THE TRANSATLANTIC MAGAZINE
THE TRANSATLANTIC MAGAZINE
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SPORTS European Basketball in London 02 Arena to host the Euroleague Final Four this weekend Basketball fans around the world will be descending on London this weekend for the Turkish Airlines Euroleague Final Four. If you’re not familiar with Euroleague basketball, it’s Europe’s highest level of organised pro basketball. NBA fans will know that during the league’s pre-season, many NBA teams travel across Europe to go up against their European counterparts. These Euroleague teams not only compete with but often beat those NBA teams. It’s no longer a surprise for us to see the great FC Barcelona Regal or CSKA Moscow face off with the likes of the Boston Celtics or LA Lakers and defeat them in closely contested games. During the 2011 NBA lockout, a good portion of players travelled across the Atlantic, creating one of the best years for European basketball, with stars like Deron Williams and Andrei Kirilenko playing for some of the top Euroleague teams. Some of them left when the lockout was resolved but many stayed, elevating the competition level to a new high. In this Final Four alone, we’ll see the likes of ex-NBA stars Rudy Fernandez of Real Madrid, Juan Carlos Navarro of FC Barcelona Regal and Acie Law of Olympiacos Piraeus. Euroleague teams can certainly bang with the big boys, which is why this weekend is so exciting for the major basketball junkies. The Turkish Airlines Euroleague Final Four is played over the course of two days - two semi-final games on day one and the third place game and the championship game on day two. London’s 02 Arena will play host to the tournament as Friday sees CSKA Moscow v Olympiacos Piraeus at 5pm in the first semi-final. Then from 8pm, it's basketball’s version of ‘El Clasico’ as FC Barcelona Regal face Real Madrid. Sunday action includes the 3rd place game along with the Final. It’s a chance to see the four best teams in Europe face off for the title! Fan Zone at Trafalgar Square But the excitement isn’t all about the Final Four event itself. The Turkish Airlines Euroleague will be bringing basketball directly to the fans from Friday to Sunday at the Trafalgar Square. The Turkish Airlines Euroleague Fan Zone will offer a fun and family-friendly environment for basketball and non-basketball fans to experience the Euroleague up close and personal with 3-on-3 tournaments, shooting and dunk contests, skills lessons, music and dance shows, players’ appearances, photo opportunity with the Champions’ Trophy, and much more! The Euroleague Final Four will also be back in London in 2014 so if you don’t get a chance to check out all the hype surrounding the event this time round, there’s always next year with workshops, coaching exhibitions and whatever else basketball related you can think of from now until next year as part of the lead-up to the 2014 Turkish Airlines Euroleague Final Four. To find out more about TV coverage of the Turkish Airlines Euroleague, visit ESPN here. |
