A breakdown of the top five Euroleague big men: Mathias Lezord, Filip Petrušev, Vincent Poirier, Walter Tavares, and Nikola Milutinov at number one. Milutinov averages 22 PIR with strong rebounding and a low foul rate, while Tavares brings elite defensive gravity that changes how opponents shoot.
Recently I've been thinking, what are the top 5 bigs in Europe and what is the criteria to have a top big? How do you fit the team? How does the coach use you? For this video specifically, picking my top 5 bigs, I won't be using anyone from my team, but if I was, I would put Dio at number 1, not only because he's been having a great season and he's my son, but he's also a great person off the court. So number 5, I'm gonna go with Mathias Lezord. His energy, his ability to affect the game without having the ball. We talk about that, setting good screens, being able to switch on defense. We can't wait to see you back on the floor. Get healthy soon. And number 4, this is actually one of my former teammates, Filip Petrušev. I played with him in EFES. He now plays for Dubai and he can play 4 or 5, but I'm classifying him as a 5. He's averaged double PIR in every single game he's played. You can fact check me on that. Maybe I'm wrong, but the way you can affect the game, not just by scoring, but also, you know, rebounding, setting good screens. Number 3 is Vincent Poirier. The way he protects the rim is probably his number one most elite skill. And one of his biggest components that he does— he doesn't necessarily go to block the shot, he goes to block it at the rim, and he's the best at it. Sets good screens, has his little fake thing he does where he goes to set the screen but then doesn't set the screen and goes for that lob. So he's at number 3. Coming in at number 2 is Tavares from Real Madrid. His defensive gravity around the rim is probably the best in the league. And what do I mean when I say that? When you drive the ball, you're thinking about him, so it affects your decision in terms of your shot, in terms of deciding to go inside, which allows more time for the primary defender to get in front. Number 1 is Milutinov. The guy averages around a 22 PIR and affects the game, and you're like, what did he do? Made layups, didn't foul, got rebounds. I think he averages like 12 and 8 and affects the game without the ball, which with their team, they're a very system-based team, which is probably one of the best picks to have in that system.
