Mike James is set to become the all-time leading scorer in the EuroLeague if he scores at least 12 points in the upcoming game against Crvena Zvezda. James will surpass EuroLeague legend Vassilis Spanoulis. The AS Monaco superstar revealed how his game has changed through the years.
Mike James is having one of his best seasons in his career leading Monaco in scoring and assists, while he registers 4.5 rebounds and 1.3 steals. He won the MVP of the Month Award for February, while he makes a strong case for the regular season MVP honors in the EuroLeague.
“I think that I’ve always been able to do certain things – I’ve [always] been able to rebound, pass, steal the ball and just play defense,” James said on his ability to make things happen on the court, via EuroLeague.net.
James finds it easier to pick his spots on the offensive end. This season, he’s shooting 41.5% from three and 49.8% on two-pointers. He’s also registering a 59.1% on TS% and a 31.4% AST% adding 12.1 assisted points for AS Monaco during the 2023/24 EuroLeague campaign.
“I think as I’ve gotten older, I’ve gotten more responsibility and figured out where it’s easier for me to play and pick spots and play in spots.”
“When I was younger I just had more energy, so I used to do a little more things when I had the opportunity. Now I’m older, I think I just pick my spots and the way I expend my energy a little bit better,” Mike James added.
With Monaco on a six-game winning streak, the Monegasques have jump from the 6th to the 4th place during the month of February. Mike James is a big part of their success, as he’s leading the team in all categories during the last 4 games. More specifically, the Portland-born guard accumulated 23 rebounds, 18 assists and just 6 turnovers in the last 4 games, while leading Monaco in scoring.
Mike James points at injuries as the reason behind Monaco’s slow start
AS Monaco was expected to be in the upper level of the EuroLeague standings at the start of the season. However, Sasa Obradovic’s team started the campaign slow with injuries being their primary reason behind their drop. Monaco had a 10-7 record at the end of the first round, but they have won 7 of their next 10 games since January.
“At the beginning of the year everyone had us picked to finish in the top four and, through injuries and some of our better players not playing up to their full potential, we struggled at times during the beginning of the season,” Mike James admitted.
“But I think people are getting back into form, people are stepping up, people are settling into their roles and, you know, people are setting into what they’re going to be doing.”
Fellow scoring guard Jordan Loyd was among the most common absences this season, while several other players missed time during the first few months of the EuroLeague campaign.
“We could not count on one of the main players – Jordan Lloyd. Even though we won without him, I always attribute him to our consistency,” AS Monaco coach Sasa Obradovic claimed in a recent interview with Meridian Sport.
“We struggled a bit without him, but maybe it’s a good thing that the form wasn’t the best at the beginning, so we picked it up as the year went on. In the previous period, we showed that we can dream of big things.”
📮 Comme depuis le début de la saison, Mike James @TheNatural_05 est votre 𝐌𝐕𝐏 du mois de 𝐟𝐞́𝐯𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐫 ! 👑#RocaTeam #DagheMunegu pic.twitter.com/rMxvoZzoTX
— AS Monaco Basket 🇲🇨 (@ASMonaco_Basket) March 5, 2024
