Bucharest Littles, the team that won the U23 category at the first European 3×3 basketball league (3×3 Veranda League by Fitbit), is testing the ground and trying to measure up to the “top guns” at Bucharest Challenger.
Still working on making the full transition between junior and Open senior competitions, the former Romanian 3×3 junior national team players are hungry for results and experience. Alexandru Coconea, the Mainea twins (Ștefan-Daniel and Cristian) and Luca Paraschiv team up in an unusual formula, before joining their 5×5 League teams for the new season preparations, hoping that enthusiasm and freshness will balance the duels and will slightly reduce the difference between them and their much more experienced opponents.
Star player: Alexandru Coconea
Steaua CSM EximBank’s 1.97 meters tall center has had a hot summer: he will arrive at the Challenger straight from Tallinn, Estonia, after playing for Romania at the U18 European Championship – Division B. This was the second consecutive national team appearance for Alex this summer, considering the fact that the young basketball player born in Constanța also played the 3×3 U18 World Cup, at the end of July, where Romania finished 8th.
Coconea and Ștefan-Daniel Mainea make the more experienced half of the team. They had previously played a Challenger tournament – unlike Cristian Mainea and Luca Paraschiv, who will both debut in this type of upper-level 3×3 basketball contests.
The Bucharest Littles are looking to find their place at senior level in 3×3 basketball, so any victory would be a bonus for them, in terms of confidence and motivation. And spectators have a good reason to support and cheer for the younger generation of players that has the best prospects to represent Romania in the near future, even at the Olympic Games.
Previous Raiffeisen Bank Bucharest Challenger participation: 2016
Best result: 12th place – 2016
