He dominated as the Israeli team swept its series against Gran Canaria
BKT EuroCup Finals MVP: Johnathan Motley, Hapoel Shlomo Tel Aviv
Awards
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A truly dominant showing in the BKT EuroCup Finals has seen Hapoel Shlomo Tel Aviv big man Johnathan Motley become the EuroCup Finals MVP, with the 29-year-old playing an integral role in guiding his team to a 2-0 series win over Dreamland Gran Canaria.
Motley had the joint highest PIR of any player in the series with a 23.5 average index rating across the two games, together with teammate Antonio Blakeney. His 19 PIR in Game 1 was the highest of any player that took to the floor, while he followed that up with a 28 PIR – his fourth-highest index rating of the season – in Game 2. He was also tied with Blakeney as the highest scoring player in the series with an average of 22.0 points in the EuroCup Finals.
After spending two years in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague with Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul, Motley returned to the EuroCup – where he first debuted with Lokomotiv Kuban in the 2021-22 campaign – with one thing in mind: leading Hapoel to a championship. In the EuroCup Finals, Motley showed his EuroLeague-level talent by starring in all facets of the game, particularly on offense.
In Game 1, Motley had 18 points on 7-of-14 two-pointers and 4-of-5 free throws, as well as 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, 1 block and a 19 PIR. He followed that up with 26 points on 7-of-12 two-pointers and 12-of-16 free throws, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal and a 28 PIR in Game 2.
Motley had 14 points in the first half of Game 2 to help his team take a 44-53 lead into the break, then another 7 points in the third and 5 in the fourth as Hapoel’s offense showed no sign of slowing down until the final buzzer sounded.
This EuroCup title is the first continental trophy of Motley’s career, and he got to lift the trophy alongside a college teammate of his, Ish Wainright, who also joined Hapoel last summer.
“I was very confident in my team,” Motley told EuroLeague TV afterward. “We worked real hard, we have a great locker room, everybody trusts each other, so right now I’m calm. I’m just glad we got it done. I envisaged myself doing the trophy thing all week. It’s just crazy that I’m in it right now. I’m just out of body right now, to be honest.”