This is the third time the EuroLeague rookie has been the MVP of the Round
Round 30 MVP: TJ Shorts, Paris Basketball
Awards
3 Mins read
A wonderful performance by Paris Basketball star TJ Shorts has seen him take home Round 30 MVP honors.
Shorts finished with a 24-point, 10-assist double-double – his fourth double-double of the season – as Paris beat EA7 Emporio Armani Milan 92-79. His 24 points came courtesy of 8-of-15 two-pointers, 1-of-2 threes and 5-of-7 free throws, while he also amassed 6 rebounds, 2 steals, 1 block – his second block this season – and 7 fouls drawn en route to a 37 PIR, the most of any player in this round and his third-highest index rating in the 2024-25 campaign. Having previously been the MVP of the Round in Rounds 5 and 10, this is the third occasion that the EuroLeague rookie has secured this honor.
The next-best PIR belonged to LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne’s Theo Maledon, who had a 35 index rating as his team fell to an 81-70 defeat at Real Madrid. Maledon posted 25 points on 4-of-6 two-pointers, 2-of-4 triples and 11-of-11 free throws, 2 rebounds, 5 assists, 4 steals and 8 fouls drawn. With those 11 free throws, Maledon has now set the record for the most free throws made in a single EuroLeague season, having converted 182 in 29 games, beating the 178 made by Real Madrid’s Dzanan Musa in 41 appearances in the 2022-23 season.
Third place is shared by two players this week, as Real Madrid’s Walter Tavares and Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade’s Rokas Giedraitis both recorded a 28 PIR, a season high in the case of Giedraitis. Tavares amassed 23 points on 9-of-12 twos and 5-of-5 free throws, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal, 1 block and 4 fouls drawn in Los Blancos’ aforementioned 81-70 victory over ASVEL, while Giedraitis finished with 20 points on 6-of-7 triples and 2-of-2 free throws, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals and 2 fouls drawn as Crvena Zvezda stunned league leader Olympiacos Piraeus by stealing a 73-81 win.
Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens guard Jerian Grant completes the list of best performers in Round 30 with a PIR of 27, which came in his team’s 91-81 triumph over ALBA Berlin. Grant ended his night with totals of 19 points on 3-of-5 two-pointers, 1-of-2 three-pointers and 10-of-10 free throws, 2 rebounds, 2 steals, 1 block, 7 fouls drawn and zero turnovers.
Individual highs: Will Clyburn, Virtus, 5 steals
Mike James of AS Monaco led all scorers in Round 30 with 29 points. Kendrick Nunn of Panathinaikos and Sasha Vezenkov of Olympiacos Piraeus are tied atop the scoring charts with 20.0 points per game.
Ante Zizic of Virtus Segafredo Bologna had 12 rebounds, more than any other player in this round. Crvena Zvezda center Joel Bolomboy remains the league leader with 8.3 rebounds per game.
This round’s MVP, Shorts, and Trent Forrest of Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz both dished a round-high 10 assists. Shorts is the new assists leader with 7.1 dimes per game.
Virtus forward Will Clyburn led all players with 5 steals in Round 30. Nick Weiler-Babb of FC Bayern Munich leads the way in steals with 1.6 per game.
Wenyen Gabriel of Panathinaikos had 4 blocks, the most in this round. Tavares (1.37 bpg.) is the competition's top shot blocker, enjoying a small lead over Georgios Papagiannis of Monaco (1.36 bpg.).
Five players had double-doubles in Round 30: Shorts (24 points, 10 assists), Forrest (14 points, 10 assists), Zizic (11 points, 12 rebounds), Crvena Zvezda’s Codi Miller-McIntyre (15 points, 11 rebounds), and Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv’s Trevion Williams (10 points, 10 rebounds).