The latest matchup in our quest to crown the greatest All-EuroLeague First Team of all time pits 2016 against 2023!
Vote for the best All-EuroLeague First Team in history: 2016 vs. 2023
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2 Mins read
Each season, the top five players in Europe’s premier basketball competition are recognized with All-EuroLeague First Team honors. Over the past quarter century, these elite selections have showcased a who’s who of basketball legends, from rising stars to Hall of Famers and everything in between.
This summer, we're putting them all head-to-head to answer one big question: Which All-EuroLeague First Team stands above the rest?
We’ve seeded all 24 teams into a bracket created by our panel of in-house EuroLeague experts. Several times a week, we’ll reveal a new matchup on the official EuroLeague Instagram account, where you can vote for your favorite.
Right here on the official EuroLeague website, you’ll find a quick breakdown of each matchup – and which team we think deserves the edge. This time it's 2016 vs. 2023.
Let the debates begin. Let the voting begin. Let the best team win!
2016
- Milos Teodosic, CSKA Moscow (age 28)
- Nando De Colo, CSKA Moscow (age 28)
- Malcolm Delaney, Lokomotiv (age 27)
- Jan Vesely, Fenerbahce (age 26)
- Ioannis Bourousis, Baskonia (age 33)
2023
- Lorenzo Brown, Maccabi (age 32)
- Dzanan Musa, Real Madrid (age 24)
- Sasha Vezenkov, Olympiacos (age 29)
- Mathias Lessort, Partizan (age 27)
- Walter Tavares, Gran Canaria (age 31)
These are two fun teams to dissect. So what makes the 2016 team special. First is that there are four players at the prime of their careers. The fifth is Bourousis, and since athleticism wasn’t what made him special, his contributions at age 33 were still spot on. This season featured De Colo at his best; EuroLeague MVP, Ford Trophy winner, Final Four MVP. And he lines up here with his CSKA backcourt mate, Teodosic. Then there is peak Delaney, giving the team three guards who can create and score. Add the explosiveness that Vesely brings at both ends and Bourousis's ability to stretch floors and you have a special team.
2023 has more size at almost every position. Brown runs the show as a veteran point guard and Musa is a slasher on the rise. Vezenkov is an elite shooter and scorer, while Lessort and Tavares are an amazing one-two punch in the paint at both ends. They – together with Vezenkov – should ensure that the 2023 side controls the rebounds.
One major difference between the sides is that 2016 has a three-guard lineup and all three are good ball handlers and passers. That in itself should lead to good shot selection and Bourousis’s wits should help negate the 2023 advantage at the rim by pulling his defender out of the paint, which would leave Vesely to challenge Lessort or Tavares. In my opinion, the 2016 team has the talent to negate the 2023 advantages and the guards to capitalize on mismatches and organize good looks, therefore I would go with that team… Share your vote on Instagram!