Real Madrid was the been the highest-scoring team in the Turkish Airlines Euroleague Regular Season and one of the main reasons for that has been starting point guard Sergio Rodriguez, whose court vision and dynamism helped the Whites win Group C in style. In his second season with the club, Rodriguez is much more confident and comfortable with head coach Pablo Laso's run-and-gun style, where he fits right in. Rodriguez has proved that he is much more than a fancy pass-first point guard by showing leadership and hitting shots in crunch time. His impact in Madrid's game could be even bigger in the Top 16.

Just like teammates Carlos Suarez and Felipe Reyes, Rodriguez started his professional career with cross-town rival Estudiantes. He made his Euroleague debut in 2004 and had a 22-point, 7-assist effort against Cibona at age 18. Rodriguez soon made it to the Spanish national team and helped it win the 2006 FIBA World Championships. After four seasons away from European basketball, Rodriguez returned to the Euroleague last season and helped Madrid reach the Final Four for the first time in 15 years. Now fully readjusted, Rodriguez wants to take Madrid to even bigger goals.

Rodriguez thrives in transition, as he loves to run the floor and find the open man for an easy basket. His creativity and desire to produce exciting basketball for the fans make Rodriguez a crowd favorite. His trademark no-look assists and great ball-handling allow Rodriguez to be very unpredictable on offense; he also reads the defense very well to know whether to take the outside shot or drive to the hole. Rodriguez has room for improvement in defense and if he manages to do so, he will become one of the elite point guards in European basketball.

Rodriguez leads Madrid in assists (5.5 apg., one third of the Whites' total) and is second in the entire league. His assist-per-minute ratio (0.28) is the best in the competition, too. His shooting has been outstanding as well: 52.9% on three-pointers and 91.7% free throws until now.

His leadership was shown in a key road game in Milan, where Rodriguez - nicknamed 'El Chacho' - had 5 points in the final minute to clinch a big win against EA7 Emporio Armani. Rodriguez may not be his team's first option in crunch time, but he has shown he is ready to take responsibility if need be. Rodriguez will keep pleasing Madrid's crowd with his show-stopping passes and flashy playing style. He knows, however, that all Madrid fans are hungry for titles, so Rodriguez hopes to lead Madrid back to the Final Four - and to use their experience to try to go all the way.