Thursday night brings another all-French derby and a clash of two MVP candidates
TJ Shorts, Theo Maledon collide in must-watch all-French derby
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There is always loads of excitement when two domestic teams face off in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague, and that certainly is the case when Paris Basketball welcomes LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne on Thursday night in the French capital. And that’s despite their rivalry going back only three years.
It's not just because both Paris (13-9) and ASVEL (11-12) have been among the most exciting teams to watch this season, and are both in the midst of the race for the EuroLeague Playoffs, but this game will also feature a showdown between two of the EuroLeague’s best point guards this season, Paris’s TJ Shorts and ASVEL’s Theo Maledon.
Let’s start with Shorts. The EuroLeague’s October MVP ranks fourth in scoring with 18.4 points per game, second in assists with 7.4 per game and fourth in index rating with 22.1 per contest.
On the other hand, there is Maledon. The MVP for December, who is third in average PIR at 22.3, enters this game sixth in scoring with 18.0 points per game and is just outside the top 10 with his averages of 4.7 assists and 1.1 steals.
The two have also been an example of consistency. Maledon has scored at least 15 points in 14 of his last 15 games, and has posted a double-digit PIR in 15 straight games. Shorts has scored in double figures in 14 straight and 20 of his 21 EuroLeague appearances. He has had a PIR of 10 or more in 14 straight games.
What’s even better, when these two teams met earlier this season in Round 15, both players shined.
ASVEL pulled out a 98-93 to end Paris's 10-game winning streak, with Maledon collecting 22 points, 7 assists, 5 rebounds and 2 steals, good for a PIR of 30. On the other side, Shorts set his personal bests with 29 points and 11 two-pointers made, which came on 14 attempts. He also dished 8 assists and had a personal-high PIR of 41.
In the EuroLeague, every game matters, but a win in this one would mean a lot to each club.
After a terrific start to the season, Paris pulled out of its recent slump and has won its last two home games, while it has scored at least 86 points in each of the last three rounds.
ASVEL, however, has won in three of the last four rounds and has been victorious in three of its last four road games after opening the season 0-7 on the road.
A rivalry between Paris and ASVEL might be fresh, having started in November 2021 with their first-ever French League clash, but it has quickly grown into a EuroLeague derby we cannot wait to tip off.