Cheatham's play surely turning heads across Europe
Zylan Cheatham had his finest performance yet on Thursday in FC Bayern Munich's 79-67 road loss at Real Madrid and teams across Europe are surely taking notice. In just his fifth game in the competition, Cheatham posted 20 points on 9-of-14 shooting and 8 rebounds for a performance index rating of 22.
Cheatham, 27, was a late addition to the Bayern roster; he was signed on the final day to register players as a replacement for the injured Augustine Rubit and his contract only went into effect later that week after he completed his physical. Once he hit the floor, Cheatham has not stopped producing.
Since a 12-minute debut against ALBA Berlin in Round 29, he has averaged 14.5 points and 6.0 rebounds for a PIR of 16.5 in 19 minutes per game. Those numbers from the 1.96-meter power forward are something that should interest teams all across Europe.
What was particularly impressive against Real was the fact that Cheatham was banging against some of the best players in the competition. He used his speed to get past Walter Tavares, displayed touch and athleticism in beating Guerschon Yabusele for tip-ins, overpowered Sergio Rodriguez in the paint and made a smart pass after one offensive board to set up an open three for a teammate.
If Cheatham had enough appearances, his performance index rating would rank among the top 10 in the league in a per-minute basis (26.5 per 40 minutes).
There is only one game left for Cheatham to impress against Europe’s best – Bayern closes its EuroLeague season at home against Zalgiris Kaunas next week – before Bayern turns its focus to the German League. Has he done enough to become a hot commodity this summer on the EuroLeague free agency market? The numbers suggest that he has.
Game Videos
- 01:09
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Nick Weiler-Babb: 'We needed a big win on the road'
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EA7 Emporio Armani Milan-FC Bayern Munich | RS Round 17 Highlights | 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague
- 00:12
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Voigtmann's huge dunk! Motorola Magic Moment
- 00:24
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Booker's alley-oop dunk! Motorola Magic Moment
- 01:09
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Dzanan Musa: 'We are one of the top three teams in the EuroLeague'
![https://media-cdn.incrowdsports.com/b871ca12-2711-45b0-b272-090fb02dc562.jpg]()
Real Madrid-AS Monaco | RS Round 17 Highlights | 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague
- 00:30
![https://dve-images.imggaming.com/original/p/2024/12/19/vrMxAyS71XMhxCEqjfU0exuhtDi8i609-1734646108037.jpg]()
Campazzo's magic pass! Motorola Magic Moment of the Night
- 00:15
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Campazzo's huge block! Motorola Magic Moment
- 00:16
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Garuba stops James! Motorola Magic Moment
- 01:15
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Walter Tavares: 'For me, Paris is the best team in the league right now'
![https://media-cdn.incrowdsports.com/31d2f38e-82c2-406d-9ee8-b84c3f9bb801.jpg]()
Paris Basketball-Real Madrid | RS Round 16 Highlights | 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague
![https://media-cdn.incrowdsports.com/498c0a39-cdd1-46f2-a999-8c5cc288b0b2.jpg]()
AS Monaco-FC Bayern Munich | RS Round 16 Highlights | 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague
- 00:20
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Tavares rejects Hayes! Motorola Magic Moment
- 00:11
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Booker's eyes on back of his head! Motorola Magic Moment
![https://media-cdn.incrowdsports.com/cb51b927-3088-4142-8b2c-91cf3d68fe39.jpg]()
Real Madrid-Zalgiris Kaunas | RS Round 15 Highlights | 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague
- 01:27
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Andreas Obst: 'It was definitely a dogfight'
![https://media-cdn.incrowdsports.com/e8fe54fd-5ed5-4bc3-9601-1f72f78a8a82.jpg]()
FC Bayern Munich-Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv | RS Round 15 Highlights | 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague
- 00:14
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Tavares's huge block! Motorola Magic Moment
- 01:31
![https://dve-images.imggaming.com/original/p/2024/12/05/UX9S9s5euN2NMqwbcOrPWUlWoksy6hB7-1733440995839.jpg]()
Devin Booker: 'We had the energy from the fans'
![https://media-cdn.incrowdsports.com/cbc6f4e4-5b4f-4a8e-b1dc-416b50232a07.jpg]()
FC Bayern Munich-Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz | RS Round 14 Highlights | 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague
![https://media-cdn.incrowdsports.com/56086f0e-5438-4076-a0b9-096cfdfc1188.jpg]()
Real Madrid-Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul | RS Round 14 Highlights | 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague
![https://img.youtube.com/vi/E8gQK5Aon-s/maxresdefault.jpg]()
LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne-Real Madrid | RS Round 13 Highlights | 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague
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Anadolu Efes Istanbul-FC Bayern Munich | RS Round 13 Highlights | 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague
- 00:13
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Gabriel Deck with a fine dunk! Motorola Magic Moment
- 00:11
![https://media-cdn.incrowdsports.com/b94d736d-4a84-41ce-8524-4dac8951f622.jpg?crop=1080%3A608%3Anowe%3A100%3A36]()
Booker throws it down! Motorola Magic Moment
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Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade-FC Bayern Munich | RS Round 12 Highlights | 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague
![https://media-cdn.incrowdsports.com/cbb07da4-47ee-4be4-afa1-0475e093ac96.jpg]()
FC Barcelona-Real Madrid | RS Round 12 Highlights | 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague
- 00:20
![https://media-cdn.incrowdsports.com/d43e7ffa-6a22-4c92-8c33-9dba3f8bfdff.jpg?crop=1150%3A647%3Anowe%3A138%3A82]()
Tavares blocks with authority! Motorola Magic Moment
- 00:12
![https://media-cdn.incrowdsports.com/acf76a16-eb28-4607-b086-00fe38095831.jpg?crop=1080%3A607%3Anowe%3A100%3A62]()
Hezonja with the up and under! Motorola Magic Moment
- 00:09
![https://media-cdn.incrowdsports.com/14e84602-4514-48db-9271-e9531900558a.jpg?crop=1080%3A608%3Anowe%3A144%3A76]()
Campazzo magic! Motorola Magic Moment
![https://media-cdn.incrowdsports.com/bf58ad3c-07c8-40e1-9fb6-0052dded6b07.jpg]()
FC Bayern Munich-FC Barcelona | RS Round 11 Highlights | 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague
- 00:53
![https://dve-images.imggaming.com/original/p/2024/11/22/LEsrFWYMVAcqdxi2Glu98wf9YkIl9PZF-1732313384347.jpg]()
Andreas Obst after setting single-game three-point record: 'It's a special night'
- 00:15
![https://media-cdn.incrowdsports.com/84e4833a-27cb-461a-a003-6407f6899028.jpg?crop=1028%3A578%3Anowe%3A190%3A38]()
Obst sets the single-game record for threes made! Motorola Magic Moment
- 00:07
![https://media-cdn.incrowdsports.com/ba6a03d5-d3ef-40b1-834a-b1fa036f9325.jpg?crop=1214%3A683%3Anowe%3A88%3A65]()
What a fast break slam by Booker! Motorola Magic Moment
- 01:07
![https://dve-images.imggaming.com/original/p/2024/11/21/4x4ZMJD3kGTTfrJkScIZoCiByqzaZA1y-1732230979539.jpg]()
Facu Campazzo: 'When we play good defense, on offense we are really good'
![https://img.youtube.com/vi/61_c3OfBC74/maxresdefault.jpg]()
Real Madrid-ALBA Berlin | RS Round 11 Highlights | 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague
- 00:42
![https://dve-images.imggaming.com/original/p/2024/11/14/FViKQPZv025EdWi6ypp2kdplRieDBAMJ-1731627397436.jpg]()
Gordon Herbert: 'We played really good basketball'
![https://img.youtube.com/vi/v2UN5hWpeio/maxresdefault.jpg]()
Real Madrid-Anadolu Efes Istanbul | RS Round 10 Highlights | 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague
![https://img.youtube.com/vi/WuV5w2L5qGw/maxresdefault.jpg]()
FC Bayern Munich–ALBA Berlin | RS Round 10 highlights | 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague
- 00:16
![https://media-cdn.incrowdsports.com/e1f211cb-36be-4c8d-8a31-94fe30fb058b.jpg?crop=635%3A357%3Anowe%3A326%3A72]()
Hezonja dunks over the entire defense! Motorola Magic Moment
- 00:22
![https://media-cdn.incrowdsports.com/8606729b-9f6e-43f2-a429-ffe0d29506cd.jpg?crop=695%3A391%3Anowe%3A369%3A44]()
da Silva from half-court! Motorola Magic Moment
- 00:26
![https://dve-images.imggaming.com/original/p/2024/11/12/DpfH9eZv4bH2dFPnFnKrX9vswSdO47JT-1731453611260.jpg]()
Edwards finds Booker! Motorola Magic Moment of the Night
- 00:41
![https://dve-images.imggaming.com/original/p/2024/11/12/YGqamKGqOJ1CZyARgCi40atgCbx6ADwD-1731450518806.jpg]()
Mario Hezonja: 'We started to take care of business'
![https://img.youtube.com/vi/sSNxEq5naNc/maxresdefault.jpg]()
Real Madrid-Virtus Segafredo Bologna | RS Round 9 Highlights | 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague
- 00:23
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Tavares says no! Motorola Magic Moment
![https://img.youtube.com/vi/bKu2tX_sBVc/maxresdefault.jpg]()
Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul-FC Bayern Munich| RS Round 9 Highlights | 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague
- 00:09
![https://media-cdn.incrowdsports.com/f74611cd-88a7-40aa-8e0f-33ac93650899.jpg?crop=1165%3A655%3Anowe%3A62%3A0]()
Edwards-Booker connection! Motorola Magic Moment
- 00:12
![https://media-cdn.incrowdsports.com/f77e20ff-77d4-4fa6-aa80-e83594a7fa00.jpg?crop=1080%3A607%3Anowe%3A155%3A100]()
Edwards finds Booker! Motorola Magic Moment
![https://img.youtube.com/vi/uFE3aBQ4Eq8/maxresdefault.jpg]()
FC Bayern Munich-Zalgiris Kaunas | RS Round 8 Highlights | 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague
- 00:58
![https://dve-images.imggaming.com/original/p/2024/11/07/sejeRUndnaWb4G1kCS8nzWOngLebr8B0-1731018076185.jpg]()
Devin Booker: 'We gave it all 40 minutes'
