Turkish Airlines EuroLeague MVP for April/May: Walter Tavares, Real Madrid

At the end of one of the greatest months of playoff series in the history of the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague, one of the competition’s biggest stars – literally and figuratively – heads to the Final Four as the EuroLeague MVP for April/May. Walter Tavares put nearly all of his skills on display in leading Real Madrid back from a 0-2 deficit in its playoff series against Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade, which contributed greatly to Euroleague basketball choosing Tavares as the MVP of the Month.

After an injury made him leave Game 1 early and miss almost half of Game 2, Tavares returned with a vengeance by producing one of the greatest performances in playoff history as Los Blancos faced down elimination on the road in Game 3. He remained at the forefront of Real’s game plan for the rest of the series. In Real’s three playoff victories, Tavares averaged 17.7 points on 67.9% shooting, 8.3 rebounds, 2.0 blocks and 1.3 steals for a PIR of 29.0.

The MVP of the Month award is now in its 18th season. The winner is named by Euroleague Basketball based on his and his team’s performance during the month in question. The award for April and May award was based on the games played starting from Round 33 of the regular season through the end of the playoffs. This marks the third time Tavares has been honored as MVP of the Month. His first such award came in October 2018 and his second in November 2021. His three MVP of the Month trophies are tied for the third-most in competition history. Nikola Mirotic of FC Barcelona is the all-time leader with seven.

After a team-high-tying PIR of 17 in a Round 33 win over FC Bayern Munich, Tavares fouled out of Real’s overtime loss to Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv in the regular season finale that caused Real to slip from second to third place in the final standings. Once in the playoffs, however, the 2.20-meter tower of power dominated. He went for 10 points with just a single missed shot, 4 rebounds and 1 block for a PIR of 17 in the first half of the series opener against Partizan. He hurt his knee late in the second quarter and came back after halftime, but after putting back an offensive rebound early in the third quarter, Tavares left the game for good and Real lost the game on a last-second shot by Partizan’s Kevin Punter.

Real also lost Game 2 and went to Belgrade for Game 3 with its back to the wall. Tavares returned and produced a performance for the ages. He erupted for 26 points on 11-for-14 shooting, 11 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 blocks to lead Los Blancos to an 80-82 triumph. His PIR of 41 tied for the second-highest since the current playoff format was introduced in 2005. Tavares remained the dominant force for Real in Game 4, in which he scored 15 points, grabbed 7 rebounds and blocked 2 shots. He drew 11 fouls and made 7 of 8 free throws in amassing a PIR of 30. Tavares was the MVP for both Games 3 and 4 of the playoffs.

Game 5 was a do-or-die contest for both teams and Tavares found himself plagued by foul trouble early and often. He committed his second foul late in the first quarter and his third midway through the second. Real struggled without him and fell behind by as many as 18 points. Partizan still led by double figures when Tavares was called for his fourth foul with 4 minutes left in the third quarter. Real head coach Chus Mateo rolled the dice on keeping Tavares on the floor and was rewarded handsomely. Tavares produced 6 points and 4 rebounds and drew 5 fouls over the game’s final quarter and a half to help propel Real to victory. As a defensive anchor, Tavares’s presence and intimidation affected countless Partizan shots and helped seal off the paint when it mattered most.

Tavares finished the playoffs with an average PIR of 26.8, which was the third-highest ever in a playoff series and the highest for a player on a winning team. He was the playoff leader in average total rebounds (7.5), offensive rebounds (2.8), blocks (1.8) and fouls drawn (6.3), and ranked second in shooting percentage (70.6%), third in points (16.3) and tied for ninth in steals (1.0), lesser numbers than they might have been because he played barely half of Game 1 due to injury.

A two-time winner of the Best Defender Trophy as voted by head coaches, Tavares is in his sixth EuroLeague season, all of which have come with Real. He now heads to his fourth Final Four and will try to win his second continental crown in fine form as the MVP for April/May.