It was the first u18 tournament of the year. From january 20th to 22nd, the Bayern Munich host Adidas Next Génération Tournament. On the schedule, 16 games between : Real Madrid, the Adidas Next Génération Team, Bayern Munich, Ulm, Milan, Alba Berlin, Panathinaïkós and Kaunas. Back on the players who caught our attention.

Egor Demin, 2006, 2.03 m/6'7, Guard, Real Madrid, Russia

Major player of Real Madrid who dominates the tournament. No team found the solution against them from the first game to the last. Egor Demin didn’t have to be in his best form to help his team to win the tournament. 

His handling is impressive for a player of his size, he wasn’t in trouble when he had the ball in his hands. In addition to his Elite ball handling skills he also has a facility to create for the others with his court vision and his passing quality. Even if it’s not his first intention, he has good scoring quality, with his 3pts shot Elite, he can take shots in C&S and off the dribble, (9/17 at 3 pts range during the tournament) and his ease to penetrate, even if during the tournament he showed some struggles to finish near the rim (10/24 during the tournament at 2 points range). 

Defensively, he is not as efficient as on offense. He is more efficient far from the ball, in help. His wingspan allows him to steal balls easily when he is off the ball, he can also contest shots easily and effectively. He needs to get better in his defense on the man, he gets past too many times in the first step, even if he is able to defend on certain guards.

Hugo Gonzalez, 2006, 1m99/6'6, Forward, Real Madrid, Spain

He is ranked second but he has everything to be #1. Much anticipated, he succeeded to meet expectations and finished MVP of the tournament. 

Third best scorer of the tournament (19.2 points per game) with only 23 minutes of playtime in a loaded team. His scoring quality is the most impressive thing about him, he always finds a solution and makes the right choice. His court vision is Elite, and is the central piece of his game, this is what makes him different from the others. His reading of the game always makes him one step ahead. He can finish at the rim but also shoot from long range (11/18 at 3pts range during the tournament). His body is mature and doesn't look like he's gonna evolve a lot, that’s why he is number two. Compared to Egor he doesn’t have a lot of possibility to progress, he is close to his final level. 

Defensively, his reading of the game allows him to bring as much as in attack. He finishes the tournament with 1.5 blocks per game, which makes him the second best blocker of the event. He brings a lot defensively thanks to his intensity and his versatility which allow him to switch on almost every player on the court. 

Pacôme Dadiet, 2005, 2.00 m/6'6, Guard, Ulm, France

Only a few weeks after the officialisation of his signature with Ulm, Pacome Dadiet appears with a different shape for his third ANGT. His months off were not useless, he worked physically, he looks ready to play against older players, he looks stronger and wider. Full report here.

Mohamed Diawara, 2005, 2.04 m/6'8, Forward, Paris Basket, France

Leader of the Next Generation team, Mohamed Diawara did his third ANGT tournament, in a team full of talents. It’s not always the best context, especially when the players don’t know each other.  Full report here.

Alexandros Samodurov, 2005, 2.10 m/6'10, Forward, Panathinaikos, Greece

Best scorer of the tournament, Alexandros Samodurov shined during this tournament but it was not enough for his team which finished 5th of the tournament. 

His handling for his size is impressive, he is able to penetrate and finish at the rim. It’s hard to stop him for the defenders because the players of his size are not mobile enough to stop him and the players with his speed are not tall enough to stop him. Despite his lack of success from 3pts line (1/14 during the tournament), he finished as the best scorer of the tournament with 22.3 of average. He was one of the major players of his team with 30 minutes of playtime. Physically he still has work to do, he is skinny, but he is still able to play on his physicality but he will be hard to stop if he gains some muscles. 

Defensively, his mobility permits him to defend on exteriors players but his high center of gravity prevents him to defend on smaller guards fast ball in hand. His size permits him to defend on centers even if physically he struggles against big centers but he is not afraid of contact. He is also able to protect the rim, he finishes the tournament second best blocker of the tournament, tied with Hugo Gonzalez. 

Frederick Erichsen, 2006, 2.05 m/6'8, Forward, Copenhagen, Danemark

Member of the Next Generation team for his first ANGT, the Danish prospect who impressed us during the European challengers U16 this summer created expectations for this tournament.

He showed some really good flashs but without dominating, he was not regular and suffered from his team context, which is an individualist context. His main quality is his shot and even with the context it was easy to see how Elite his shot was. He finishes the tournament with 3/8 from 3 pts range which is not enough from a Elite 3pts shooter, he lacks aggressiveness and didn’t score as much as he was able to do (8.2 pts during the tournament). Multiple times, he created ball in hand, his handling is good for his size, his mobility permits him to penetrate easily. He needs to be more aggressive. 

Defensively, his center of gravity is too high to defend on small guards but when he defended on Avdalas, a guard of 1m96, he did well. He can defend against some type of guards. When he defends against PF and C he suffers physically and struggles to defend. 

Neoklis Avdalas, 2006, 1m96/6'6, Guard, Panathinaïkos, Greece

Major player of Panathinaikos alongside Samodourov, the tall Greek guard finished the tournament with a solid performance for his first ANGT.

A tall guard able to create for the others but also for him, he finished the event with 4.0 assists per game but 2.5 turnovers, which is good for a player of his size but it’s not enough to call him an Elite playmaker. For the scoring, he finishes the tournament with 10.4 points but with only 11% (2/18) from 3 PTS range, he still has a lot of work to do at this level but his gesture is stable so he can work on it to become better. A bit alone at the creation, it can be interesting to see him in another context with a creator alongside him. His lack of athleticism makes it hard for him to make the difference with his opponent.

Defensively, his laterality permits him to switch on players smaller and faster than him. His body allows him to defend on players more physical like Forwards. His versatility in defense is interesting but he is not an Elite defender, he lacks of intensity. 

Linus Rufs, 2005, 2m11/6'10, Center, Alba Berlin, Germany

Major player of ALBA Berlin, Linus Rufs answered the exceptions for his second ANGT, he finished with a really solid performance and a double double of average. 

Probably the most dominating Center of this ANGT, his mobility and his handling are impressive for a player of his size. He realized multiple times coast to coast, even if he is mobile he doesn't have any physical qualities to really dominate physically. He finishes the tournament with 14.8 points with 0/5 from 3 pts range, he is efficient near the rim but he doesn't have any exterior shot but he is not afraid to take shots. It means he still can work on it because the intentions are here.

Defensively, his mobility permits him to switch on Forwards, he can play PF too. He doesn't have the verticality to protect the rim but his big asset defensively is his rebounding quality. He finishes the tournament with 10.5 rebounds, he fights at rebounds and that’s something who is gonna bring him to the next level. 

Mitar Bosnjakovic, 2005, 2.00 m /6'7, Forward, Real Madrid, Serbia

Missing from the Starting 5 of the competition, Mitar Bosnjakovic doesn't need to be presented. He was one of the main actors of Real Madrid’s success. 

For his first ANGT, the serbian showed a natural dominance with his opponents playing on his physical qualities, he is more mature than the players of his age, he is already strong and plays on it but it doesn't gonna work at the high level. He finished the tournament with 8/19 from 3pts range which is good because his 3pts shot was an interrogation for his future projection. Let’s see if he gets regular. His main quality is his ability to penetrate and finish at the rim, his first step and his physicality makes him hard to stop. He finishes the tournament with 12.8 points in 20.4 minutes of playtime in average. 

Defensively, he has enough laterality to defend on guards even if he has some difficulty to defend on really fast guards. He has the physicality to defend on strongful forwards. He is versatile. His main asset in defense is his intensity. 

Illan Pietrus, 2005, 1.89 m/6'1, Guard, Strasbourg, France

Second french player of the Next Gen roster, Illan Pietrus impressed more than one person at Munich despite the fact that he missed the last game for a knee problem.

The explosive guard marks the spirits once again and confirmate the level he showed during the last ANGT. He finished the tournament as the second best scorer with 20.3 pts of average and 43.8% at 3pts and 61.9% at 2pts. His main quality is his facility to penetrate and finish at the rim even if sometimes he lacks of physicality to score on stronger players.  Now he has a better shot selection, it permits him to show better exterior percentages. 

Defensively, he is able to defend strong on his opponent and to bring to the team from both sides of the court, we saw it most of the time with the pro’s. Unfortunately he doesn't bring the same intensity with the U18, he looks uninterested by the defense, for example he didn’t make any steals during the tournament despite the fact that he is able to do it.