By Eurohoops Team/ info@eurohoops.net
Sasha Vezenkov was named Most Valuable Player of the Month, presented by Motorola, for January in the EuroLeague.
Euroleague Basketball announced the latest distinction for the 31-year-old forward of Olympiacos on Thursday.
Per the press release: “Sasha Vezenkov delivered a spectacular January that left little doubt about who owned the month. The Olympiacos Piraeus forward has been chosen as the EuroLeague Basketball MVP of the Month for January presented by Motorola after powering the Reds to a 6–1 record and producing one of the most complete, efficient, and dominant stretches of play the league has seen this season. With relentless scoring, elite efficiency, and game changing performances across seven rounds, Vezenkov set the tone for a surging Olympiacos side.
The January award covered games played from Rounds 19 through 25, during which Vezenkov led all players in scoring with 23.6 points per game while ranking first in Performance Index Rating (29.0). His 20 three pointers made were tied for the most in the league across that span, and his near perfect free throw shooting (29 for 30) underscored his remarkable efficiency. Vezenkov also averaged 6.7 rebounds, eighth-best for the month, and posted the highest plus/minus among players who appeared in all seven rounds (+11.7).
“What I’m doing every month, every day, in practice, behind the scene, that’s what I’m doing for living, that’s what I’m trying to do, to work hard to help my team to win games and hopefully to go to the end of the road,” Vezenkov said on the EuroLeague & Friends: MVP Talk podcast.
“[I did] nothing new, nothing different. Just believing in my work, believing in my team and keeping going like that.”
Vezenkov delivered big performances on a near-nightly basis. He scored at least 20 points in six of seven games and posted a PIR in the 30s four times, providing Olympiacos with reliability, star power and leadership. His month opened with a commanding performance in the Round 19 Greek Derby, where he tallied 24 points and 9 rebounds to lead the Reds to an 82-87 road victory over archrival Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens.
His signature outing came in Round 21, when Vezenkov was named MVP of the Round after powering Olympiacos to a 95-80 home win over FC Bayern Munich. He scored 25 points with just two missed shots and finished with a PIR of 35, showcasing the elite efficiency that defined his entire month.
Vezenkov added a season-high 28 points in a Round 23 victory over Maccabi Rapyd Tel Aviv, then capped January with a double-double of 20 points and 11 rebounds in a Round 25 win against FC Barcelona. Each performance reinforced his central role in one of the EuroLeague’s strongest January surges.
“The only thing that comes to my mind and the only thing I care with P.I.R. and PIR is Piraeus,” Vezenkov said. “We fight for this, we succeed with this, we fail with this, but that’s only in my mind.”
This is Vezenkov’s fifth MVP of the Month honor, tying him with Mike James for second-most all-time. Only Nikola Mirotic, with seven, has won more. His latest recognition further cements Vezenkov’s place among the premier players of the modern EuroLeague era and highlights the transformative impact he has had since returning to the Reds.
Olympiacos will now look to extend its momentum as the season enters its decisive phase, with Vezenkov expected to remain at the core of the team’s push toward the playoffs.”
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