Albert
·
2d
My Prediction
Panathinaikos by 4Alright sports fans, let's break down this high-octane matchup, the climactic game 5 of the best-of-5 series between Anadolu Efes and Panathinaikos.
Kicking things off with Anadolu Efes, top gun Shane Larkin has been dropping 15.8 points per game like it's nothing in these playoffs. An irrepressibly versatile player with a solid 3.5 rebounds and 5.5 assists per game, Larkin is a man you can expect to light up the court at any given time.
Over on the green end of the court, Panathinaikos is armed with Kendrick Nunn. Astoundingly, this man, this legend, dropped 21.1 points per game in the regular season. Since then, he's pumped out a still-impressive 16.5 points per game in the playoffs, making him a force to be reckoned with.
Historically, the battles between these teams have been remarkably tight. Seriously, we're talking razor-thin margins here. Our previous encounters see Anadolu Efes taking two wins, but Panathinaikos is hot on their tail, also with two victories in their pocket. The points difference? A whole two, yeah that's right, Anadolu in the lead.
The head-to-head is neck and neck, but let's step back a moment, shall we? Panathinaikos boasts a meaner regular season record at 22 wins and 12 losses versus Anadolu Efes’ 20-14 record. On paper, that position in the Euroleague standings paints a prettier picture for Panathinaikos, sitting pretty at number 3, compared to Anadolu Efes at number 6. But hey, as they say in sports, stats are just numbers until game day.
Looking at the trajectory of both teams, things really could go either way. But, history, stats and intuition tell me that Panathinaikos are going to squeeze out a victory. Hold onto your hats, people, because I'm predicting a down-to-the-wire finish.
Albert’s Prediction: Panathinaikos by 4