The dynamic guard moved into ninth place in career PIR and 11th in assists
Shane Larkin took another step up the all-time charts in win over Baskonia

This game won’t go down in the history books as one of the greatest games Shane Larkin ever played. But the Anadolu Efes Istanbul star’s place in history only went up during Wednesday night’s 92-76 victory over Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz.
Larkin scored 14 of his 16 points in the second half to help Efes capture its fifth straight win and not only strengthen its chances to qualify for the Play-In Showdown, but to climb into the thick of the fight for a top-six finish and automatic playoff berth. His final stat line saw him make half of his shots, including 4 of 8 from deep, and dish 4 assists for a PIR of 16. He also had a highlight with a crossover dribble that sent his defender to the floor and allowed Larkin to sink an uncontested jumper.
The numbers Larkin posted in the night had extra meaning. He overtook former Olympiacos Piraeus legend Vassilis Spanoulis, the current head coach of AS Monaco, for ninth place on the all-time PIR charts with 4,186. He also moved past his former Efes backcourt mate, Vasa Micic, for 11th place in EuroLeague history with 1,098 career assists.
Naturally, Larkin's historic feats were not a topic after the game, though the dynamic guard attested to his confidence in his shot.
"We started the season up and down, I don't think we’ve been on a winning streak like this all year. So to be catching our rhythm, chemistry and all that at the right time is perfect and feels good at the moment," Larkin told EuroLeague TV. "My shot's been feeling great of late. In the first half, I felt like I had some good looks that just rimmed out. But my teammates stayed confident in me and kept giving me opportunities and I trust my work and just started knocking them down."
When Larkin is knocking those shots down, Efes is infinitely better. In the 24:10 that he was on the floor on Wednesday, his team outscored Baskonia by 14. In the remaining 15:50 of game time, the difference between the two sides was a mere 2 points.
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It may take some time before Larkin cracks the top 10 in assists as the 10th place belongs to former EuroLeague MVP and LDLC ASVEL guard Nando De Colo who has 1,195 dimes and counting. However, he enters Round 32 trailing Real Madrid center Walter Tavares by 3 for eight place in career PIR. Kyle Hines and injured Monaco guard Nick Calathes share sixth place with PIRs of 4,299.
With 3,538 points, Larkin needs 61 more to reach the all-time top 10 in scoring. Tenth place is occupied by Georgios Printezis. Larkin is also eighth with 546 three-pointers in his career.