Tiktekno: clip summarizing today's events in sport, 28.3/Sport1
Maccabi Tel Aviv fans have gotten to know all sides of Wade Baldwin in the last two years: bursting talent, athletic abilities and superior attacks on the one hand - and too short a fuse on the other. But in recent times Baldwin seems to be at his peak again, and is probably playing the best basketball of his life. Today (Friday) he celebrates his 28th birthday, and looks more efficient, mature and mature than ever.
Baldwin's ability sweeps Maccabi Tel Aviv to a great streak of 15 victories in all formats, including six in the Euroleague, and finally makes him - perhaps for the first time in his career - a consensus. If last season he was still sometimes in the shadow of Lorenzo Brown, this season it is already clear that Maccabi Tel Aviv is first of all his team.
17.5 points on average per game (third in the Euroleague), 19.8 points index points (second in the Euroleague). 5 assists. 2.8 rebounds. 1.2 Kidnappings. But these are not only the dry numbers: Baldwin's maturity and maturity will also be evidenced by the fact that he draws the most fouls in his career (5.8 per game), goes to the penalty line more than ever before, and is accurate with the best percentages in his five seasons in the EuroLeague (47% for two points, 40.2% from three). .
"Wade has been proving for several years, certainly in the last two years, that he really deserves to be in the team of the biggest names. He is one of the best players in the Euroleague," Oded Ketch complimented him after his huge performance against Villervan with 30 points, 10 assists and 46 index points - Personal career record and season record for any player in the Euroleague.
unstoppable Baldwin/Official Site, Djordje Kostic
Although Baldwin did not keep 100 percent of his promise for the new year, somewhere in early January, when he tweeted: "No technical fouls in 2024", but in recent times it seems that his preoccupation with referees and matters unrelated to the game itself have decreased significantly. And when Baldwin is primarily targeted, he is almost unstoppable, even at the Euroleague level.
"Brain fever? I don't agree with that definition," said Andrea Trincieri, who coached Baldwin at Bayern Munich, a few weeks ago before the guard led Maccabi Tel Aviv to victory over the Italian's Zalgiris Kovna. "First of all, Wade is one of the best players in the EuroLeague. The combination of abilities and physicality he has is the closest thing to the NBA. To say that he is hotheaded is too easy. For me, this season I see a very mature person, with a very strong personality. It is true that he is not Easy, but I don't know such talented players who are also easy people."
According to Trinchieri, Baldwin made a leap not only on the court, but also off it. "I see him maturing and growing, understanding what his advantages and disadvantages are, and there is no price for that. You can put labels on him and say that his fuse is too short, but everyone gets labels. A player's power has to find its balance. Wade did it. He learned to combine his talent, expectations and personality, and use them as motivation. I have no doubt that he should be included in the top five of the Euroleague season."
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"Brain fever? It's too easy." Trincieri/Danny Maron
Trincieri touched on a painful subject for Baldwin, who did not hesitate to express frustration last season after being left out of the top five of the Euroleague season, and was only selected for the second five. This season, as mentioned, he became the consensus.
On the "Eurohops" website, for example, they recently ranked the leading candidates for winning the MVP award of the season, and placed Baldwin in third place, after Mike James and Matthias Lesor. "Maccabi Tel Aviv needed a superman, and Baldwin accepted the challenge. He is playing the best basketball of his life, and thanks to him the Yellows are having a difficult season," they wrote.
In a similar ranking recently published on the "Basketnews" website, Baldwin was ranked fourth. "He is probably the player in the best shape in the Euroleague. He manages to improve in a big way despite a disappointing season of his partner in the back line, Lorenzo Brown, which shows a lot of ups and downs."
At 28, when basketball players are supposed to start reaching their peak, Baldwin is already there. The scarier part: its potential doesn't seem to be fully realized yet. Maccabi Tel Aviv will hope that this happens when he wears yellow-blue.
More on the same topic:
Wade Baldwin
Maccabi Tel Aviv in basketball