TJ Shorts Named Euroleague October MVP

Euroleague Basketball has named 29-year-old Valencia guard TJ Shorts II the first Player of the Month of the 2026/27 season. In October, Shorts led Valencia through the first nine games, which produced 6 wins and 3 losses.

Valencia went through a major change over the summer. Several key players left, including Euroleague Coach of the Year Pedro Martinez and Jean Montero, from a team that reached the Euroleague Final Four for the first time last season. Shorts took on the lead guard role in that gap. Over nine games he averaged 17.1 points, 5.7 assists, 1.8 rebounds and 0.9 steals per game. He ranks third in Euroleague in points and assists and second in average PIR with 20.7. He recorded a total plus-minus of +89 in Valencia's six wins.

On the Euroleague & Friends: MVP Talk podcast, Shorts said he sees last season as a learning process. He said he is happy to be in a role where he can show what he can do again at Valencia.

In the seventh round, against his former club Paris Basketball, he scored 25 points with 9 assists and 4 rebounds, reaching a season-high PIR of 34. The game ended in a 93-104 Valencia win. Home fans in Paris chanted 'MVP' for Shorts throughout the match. In the final game of the month, a 98-94 loss away to FC Barcelona, Shorts recorded 11 points, 1 rebound, 5 assists, 2 steals and 17 PIR for Valencia.