Mike James has added another chapter to his memorable EuroLeague season, a 27-point game of the 66 scored by Olimpia, obtained with a surgical precision and explosive play. For example: a foul taken on a three-point shot, then converted into two points, the three at the end of the third quarter, which extended Milan’s lead to 10 points up to the incredible four-point play with which he pushed Olimpia up by 15 in the heart of the fourth period. His 27 points represent his 13th game over 20 points, extending the streak of EuroLeague consecutive games in double figures to 33. His six assists all took place in the second half: now MJ has 26 of the last 27 games with at least five assists. The 31 points of index rating solidifies its leadership in a ranking normally dominated by big men, who can add rebounds to points and shoot high-percentage shots.
He started yesterday’s game 10 points shy from 500 for the season. He crossed the threshold and became the ninth player ever to do it (Nando DeColo did it three times). He was 21 points shy from 1,500 for his career after he surpassed the 1,000 mark in the Podgorica debut. He did this too (for the record, now he is one rebound away from the 100 in his career). A monstrous game, started by receiving the MVP trophy for the month of February, which feeds a monstrous season in which he is first for minutes played, points scored, index rating, 3-pointers made; he is second for assists, fouls drawn, free throws scored, free throws attempted; fifth for steals. This is not simply an MVP season, it is a season of historic heights, one of the greatest ever had by anyone in the EuroLeague.
The fans understood: after his four-point play the American-style chant of “MVP, MVP, MVP” went up. King James, who had played in the first half more as a scorer, added the dimension of his teammates’ involvement in the second by distributing six assists. Given that three of his assists generated threes (Brooks, Micov, Nedovic), James’s assists produced 15 points. In essence, of the 66 points scored by Olimpia 42 brought (not exclusively) his signature: 27 personal and 15 with the complicity of his teammates.
Mike James has +37 of plus / minus. It means that during the season, Olimpia scored 37 points more than its opponents with him on the court. Vlado Micov is the receiver of the largest number of his assists, 33 for the season, ahead of the 31 of Arturas Gudaitis, the 23 dished Kaleb Tarczewski and the 20 assists dished to Jeff Brooks. But MJ’s statistics are superb wherever they are sought. For example, it leads the EuroLeague in points scored in the last quarter: they are 162 in 26 games. But the biggest news is another: his season is not over yet.
