After weeks of increasingly glaring weaknesses in the frontcourt, Kosner Baskonia have finally been able to make moves in the transfer market in an attempt to address the main problem that has plagued their season so far: their alarming lack of strength and depth in the paint. The signings of Latvian forward Rolands Smits and Bosnian center Kenan Kamenjas are intended to bring physicality, experience and more options to a frontcourt rotation that has been stretched to the limit since the start of the campaign. However, one question inevitably arises: have these reinforcements arrived too late to save a EuroLeague season that is increasingly looking like a lost cause? With just one win from eleven games in the competition —a record matched only by Olimpia Milano— and Baskonia sitting five wins outside the play-in places and six away from the playoff spots, it is certainly a fair question.
Last Wednesday’s 80-66 defeat to Partizan in Belgrade, with neither Smits nor Kamenjas available yet, once again exposed the extent of the problems facing a team that, at this point, is simply not competitive enough in the EuroLeague. Velimir Perasovic’s side continue to struggle to find answers in Europe, while the Croatian coach’s hard-line, old-school methods have so far done little to win over the locker room. The overall picture is deeply concerning for a club that makes no secret of the fact that the EuroLeague is its top priority, well ahead of the Liga Endesa, yet has so far fallen well short of the level it desperately wants to reach in its most important competition.
Although the situation is considerably better in the Spanish league, where Baskonia have recorded five wins and two losses, the overall picture remains far from satisfactory. That explains why, a few weeks ago, the Vitoria crowd turned against the club’s long-standing president, Josean Querejeta, as rarely before. A chorus of boos and the sight of countless white handkerchiefs in the stands —a traditional Spanish gesture of disapproval— laid bare a situation unseen for decades: growing dissatisfaction among the fanbase with the club’s leadership.
For years, Querejeta has performed something of a miracle in Vitoria, a city of just over 250,000 people, by establishing Baskonia as a fixture among Europe’s elite. However, the club’s erratic start to the season, the difficult-to-explain departure of Paolo Galbiati from the coaching position and, above all, the lack of action from the front office to address the team’s frontcourt problems have finally pushed supporters to the limit.
For much of the season, Kenneth Faried has been Baskonia’s only available center. That is an enormous workload for a player who will turn 37 in just a few days, particularly given the demands of the EuroLeague schedule, with high-intensity games coming thick and fast. Tadas Sedekerskis, Rodions Kurucs and Clément Frisch have all been forced to fill in at the power forward and center positions, although none of them comes close to being a natural five.
The situation had become increasingly unsustainable, with Baskonia struggling badly on the boards and finding it extremely difficult to protect the rim. Following Khalifa Diop’s last-minute departure during the preseason and the failed signing of Alex Len, the arrival of Brazilian big man Marcio Santos initially made an impact. But as the weeks went by, the need for further frontcourt reinforcements became increasingly obvious.
On Wednesday in Belgrade, Baskonia were once again bleeding points and possessions. Seventeen turnovers and just six points in the fourth quarter summed up a team that, beyond its structural shortcomings, is also going through a serious crisis of confidence. Since Perasovic took over, Baskonia have managed just two wins in ten games, neither of them in the EuroLeague.
The next few games —against Real Madrid in the Liga Endesa and Hapoel Tel Aviv in the EuroLeague— will offer an early indication of whether Smits and Kamenjas can turn around such a difficult situation, even if neither is a true, rim-protecting center capable of intimidating opponents in the paint.
At 2.07 meters, Smits brings proven EuroLeague experience, physicality, intensity and versatility. His previous spells with Barcelona, Zalgiris and Anadolu Efes have given him a thorough understanding of what it takes to compete at this level. Last season, he averaged 6.7 points and 3.2 rebounds in the competition, and this season, he was playing for Ningbo Rockets in China.
Kamenjas, meanwhile, is 26 and arrives from Dubai Basketball. Unlike Smits, whose game is more heavily built around his outside shooting, the Bosnian offers a more traditional presence in the paint. He is a hard-working big man who can score around the basket, although rim protection and shot-blocking are not among his main strengths. Kamenjas now has an opportunity to prove that he belongs at EuroLeague level, something he has yet to establish. For that reason, his signing looks more like a gamble than a sure thing.
Perhaps the two newcomers can help change Baskonia’s fortunes. But there are more than enough reasons to wonder whether they have arrived in time to rescue the team’s EuroLeague campaign. And at a club that values European competition above all others, that uncertainty remains a major concern.
