Evidence checked: Saturday 17 October 2026, approximately 7:55am Adelaide time (ACDT). The transfer and coaching announcements were made on 14 October in Spain; the first match under the new coach finished on 16 October. This article distinguishes confirmed club decisions and the final score from early interpretation of the new rotation.
Baskonia's EuroLeague fantasy story has moved decisively beyond a Markus Howard transfer rumour. Howard has left the club, Paolo Galbiati has been dismissed and Velimir Perasović has already coached his first match. Baskonia lost that debut 86–78 away to Virtus Bologna. Three developments in three days have changed the personnel and the decision-maker, but they have not yet supplied a dependable new fantasy pecking order.
For managers, the urgent call is Howard. The more patient call concerns the players who remain. Treating those two questions as identical would be a mistake.
Howard's departure is official — the old uncertainty has ended
On 14 October, Baskonia confirmed its agreement to part ways with Howard. The club recorded 244 official appearances across his time in Vitoria-Gasteiz: 130 in EuroLeague, 109 in Liga Endesa and five in the Spanish cup and supercup competitions. It also noted his 2026 Copa del Rey title and his single-season EuroLeague three-point record. This is a completed departure, not an ongoing negotiation.
Howard's next destination is Zenit Saint Petersburg, as local reporting of the club announcement and the Zenit club news listing confirm. Zenit are not part of the 2026–27 EuroLeague field. In a EuroLeague-only fantasy competition, Howard should therefore no longer be assessed as someone who can produce future Baskonia EuroLeague appearances. Check the rules of your particular fantasy game for how departed players are handled; do not assume every platform automatically removes a player or processes a roster move the same way.
This is a material update to Buckets' earlier Howard rotation and transfer report. That report correctly treated Zenit discussions as unconfirmed at the time. The club's subsequent announcement changes the status of the story. It does not retroactively turn his old scoring ceiling into extra possessions for one obvious replacement.
A coaching change makes the minutes harder, not easier, to project
Baskonia also ended Galbiati's contract on 14 October. The club said he had coached 87 matches since arriving in August 2025, including 43 in EuroLeague, and had won the Copa del Rey earlier this year. Its appointment of Perasović is for the next two seasons, through 2028. It is his fourth spell coaching the club.
Those announcements matter for fantasy because the guard rotation was already unsettled before the coaching change. Howard's early-season minutes had fallen sharply; removing him from the roster does not free up the 2023–24 version of his workload. A new coach can also redistribute responsibilities among guards and wings, shorten or widen the bench, and alter which line-ups finish close games. None of those choices should be declared permanent after a single outing.
Kobi Simmons, Damion Baugh and Chris Duarte are among the names worth tracking for ball-handling and perimeter scoring. They are watchlist candidates, not automatic buys. Before promoting one, managers need repeated evidence of starting and closing assignments, minutes, creation responsibility and whether the same role survives a competitive fourth quarter. Position eligibility and player availability must be checked inside each individual fantasy competition.
Bologna gave Perasović a difficult first data point
Baskonia's first game under Perasović finished in an 86–78 defeat at Virtus Bologna on Friday 16 October, a result also documented in the contemporary match report from El País. Virtus guard Marcus Carr scored 20 points. The new coach had arrived with almost no preparation time, so the result cannot fairly be presented as a complete test of his system.
Local match reporting describes a 12–0 opening deficit and a comeback that brought Baskonia level at 74–74 late in the fourth quarter, before Virtus closed the game. It also describes adjustments to the ball-handling responsibilities and the use of alternative frontcourt combinations. These observations are useful clues for the next game, but a one-night tactical adjustment is not yet a settled minutes forecast.
The fantasy distinction is between opportunity and security. The departure of a high-profile scorer can create opportunities, but the identity and durability of those opportunities depend on what the new staff actually do. One promising spell from a guard, or one player being used sparingly in a debut, should trigger a follow-up check rather than an unconditional trade recommendation.
What managers should do before Round 7
Howard: act on the confirmed exit. For EuroLeague-only formats, evaluate your replacement options using actual league eligibility, upcoming fixtures and established minutes. There is no reason to wait for another Baskonia team sheet to decide whether he remains a Baskonia player. The mechanics of removing or replacing him depend on the fantasy game's rules.
Baskonia guards: observe before committing. Simmons and Baugh are relevant because a team without Howard still needs perimeter creation, but no verified evidence yet guarantees either a particular minute total or a permanent lead-guard role under Perasović. Duarte's scoring opportunity also deserves attention without inventing a usage increase. Do not manufacture projected PIR, fantasy points, ownership or prices to make an argument look precise.
Baskonia frontcourt: watch the line-ups. The Bologna reporting points to in-game adjustments, including periods without a conventional centre. That makes the next rotation worth studying, particularly the minutes and finishing combinations of the club's bigs. It does not prove a season-long small-ball commitment or establish an immediate winner from the coaching change.
Next evidence checkpoint: EuroLeague Round 7, scheduled for 22–23 October. Compare the next confirmed starting five, the first substitutions, closing line-up and full box score against Bologna before drawing a durable conclusion. An additional domestic game can provide context, but do not equate Liga Endesa minutes with guaranteed EuroLeague minutes.
The Buckets call: Howard's EuroLeague departure is settled; Baskonia's post-Howard fantasy hierarchy is not. A completed transfer warrants action. A coach's first loss, after barely any training time, warrants observation. Those are different decisions, and treating them differently is how managers avoid chasing the wrong replacement.
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