Scoring sizzle meets a colder index: our grades deflate Zvezda's shooters

Elijah Bryant heads our grades at 6.9 — 18 points, 10 rebounds, 4 assists in Hapoel's 81-80 escape from Belgrade Arena — yet even the night's best player falls short of an 8 on our index. The reference rating hands him 8.5. That's the pattern: our numbers run colder, especially on scorers.

Dobric is the extreme case: 5 points, no rebounds, no assists in 10.6 minutes. Jared Butler's 19 points bought him 8.1 from the reference; our 6.2 weighs 2 rebounds, 2 assists and soft defense. Tyson Carter (12 points, 5.9 vs 7.4) and Zach LeDay (5.1 vs 6.9) sit in the same boat — scoring volume flattered everywhere but here.

Tellingly, our best Zvezda grade, 6.3, goes to Nick Weiler-Babb — 2 points, 6 rebounds, 6 assists — nearly matching his 6.7 reference mark. The index's thesis: all-around work keeps value when shots don't fall, and after trailing 18-28 at the break, Zvezda's volume scorers did too little else to complete the rally.