Janis Timma named VTB United League's Young Player of the Year

VEF forward Janis Timma has been named the 2014-15 VTB United League Young Player of the Year.

Several factors went into choosing the Young Player of the Year (for players 23 and under): top three rankings from each of the seven regular season months, efficiency rating and input from the league's expert panel, which features ten basketball legends from across Eastern Europe: Gundars Vetra (Latvia), Ivan Edeshko (Russia), Jiri Zidek (Czech Republic), Ilona Korstin (Russia), Hanno Mottola (Finland), Martin Muursepp (Estonia), Tomas Pacesas (Lithuania), Sergei Tarakanov (Russia), Valery Tikhonenko (Kazakhstan) and Heino Enden (Estonia).

VEF forward Janis Timma came out on top, earning 8 points. He beat out two Zenit players, Artem Vikhrov (6 points) and Dmitry Kulagin (3 points), as well as Avtodor center Artem Klimenko (1 point).

Janis Timma played 28 games in the regular season, averaging 12.9 points, 4.5 rebounds, 4.4 assists, 1.4 steals and an efficiency rating of 14.3. Timma is a big contributor at VEF and nearly helped his team advance to the postseason.

This is the third season that the league has awarded the Young Player of the Year. Sergey Karasev was honored in 2012-13, while Edgaras Ulanovas and Dmitry Kulagin split the award in 2013-14.

- It's great when you are recognized by a league like the VTB United League, - said Janis Timma in an interview with VTB-League.com. - I haven't stopped working for a minute. I'm trying to get better at each practice. I feel like this award is also a team honor. Each of my teammates contributed.

How the Young Player of the Year was selected:

Monthly Top 3*:
1. Janis Timma (VEF) - 3 points (16 points - 4 first place finishes, 2 second place)
2. Artem Vikhrov (Zenit) - 2 points (10 points - 2 first place, 2 second place)
3. Dmitry Kulagin (Zenit) - 1 point (6 points - 1 first place, 1 second, 1 third)
* - 3 points for finishing first, 2 points for second and 1 point for third.

Efficiency Rating:
1. Janis Timma (VEF) - 3 points (14.2 per game)
2. Dmitry Kulagin (Zenit) - 2 points (9.2)
3. Artem Vikhrov (Zenit) - 1 point (8.1)

VTB United League Expert Panel:
1. Artem Vikhrov (Zenit) - 3 points (5 votes)
2. Janis Timma (VEF) - 2 points (4 votes)
3. Artem Klimenko (Avtodor) - 1 point (1 vote)

Final Results:
1. Janis Timma (VEF) - 8 points
2. Artem Vikhrov (Zenit) - 6 points
3. Dmitry Kulagin (Zenit) - 3 points
4. Artem Klimenko (Avtodor) - 1 point