Bet highlight:

1. Deeper more experienced roster of Olympiacos
2. Walkup will slow down Monaco’s star James
3. Better defense of Olympiacos

Full analysis:

Olympiacos and Monaco will face each other in the semi-finals of the Final Four tournament. The match will be played on neutral ground in Qatar. Like the bookmakers, I consider the Greek giants to be the favourites. H2H are 1-1 in this season.

While Monaco played in the Final4 two years ago, Olympiacos are far more experienced. They went 3–1 ahead of Real Madrid in the quarter-finals, with many believing it to be a premature final. Monaco only just progressed with a score of 3–2 against Barcelona, who were not at their best this year. If the last attack of the fifth game had not been played so poorly by Kevin Punter, Barcelona would have advanced to the Final Four.

Olympiacos are a typical playoff team. Coach Bartzokas is highly experienced and demands precise defence from his players. He has the perfect players for this approach: Walkup, Fall, Vezenkov, Dorsey, Larentzakis and so on. In attack, there is 2023 Euroleague MVP, Vezenkov; the sharp-shooting Fournier; and last year's Finals MVP, Peters. Milutinov, arguably the best center in the Euroleague right now, will also play his part under the basket.

Olympiacos has a really wide rotation, and except for Vezenkov and Fournier, practically everyone can score 10 points or more. Monaco's game relies heavily on point guard James, and when he struggles, the whole team suffers. Yes, Okobo and Theis are having a good season, but... However, I think the Greeks' experience and team defence will make the difference. I think Walkup can slow James down. So I'll bet on Olympiacos with a -4.0 handicap at odds of 1.8.