How the long break affected the majority of the teams in Europe?

      Covid-19 affected a lot the basketball industry and its effects will be seen at least for the next season. Adjusting budgets, salary and other expenses cuts, fewer quality players signed are some of those effects. But the long break affected as well the physical shape of many players and their ability to score baskets. The best examples we had it yesterday at the decisive games for the Final 8 of the Basketball Champions League.
      Iberostar Tenerife hosted Oostende and the final result was a ridiculous 62-54. The players from both teams were not able to score with decent efficiency. Only two times during the game, the teams scored at least 20 points per quarter, Tenerife once and Oostende once. The last quarter was pathetic: 11-11!
      The winner of the encounter finished with almost 33% from the field, having 13 turnovers, while the Belgian club had 36.5 FG, with a disastrous percentage from the arc (4/22) and 16 turnovers.
      Without the Covid-19 era, I am sure that the result would have been much better. And they were better, the simple proof is to take a look at the previous encounters this season: in the opener game of the series Iberostar Tenerife won with 85-75 and then they have lost the second leg in Belgium with 75-69. The difference in scoring is huge compared with the 3rd game played yesterday. 62-54 seems like a junior league score.
      In the other game of the night, JDA Dijon struggled to qualify against a brave Nizhny Novgorod (75-67). The encounter was full of missing shots and turnovers (only Dijon committed 20). The lack of training together was visible for both teams and this is happening with almost all the teams in Europe at the moment. The absence of the game reduced the players abilities and maybe their motivation too. We have to regain that passion for the game! To train better and to score much more!

Gratian Cormos

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