Euroleague excitement mounts with season draw

The 2015-16 Turkish Airlines Euroleague draw was made on July 9 in Barcelona, and all 24 teams now know their rivals to battle to reach the Last 16. 

Four Turkish teams, Fenerbahçe Ülker, Efes Anadolu, P?nar Kar??yaka and Darü??afaka Dogu?, were placed in four separate groups, according to the regulation that prevents match-ups between teams from the same country. 

The ultimate goal of all the teams is to arrive in Berlin in mid-May, where the 2016 Euroleague champion will be crowned in the Turkish Airlines Euroleague Final Four at the Mercedes-Benz Arena. 

"Our immediate thoughts are that we were not too lucky," said Maurizio Gherardini, the general manager of Fenerbahçe Ülker, after the draw. "We were drawn against a Euroleague champion, a Eurocup champion and an Adriatic League champion. On paper it is the toughest group."

Fenerbahçe Ülker will fight in Group A against Real Madrid, Khimki Moscow, Crvena Zvezda Telekom, FC Bayern Munich and Strasbourg.

Anadolu Efes, another Euroleague regular, will face off against Olympiacos, Laboral Kutxa Vitoria Gasteiz, EA7 Emporio Armani, Cedevita Zagreb and Limoges CSP. 

"The regular season is always somehow balanced with strong teams," said Efes General Manager Engin Özerhun. 

P?nar Kar??yaka, last year's Turkish national champion, has been placed in Group C along with strong rivals Barcelona, Panathinaikos, Lokomotiv Kuban, Zalgiris Kaunas and Stelmet Zielona Gora. 

"It's a great group. We were looking forward to getting Real Madrid or Barcelona. We got Barcelona, so we are happy. We know the other teams and we have had certain preparation matches. For Euroleague games, we invite fans from the other teams to come to ?zmir to watch. We will be happy to...