Barça’s visit to the Maccabi court, in recent years, has been a nightmare for the Catalans. Five defeats, the last victory dates back to 2016, against a team that a priori is not one of the great candidates to be in the Final Four. But if we look at the results on their court, four wins in four games this season, things change. With Barça on the rise, having only lost one of the last nine games, the Catalans arrive full of arguments and confidence to defeat Maccabi today.
It can be perfectly argued that Barça’s main argument is collective, as we have seen in the last two victories, but if someone has to personalize the team’s recent successes, that is Nico Laprovittola. His good performances, numbers and statistics no longer surprise anyone, since he has been the leader since the beginning of the season. With Mirotic out, he has taken on the challenge of being the one who decides the matches. And he is leaving. Playing as two, freed from going up the ball thanks to Satoransky, he has much more of an impact on the game. From the triple and connecting inside.
Aside from Argentina, Barça has a cast of players who could be important today. First the interiors, well Maccabi is the team that takes the most rebounds in the competition. Not allowing them second plays and being accurate on the shots will be key to Tel Aviv’s victory. But also men like Higgins, who seems to take a step forward and another step back. In the last month he has combined great performances, especially in the Euroleague, with much more discreet games. And there is no better scenario than tonight to claim. It also remains to be seen what role Jasikevicius reserves for Kuric, already discharged and training normally, since he has not entered the rotation in recent duels. The Lithuanian coach also returns to what was his home because with Maccabi he won the Euroleague twice.
On the local side, in addition to the inside game, two men must be especially watched. First Lorenzo Brown, who this summer with the National Team has already shown what he is capable of. At Maccabi he is averaging 16.3 points, 6.8 assists and a PIR of 18, some fantastic numbers. The other player on whom the offensive weight of the team falls, the former Baskonia Wade Baldwin is not far behind either: 14.8 points and 5 assists.
THIS IS HOW THEY COME
Maccabee
Barca