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At the beginning of the new season Orleans are without two strong players

Chalon despite not having Schilb, Lang and coach Beugnot are still a good team. They won five last matches against Orleans at home

Chalon are starting the new season as the new team. They don't have coach Beugnot and Blake Schilb, player responsible for last season's success. Despite all this, Chalon have the team that can go all the way to the top. They proved this in the preseason, playing well against strong opponents. They defeated Strasbourg and Le Mans, two teams that should be at the top of the table in this season. They also won against tough teams like Dijon and Roanne. As the time passed, Chalon played even better and only lost at the begging when the roster wasn't complete. Although preseason doesn't have to signify anything, Chalon showed that even without their top people they are ready to play for the top positions.

The position of forward (Schilb's position) will be the only weak spot for Chalon's play in this season. Although Bostic is a good player, he can't fill Schilb's shoes. Schilb made quite an impact, being probably one of the best players in the club's history. Guard positions became weaker without Lang and Denmon, but AJ Slaughter is the right solution for it. He should be one of the team's leaders in the new season. Chalon's top guns are in the paint, although Williams left, Brockman (former NBA player) and Brown are two strong players that will along Evtimov create a lot of trouble for the opposition teams. 

- You can't replace a player like Blake Schib. Although AJ Slaughter has the ability to be the leader of this team and scores a lot, he simply can't play like Schib, as he is a guard, not a winger. Although we have established the hierarchy within the team, the responsibilities will be divided differently.

The first match will be a great chance for them to make a flying start to the season. Orleans was defeated on their last five visits to Chalon, so the hosts have a good opportunity to continue that tradition. This match will also be the official debut for Mickael Hay, who was on the Chalon bench in the last season, but as Beugnot's assistant.

- I have ambition, but to say we have a fixed goal would be too much. We have a young, developing team and we're taking it step by step for now - Hay added.

In the last match before the start of the season, Chalon defeated Roanne 71-66, even without Brockman. Their top scorer AJ Slaughter with 14 points.

However, the problems for Orleans on the start of this season are of completely different nature - and are much bigger, we'd add. While Chalon lost their key players from last season, but managed to supplant them with quality signings, Orleans are weaker for two very good players. Pellin, their point guard is injured since the second half of the last season, while the guard Hill injured his shoulder in the preseason. The club management hoped to have him back for the start of the season, but he had to go to surgery and his absence will be a huge handicap for Orleans in the first few rounds. Hill had a 13.2 average in the last season and was their best player in the second half of the season.

- It is very frustrating, the injuries are affecting us. Like Chalon, we planned to base our play on the positions 1, 2 and 4. However, we must cope now, so we brought Martin and Curtin to cover for the injured players. Now that we know Hill will be out for at least four months it creates an imbalance in the team - head coach Jean-Philippe Herve spoke.

Curti remains their only point guard, as Martin is a tall guard, while Hill was also able to play as point guard.

- To make things clearer, it would be as if Chalon lost Tchicamboud and Slaughter - Jean-Philippe Herve added.

Orleans won't have it easy. They are good enough to reach the play-offs, but there are a lot of teams of similar quality in the league, so they could be trailing too much after the start of the season. That is why they simply must make a good start to the season, however they have shown their weaknesses in the preseason.

Orleans scored the most points in the league last season, but also had the worst defence. The offensive problems might force the head coach to work more on defence, something Herve spoke about:

- We had the best attack the last season, but our defence was the worst in the league. We were individually too weak in that segment of the play, so we now have to find the right balance between scoring and defending - Herve concluded.

Orleans start their season with significant handicap. Pellin and Hill are important players and that is seen in the statements given by coach Herve. The preseason showed that Orleans are far from optimal form and that they could struggle at the start of the season. On the other hand, Chalon lost some of their most important players but they managed to acquire good new players and they will again be the team fighting for the very top of the league table. Their preseason was great and they ended it with a series of wins, and they are expect to continue their win streak into the season. The best weapon Chalon have is probably their game in the paint and Orleans will have trouble establishing domination under the rim and since they have problems with absences, Chalon have an advantage on guard positions too. They won against Orleans in their last five home games and I expect them to continue that series and to do so with a rather convincing win.