean they can’t become hidden gems later — only that before buying, you should observe them long enough to see if their production is stable or circumstantial.
One case that continues to impress is Bonga, averaging 18.7 PIR across the first three games. He clearly has a defined role in Partizan this season, and his all-around play — rebounds, drawn fouls from post-ups — doesn’t depend solely on scoring. But before rushing to bring him in, let’s remember that last year he also started hot (14.2 average through five games) before fading into inconsistency, mixing great nights with plenty of negatives.
Conversely, some players considered early bargains have turned out disappointing so far. The clearest example is Biberovic, who currently averages -0.43 PIR, with his price now down to 7.1 credits. Still, I believe he’ll eventually become a solid option once he adjusts to Fenerbahce’s new setup. He’s trying to expand his game — adding on-ball actions he hasn’t quite mastered yet — but at that price range, he could later be a real bargain.
As we predicted last week, some of the top performers were bound to regress a bit — take Mirotic, for example, in Monaco’s offense loaded with scorers. And as expected, one of Partizan’s guards was bound to emerge, and that player has been Sterling Brown, with two standout performances. Still, speaking personally, I have bad memories from owning him last season, and it’ll take a lot to convince me at his current price of 11.3 credits — especially in away games.
Right now, the team with the most Fantasy intrigue among guards is Valencia. Beyond the promising De Larrea, they feature Darius Thompson, looking like his old Baskonia self, and Omari Moore, arguably the breakout of the season so far. As long as Montero remains out, every Fantasy team should consider a Valencia guard in their mix.
Finally, regarding coaches — as mentioned before, most teams are still far from their true form, so it’s better to pick coaches week by week rather than planning long-term. Many factors can sway a match: a new coach bump (see Red Star), a team’s reaction after a tough loss, home advantage, or even the “weight” of the jersey — Maccabi’s is not the same as Hapoel’s, for instance, and their derby last week carried its own peculiarities. What’s clear, though, is that Villeurbanne seems by far the weakest side this season, while Paris, though not at last year’s level, still has a solid roster and the tempo to upset slower opponents. If only I’d realized that a bit earlier, I might have avoided the disaster of picking Kattash in Round 2…
For comments or feedback: follow on X @NewEntryIlias
