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Telekom lost Bradley, and brought Boston's last year player

Guests have a tough journey to Kazanja behind them, and after that they announced bringing the Serbian representative Markovic. They have too many foreigners, though, and someone will have to stay on the bench

Turk Telekom got their first win of the season against Gaziantep, but the way they got the win is far more intriguing than the result itself (85-83). They've lost the first quarter with 12 points difference (14-26), were losing about 15 in the second, and lost their best player, Ramel Bradley, by the half-time. He broke his Achilles tendon, and the season is over for him. Kerem Tunceri got a stiff back, and Joke Vrankovic had to play most of the game without two key back/point guards. Tunceri came back in the last part, and helped the big turnover. Luksa Andric was the best player with 22 points and 9 jumps, Shipp scored 12, and Luka Bogdanovic 11. Even without Bradley, and Tunceri for the most part, they managed to score 49 points in the rest of the game. 

Ankara team definitely have enough money, and no issues with finances, so they'll probably bring a substitute player for Bradley. The latest cuts in the NBA are awaited, and someone who doesn't get to be a part of the America's roster, will end up under Joke Vrankovic's protection. However, they'll enter today's game weakened. Bradley's absence was kind of made up for against Gaziantep, but Banvit are a level higher than them, and this will be an interesting match for sure. Especially because Banvit are really tough on back positions with Rowland, Mejia, Prepelic...

Tunceri will take the point guard position, even though he played back more with Bradley in the team, but since the back position is a problem now, Vrankovic will have to use Can Akin and Murat Kaya, and they're not as good as what Itoudis has in Banvit. 

Andric used his height against Borovnjak, but now he's facing Chuck Davis. 

Telekom didn't wait long before they found a new American. A lot of players flew to Turkish league this week, and Joke Vrankovic's new player is Terrence Williams. However, he's not a point guard, but a swingman, a combination of back and wing, which might be a sign that new players will be coming still, Telekom still need a combo guard. Williams played 29 games for Boston Celtics last season, with 12,7 minutes per game. His defense is definitely his asset, and he could guard a few positions. He also has a great overview of the game for a win, and a good feeling for the passing of the ball. Considering Banvit's new roster, he'll be very busy today.

Banvit brought new players as well, but bringing them makes no sense at all, and it's hard to explain. They have a handful of foreigners in their roster, and bringing the point guard Stefan Markovic only adds one more, so it's clear somebody will have to sit out the national competitions. Markovic is a top defense player, and he'll make a great addition to Rowland.

Today's game comes after a painful defeat against UNICS in Kazanje. Rowland brought the advantage with a series of consecutive points, and Russians had one second left, and then, Goudelock scored an impossible three pointer from the corner, from a turn, over a few players. If you haven't seen it, check out YouTube. That score is something unbelievable, you can't even see something like that even in the NBA. Banvit lost 72-71.

- Basketball showed once again how exciting it can be, where one second could turn things around. We didn't win, but I would like to thank my players, they fought all the way until the end, and played a good game - coach Dimitrios Itoudis stated.

Davis and Mejia scored 18 points, Kuqo, 12, Rowland 11, and they were close despite 4/14 three pointers.

The line Rowland-Mejia-Davis was exactly what buried Tofas in the last round, scoring 44 points and dominating the game. Banvit had 51-30 by the half-time, and took the game to the end calmly. They also rested players for the difficult and far away game they had against UNICS in Kazan last Tuesday.

The difficult game and the long journey to Kazan and back are actually Telekom's chance. Itoudis will have to stop the pick game by Tunceri and Andric, which will be the key without Bradley, and Gordon's defense on Luka Bogdanovic (blue on the image, Cajasol's shirt from last season) is also an important segment. 

Joke Vrankovic lost his best forward in Ankara. Ramel Bradley's injury has a significant influence on the team, and it must be obvious in their offense. The American who came will help on the defense more, and he's not a back player. Besides, he only joined the team and he can hardly be the key player today. Banvit have a good defense without a doubt, all you have to do to make sure is to take a look at their previous games. They conceded 72 points against UNICS on Tuesday, including a three pointer in the last second. The margin is set to 157,5, and the only match where Banvit went over that this season was in the first round of the Cup, when they defeated the offensive Trabzon 85-81. The last six have been under this margin. Telekom went over in both league matches, but Tofas was the away game, and Gaziantep at home, so these games are not the same as the one against Banvit.