Bad news for Anadolu Efes. One of its main stars, Shane Larkin, had to leave the last match due to problems with his right knee.
One week before the start of the Euroleague Final Four (May 19-21), the current European champion is also playing in the playoffs of the Turkish league, where he beat Pinar Karsiyaka in the first game by almost 30 points of advantage (90-66).
Putting the happiness of victory aside, the priority now is Larkin’s knee. The player, after a jump and a collision with an opponent, fell with his leg outstretched, which caused pain in his right knee. This it was in the first quarter, but the point guard did not leave the track until the last period.
“Shane Larkin had a slight knee strain early in the game. I hope it’s nothing serious. We did not use it in the last period, because it was no longer necessary“, affirmed Ergin Ataman, coach of Efes, after the final match against Karsiyaka.
Despite having a great squad, with names like Micic, Beaubois and Simon, among many others, losing Shane would be catastrophic. The Turk is practically unstoppable when he has the day and he can “roll you”, both from the triple and penetrating. It would be a sensitive drop of a Efes that aspires to repeat last year’s feat, when they beat Barça and were crowned European champions.