Basketball in Greece

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Basketball in Greece is now the most popular sport alongside football . At the latest since winning the European basketball championship in 1987, the popularity of basketball has increased significantly in Greece , which has continued to the present day. Since then, Greek teams have achieved a number of international successes that have made Greece, along with Russia , Serbia , Spain and Lithuania, one of the largest European basketball nations. In addition to the EM success of the Greek national team in 1987, the EM victory in 2005 and the silver medals at the European Championship in 1989 and the World Championship in 2006 stand out. At club level, the Greek clubs have won numerous titles at the various European Cup competitions held by FIBA and ULEB , making them one of the most successful nations in Europe.

Greek national team in summer 2008

National competitions

The Greek league system

The league pyramid in Greek men's basketball has eight levels. The two highest levels, the Basket League and the A2 Ethniki , have the status of a professional league and each have a single-track operation. The third class B Ethniki has a semi-professional status. Between 1986 and 2012 the B Ethniki championship was also held on a single track. Since the beginning of the 2012/2013 season, as before between 1973 and 1984, two separate championships have been held in a north and south group. All levels below have amateur status.

level Greek championships
1 Basket League
14 teams
2 A2 Ethniki
16 teams
3 B Ethniki
Group North
16 teams 		B Ethniki
Group South
16 teams
4th Gamma Ethniki
Group North 1
14 teams 		Gamma Ethniki
Group North 2
14 teams 		Gamma Ethniki
Group South 1
14 teams 		Gamma Ethniki
Group South 2
14 teams
5 ESKA Liga A
19 leagues
6th ESKA League B
15 leagues
7th ESKA Liga C
8 leagues
8th ESKA Liga D
4 leagues

The Basket League

League association logo

The first basketball championship in Greece was held in 1927–1928. The preliminary form of today's league, which was also often interrupted by the Second World War , at that time was called Panellinio Protathlima A Katigorias (Πανελλήνιο Πρωτάθλημα Α Κατηγορίας) and lasted until 1963. From 1964 to 1986 the top division of Greece was Protathlima Ethnikis Katigorias (Πρωτάθλημα Εθνικής Κατηγορίας) , in the years 1987 to 1992 Protathlima A1 Ethnikis Katigorias (ωρωτάθαας) .γηηο Ερνικτς . In 1993 the championship finally lost its amateur status and was officially established as a professional league under the name Epangelmatiko Protathlima A1 (Επαγγελματικό Πρωτάθλημα Α1) . The A1 league has since developed into one of the most competitive and financially strong leagues in Europe. The league was renamed again in 2012 and has been operating as the Basket League since then . This professional league currently consists of 14 teams. According to the current regulations, the last two teams in the table are relegated to the A2 league after the regular season. The first eight teams qualify for the play-offs. After 79 championships so far, Panathinaikos Athens is the men's record champion with 38 titles.

Clubs of the Basket League in the 2016/17 season

The clubs participating in the 2016/2017 season come from Athens ( AEK , Panathinaikos ), Thessaloniki ( Aris , PAOK ), Amaliada ( Koroivos ), Lavrio ( GS Lavrio ), Piraeus ( Olympiakos ), Trikala ( Trikala BC ), Rethymnon ( Rethymno Cretan Kings ), Patras ( Apollon ), Promitheas , Rhodes ( Kolossos Rhodes ), Lefkada ( Doxa ) and Kymi ( GS Kymis ).

The Greek women's championship is currently played among 10 teams. The first championship of women was held in 1967-1968 under the name Panellinio Protathlima (Πανελλήνιο Πρωτάθλημα) . From the 1984–1985 season, the top division was Protathlima A Ethnikis Katigorias (Πρωτάθλημα Α Εθνικής Κατηγορίας) , since 1997 Protathlima A1 Ethnikis Katigorias (Πρωτάθλημαγη1 Εοθικθς) .

Cup competition

For the first time the competition for the Greek men's club cup was held in 1976. Until 1994, the decision was made in a playoff, for which the two victorious semi-finalists could qualify. From 1995 to 2004, a single final was replaced by a final four tournament in which the four winners of the quarter-finals took part. In 2005 they returned to the original mode without a Final Four tournament, which is still valid today. After 45 finals, the team from Panathinaikos Athens is record cup winners with 19 titles.

The women’s first competition for the Greek club cup was held in 1996. By 1999 the decision was made in a playoff for which the two victorious semi-finalists had qualified. In 2000 this mode was changed and a single final was replaced by a final four tournament in which the four winners of the quarter-finals take part.

International successes of Greek basketball

National team

Since winning the European Championship in 1987, Greek basketball has had a considerable number of successes. In the youth sector in particular, the basketball association in Greece has succeeded in putting together successful teams time and again and in discovering and promoting new players.

National team successes

Since the first European championship won in 1987, Greek basketball has been regularly represented at major international events such as the European and World Championships and the Olympic Games . In addition to the men's national team, it is above all the junior teams that have achieved significant successes so far. The national team of 1987 included legendary players such as B. Nikos Galis , Panagiotis Giannakis , Panagiotis Fasoulas and Theofanis Christodoulou . Nikos Galis clearly leads the all-time top scorer list of all European championships with an average of 31.2 points per game. Panagiotis Giannakis is now national coach and led the Greeks to win the European Championship in Belgrade in 2005. Giannakis became the first player to succeed in winning the European Championship title both as a player and as a coach. After Greece was able to win the European championship in soccer in 2004, it was also the title holder in the two most important team ball sports. Only the USSR succeeded in this before in the 1960s (1960–1964). In 2006 at the World Cup in Japan , Greece, after being the only team to defeat the United States , reached second place and thus secured the silver medal.

European championships
Scene from the encounter between Greece and Turkey (EM 2009)

For the first time, the Greek national team took part in a European Championship in 1949 , where it immediately won third place. As a result, Greece took part in the finals only irregularly until 1985 and had no particular success to show. The first big success, which should mean the breakthrough for the national team in Greece, was winning the European Championship in 1987. In their own country, Greece defeated the highly favored team from the Soviet Union in the final (after extra time) with 103: 101. The star of this tournament was, to date, the greatest Greek sports icon Nikos Galis , who was elected MVP of the tournament. In the following tournament in 1989 Greece again reached the final, but had to admit defeat to the Yugoslav team , which, led by their star Dražen Petrović , could win the tournament without a defeat. With the silver medal in 1989, Greece consolidated its position among Europe's leading basketball nations two years earlier. Since then, the Greek national team has never missed a final at European Championships and has usually always ended up in the top ranks. In 2005 Greece finally won its second gold medal in Serbia after beating the German national team with 78:62 in the final .

The women's national team has been one of the regular finalists at the European Championships since 2001. The women's national team achieved their best result at the 2017 European Championships in the Czech Republic with fourth place.

The gold medals in the U20, U18 and U16 tournaments were significant successes in the youth field. The latest success of a junior team was the gold medal 2017, which the U20 team won.

Medals at European Championships
team gold silver bronze total
Men's 1987
2005 		1989 1949
2009 		5
U 20 2002
2009
2017 		1992
2010 		- 5
U 18 2008
2015 		1970
2007
 1998
2000
2002 		7th
U 16 1989
1993 		1975
1991
1999 		1995
2013 		7th
total 9 8th 7th 24
Squad of the European championship team 1987

The following players were in the squad of the national team that won the gold medal at the 1987 European Championship in Greece:

number Surname position Size (cm] society
4th Nikos Galis Guard 183 Aris
5 Nikolaos Stavropoulos Guard 196 PAOK Thessaloniki
6th Panagiotis Giannakis Guard 192 Aris Thessaloniki
7th Argiris Kambouris center 205 Olympiacos Piraeus
8th Nikolaos Linardos Forward 202 Panionios Athens
9 Panagiotis Karatzas Forward 204 Pangrati Athens
10 Michalis Romanidis Guard 199 Aris Thessaloniki
11 Nikolaos Filippou Forward 202 Aris Thessaloniki
12 Liveris Andritsos Forward 202 Panathinaikos Athens
13 Panagiotis Fasoulas center 213 PAOK Thessaloniki
14th Agamemnon Ioannou Guard 190 Panathinaikos Athens
15th Theofanis Christodoulou Forward 203 Panionios Athens

(Club: at the time of the EM win)

Head Coach: Konstantinos Politis
Assistant Coach: Efthimios Kioumourtzoglou

Squad of the European championship team 2005

The following players were in the squad of the national team that won the gold medal at the 2005 European Championship in Serbia-Montenegro:

number Surname position Size (cm] society
4th Theodoros Papaloukas Guard 200 CSKA Moscow
5 Vasilios Spanoulis Guard 192 Panathinaikos Athens
6th Nikolaos Zisis Guard 195 AEK Athens
7th Ioannis Bourousis center 215 AEK Athens
8th Panagiotis Vasilopoulos Forward 204 PAOK Thessaloniki
9 Antonios Fotsis Forward 209 Dynamo Moscow
10 Nikolaos Chatzivrettas Guard 195 Panathinaikos Athens
11 Dimosthenis Dikoudis Forward 208 CSKA Moscow
12 Konstantinos Tsartsaris Forward 209 Panathinaikos Athens
13 Dimitrios Diamantidis Guard 196 Panathinaikos Athens
14th Lazaros Papadopoulos center 210 Dynamo Moscow
15th Michalis Kakiouzis (C) Forward 207 Montepaschi Siena

(Club: at the time of the EM win)

Head Coach: Panagiotis Giannakis , Marousi Athens
Assistant Coach: Eleftherios Kakiousis, Iraklis Thessaloniki

World championships
Vice World Championship 2006

The Greek national team first took part in a world championship in 1986. Although the team was only able to take tenth place in the competition held in Spain, with Nikos Galis the Greek selection provided the most successful basket hunter of the competition (33.7 points per match). Since then, Greece has only missed the 2002 finals in the United States and otherwise managed to place in the top ranks of every final tournament. In 1994 and 1998 in their own country, Greece made it to the semi-finals, but there the team lost and only finished both tournaments with fourth place. In 2006 at the World Cup in Japan , Greece won the silver medal and on the way to the final, among other things, prevailed against the highly favored selection of the USA.

The women's national team has not yet managed to qualify for a finals in 15 competitions held so far.

The most significant success in the youth field is the victory at the U19 World Cup in 1995. As the host nation, the Greek team won the gold medal undefeated and clearly defeated Australia in the final 91:73. The U-19 team from 1995 consisted of the later national team captain Michalis Kakiouzis as well as players like Nikolaos Chatzis , Giorgos Kalaitzis , Dimitris Papanikolaou or Efthimios Rentzias , who was awarded as the tournament's MVP .

Medals at world championships
team gold silver bronze total
Men's - 2006 - 1
U 21 - 2005 - 1
U 19 1995 2009 2003 3
total 1 3 1 5
Mediterranean Games

As a Mediterranean border, Greece has always participated in the Mediterranean Games. The gold medal from 1979 represents the greatest success of the national team. Furthermore, four silver (1991, 2001, 2005, 2009) and three bronze medals (1955, 1971, 1987) were won.

Medals at championships on the Mediterranean coast
team gold silver bronze total
Men's 1979 1991
2001
2005
2009 		1955
1971
1987 		8th
total 1 4th 3 8th

Club teams

Successes of the club teams

Trophy of the European Cup of National Champions (left) and the ULEB Euroleague until 2006 (right)

Among the greatest sporting successes of Greek basketball are the victories of Panathinaikos Athens (1996, 1998, 2002, 2007, 2009, 2011) and Olympiacos (1997, 2012, 2013) in the finals of the European Cup and the ULEB Euroleague . In total, Greek teams made it to the finals of an international competition 30 times, 22 of which they won.

year competition society
1968 Cup winners' cup AEK Athens
1991 Cup winners' cup PAOK Thessaloniki
1993 Cup winners' cup Aris Thessaloniki
1994 Korać Cup PAOK Thessaloniki
1996 European Champions Cup Panathinaikos Athens
1996 Intercontinental Cup Panathinaikos Athens
1997 Korać Cup Aris Thessaloniki
1997 European Champions Cup Olympiacos Piraeus
2000 European Champions Cup Panathinaikos Athens
2000 Saporta Cup AEK Athens
2001 Saporta Cup GS Marousi
2002 ULEB Euroleague Panathinaikos Athens
2003 Europe Champions Cup Aris Thessaloniki
2007 ULEB Euroleague Panathinaikos Athens
2009 ULEB Euroleague Panathinaikos Athens
2010 FIBA Eurocup (women) Athinaikos Athens
2011 ULEB Euroleague Panathinaikos Athens
2012 ULEB Euroleague Olympiacos Piraeus
2013 ULEB Euroleague Olympiacos Piraeus
2013 Intercontinental Cup Olympiacos Piraeus
2018 Champions League AEK Athens
2019 Intercontinental Cup AEK Athens

Overview of title wins by Greek teams:

society UEL EPL EPP KC IC FEC BCL total
Panathinaikos Athens 4th 2 - - 1 - - 7th
Olympiacos Piraeus 2 1 - - 1 - - 4th
AEK Athens - - 2 - 1 - 1 4th
Aris - - 1 1 - 1 - 3
PAOK Thessaloniki - - 1 1 - - - 2
Marousi Athens - - 1 - - - - 1
total 6th 3 5 2 3 1 1 21st

Legend:

UEL : ULEB Euroleague
EPL : European Champions Cup
EPP : European Cup Winners' Cup / Saporta Cup
KC : Korać Cup
IC : Intercontinental Cup
FEC : FIBA EuroCup Challenge
BCL : Basketball Champions League

Infrastructure

Greece has a number of large, modern sports halls that have also hosted major tournaments or finals. The country's first sports arena was built in Athens in 1959. Located below the east curve of the Apostolos Nikolaidis Stadium , it holds 1,500 spectators and is still home to the women's department of Panathinaikos. Because of its limited space, the sports hall is popularly known as the Tomb of the Indian , based on the film Das Indian Tomb by Fritz Lang . In the following years, especially in Athens and Thessaloniki, a number of new, but smaller, sports arenas were created. In 1966 the Alexandrio Melathro was built in Thessaloniki . This arena, with a capacity of more than 5,200 spectators, was to become one of the most famous in Europe and for decades was the home of the two arch rivals Aris and PAOK Thessaloniki. 2013 Hall in honor was Nikos Galis ' in Nick Galis Hall renamed. In 1985 the Stadium of Peace and Friendship (SEF) was built in Piraeus on the occasion of the European Indoor Athletics Championships . The multifunctional hall, which had a capacity of over 14,000 spectators at the time, was the largest sports hall in the country for the next ten years and hosted events such as the European championships in basketball (1987) and volleyball (1995) as well as the world championships in volleyball (1994) and basketball (1998 ) and weightlifting (1999). The SEF Olympiacos is currently the home.

Athens Olympic Hall

A real construction boom set in in the mid-1990s that was to affect the entire country. The sport of basketball had meanwhile established itself in Greece and A1 Ethniki had risen to become the financially strongest league in Europe. Increasing audience numbers, high media interest and applications for major sporting events made many of the existing sports halls appear too old or too small. By 1995, modern multifunctional halls were built in Larisa and Patras . The OAKA Olympic Indoor Hall was inaugurated in Athens in the same year . It holds around 20,000 spectators and is still the largest sports hall in Europe, where basketball games are regularly held. Despite its young age, the Athens Olympic Hall already has a number of major events to show for it: In addition to the 1995 U21 World Cup, the 1995 European Basketball Championship and the 1998 World Basketball Championship , it was also host to competitions during the 2004 Summer Olympics . Panathinaikos Athens is currently playing its home games in the Olympic Hall. The Helliniko Indoor Arena was also inaugurated on the occasion of the Olympic Games. After dismantling work, it can still hold 8,000 spectators and was last used as the venue for the AEK in the 2010/2011 season. In 2000, another modern sports arena was finally built in Thessaloniki. This is owned by PAOK, holds around 8,500 spectators and is the most modern and largest sports hall outside of Athens. The first major event to take place in the PAOK Sports Arena in 2000 was the Final Four for the European Champions Cup . In the same year the sports hall in Xanthi was opened. This holds around 4,000 spectators and is home to the local Xanthi BC association . In 2007, the largest sports hall in Crete , which can hold 5,222 spectators, was inaugurated in Heraklion .

Other important sports halls that have previously served as a venue for basketball games are:

  • Klisto Gymnastirio Glyfadas (3,232 spectators), until 1994 the largest sports hall in the greater Athens area
  • Klisto Galatsiou (5,141 spectators), erected on the occasion of the Olympic Games in Athens

Major sporting events in Greece

2004 Olympic Games : warm-up before the match between Italy and Argentina

Since 1987 Greece has been the regular host of important basketball tournaments and finals of European club competitions. In detail these are:

In addition, the prestigious Acropolis tournament has been held in Athens every year since 1986 , in which the German national team has participated three times .

  • Women's competitions:
    • European Championships (1 ×): 2003
    • Olympic Games (1 ×): 2004
    • Euroleague Women (1 ×): 1987

societies

In Greece there are numerous clubs that have achieved a high level of awareness beyond national borders and have also achieved international success. Even if the sport of basketball is widespread in Greece, the country's strongest clubs are primarily concentrated in the two metropolitan areas of Athens and Thessaloniki .

Club logo of Panathinaikos Athens

The greater Athens area is considered the cradle of Greek basketball and has always provided the largest part of the first division. The most important club in the Greek capital is Panathinaikos Athens . In addition to six European league titles, the club is the Greek record champion (38 times) and cup winners (19 times) and won the Intercontinental Cup in 1996 and the triple in 2007 and 2009. The club's biggest rival is the twelve-time Greek champions Olympiacos Piraeus . The club from the port city won the Europa League and the triple in 1997 and, together with Panathinaikos, is one of the permanent representatives of Greece in the ULEB Euroleague , which it won in 2012 and 2013. With AEK , the Athens metropolitan area has a third club that has a similarly large fan base, was able to win eight championships and is one of the long-established big names. The club, located in the suburb of Nea Filadelfia, became the first Greek club to achieve international success in 1968 with the European Cup Winners' Cup . In 2000 AEK were able to repeat this success. In 2018 AEK won the Basketball Champions League and the following year the Intercontinental Cup, the fourth international title. The fourth most successful club in Athens is the six-time champion Panellinios . Marousi , an association from the suburb of the same name in the north of Athens, is the fourth representative that can boast international success and has been a constant in A1 Ethniki for many years . Other important clubs from the greater Athens area are Panionios (cup winner 1991) and the traditional clubs Ilisiakos and Peristeri, which are known for their youth work .

Aris club logo

The figureheads of Thessaloniki are the two arch-rivals Aris and PAOK . Aris was considered the best team in the country in the 1980s and has won a number of national and international titles. After Panathinaikos and Olympiakos, Aris is third among the most successful teams in Greece with ten championships. In addition to two championships, PAOK can also boast two European cup successes and in 1991 was the first club outside Athens to win an international competition. The third force in Thessaloniki is Iraklis . Iraklis managed to win the first Greek championship in 1928. In 1935 the club reached its second championship.

Outside of the two metropolises of Greece, no team has been able to establish itself permanently in the first division or win a title. The better-known clubs include Kolossos Rhodes , Apollon Patras and the now no longer first-class GS Olympia Larisa .

actors

Major Greek players

Dimitrios Diamantidis
Nikos Galis

Men's:

With 25 titles won the most successful player in Greece, five-time European Cup winner, triple winner in 2007 and 2009
record holder in the Greek A1 league with 574 first division appearances
European Champion from 1987, Vice European Champion 1989
European champion from 2005, vice world champion from 2006, five-time MVP in the Greek league, six times named the best defender in the ULEB Euroleague, triple winner in 2007 and 2009, leader in the all-time list of the best assists and steals in A1 Ethniki
European champion from 1987, still leads the statistics of the Greek championship in blocks and rebounds
European Champion from 2005, Vice World Champion from 2006, European Championship third in 2009, first Greek (and Greek-born) NBA player
European Champion 1987, European Basketball Player of the Year 1987, member of the FIBA Hall of Fame , member of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame , four-time MVP of the Greek League
European champion from 1987, record national player with 351 appearances, most successful basket hunter of the Greek national team
European champion from 2005, vice world champion from 2006, captain of the team in both tournaments, U-19 world champion
Greek record holder with twelve championships won
still leads the statistics of the Greek championship in points
European champion from 2005, vice world champion from 2006
Triple winner 1997 and 2007
European champion from 2005, vice world champion from 2006, third place in the European Championship in 2009, triple winner in 2009

Women:

  • Sofia Kligopoulou, record national player with 210 appearances
  • Anastasia Kostaki, first Greek WNBA actor
  • Evanthia Maltsi, WNBA actor
    • Polimnia Saregou, with 2,181 points the most successful basket hunter in the Greek national team

Major Greek coaches

Panagiotis Giannakis
  • Evangelos Alexandris : was the only Greek to win two European competitions
  • Georgios Bartzokas : Won the ULEB Euroleague as the first Greek coach
  • Panagiotis Giannakis : European Champion 2005, Vice World Champion 2006
  • Ioannis Ioannidis: record holder in Greece with 19 titles
  • Dimitrios Itoudis : Winner of the ULEB Euroleague
  • Efthimios Kioumourtzoglou: Vice European Champion from 1989
  • Anastasios Markopoulos: Record holder of A1 Ethniki with over 500 first division games as coach.
  • Konstantinos Politis : European Champion from 1987

Important legionaries

player

Dominique Wilkins

With the financial rise of the Greek A1 league during the 1990s and the high level of media interest from then on, the demand among viewers and fans for well-known players from abroad was great. Due to the foreigner regulations of the league and the limited places for legionnaires, many clubs chose the route of naturalization in order to be able to circumvent the regulations. This mainly affected players from the former Yugoslavia (e.g. Peja Stojaković and Marko Jarić ) and the former USSR (e.g. Tiit Sokk , 1988 Olympic champion). With the Bosman decision in 1995, the Greek market finally opened up, so that important players from all over the world are still active in Greece today.

The most outstanding player to have played in Greece so far is the US-American and nine-time NBA all-star Dominique Wilkins , who is still regarded as the most important transfer by a European team in basketball. Wilkins, who belongs to the elite circle of twelve players who have scored more than 25,000 points in the NBA and is a member of the Hall of Fame , moved from the Boston Celtics to Panathinaikos Athens in 1996 . The most important and successful legionnaire who was active in Greece is Michael Batiste . Between 2003 and 2014 he won the ULEB Euroleague three times with Panathinaikos Athens . He also won nine championships and six cup wins, which made him one of the most successful players in Europe. An equally important player was the three-time NBA champion with the Los Angeles Lakers Byron Scott , who was also active for Panathinaikos . Other outstanding players from the United States are Walter Berry, Antonio Davis , Tony Delk , Eddie Johnson , Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf , Roy Tarpley , Rolando Blackman , four-time NBA champion John Salley and the current coach of the Milwaukee Bucks , Scott Skiles .

Dejan Bodiroga

Probably the most important European players in the history of the A1 league are the Serb Dejan Bodiroga and the Croatian Dino Rađa . The two-time world and three-time European champion Bodiroga played for Panathinaikos for four years and was also able to win the European league twice during this period. Despite the fact that he never played in the NBA, he was considered one of the best players in the world. After four years in the NBA and two European championship titles, Rađa played for three seasons in Greece and was one of the few foreigners to wear both Panathinaikos 'and arch-rival Olympiakos' jerseys. Another important player is the multiple world and European champion Dejan Tomašević from Serbia, who is one of the most successful players in the world with a total of 23 titles in his career and won the ULEB Euroleague with Panathinaikos in 2007.

Dino Rađa

Other important players from the former Yugoslavia are the Serbs Žarko Paspalj , Željko Rebrača and Zoran Savić, the Croats Arijan Komazec , Stojko Vranković and Nikola Vujčić , the Slovenes Radoslav Nesterovič and Jurij Zdovc and the Montenegrin Predrag Drobnjak .

Outstanding players are also the Lithuanians Šarūnas Jasikevičius , who with an annual salary of 4.2 million euros is the highest-paid basketball player in Europe of all time, Artūras Karnišovas and Ramūnas Šiškauskas , the long-time captain of the French national team Jim Bilba , the English NBA player John Amaechi as well the Ukrainian Alexander Volkov . Players like the Israeli Oded Katash, the Turkish star player İbrahim Kutluay or JR Holden , who became European champion with Russia in 2007 , were also temporarily under contract in Greece.

Trainer

Phinehas Gershon

In addition to a long line of star players, many important foreign coaches have been active in Greece since the 1990s. The most outstanding personality is the Serb Željko Obradović, who was under contract with Panathinaikos Athens between 1999 and 2012. The eight-time winner of the Europaliga has been a coach since 1991 and is now one of the best and most successful head coaches in European basketball history with 32 titles. In 2008 Obradović was named one of the 50 most important players in the history of the Europa League. He is followed by a total of 19 titles won by Božidar Maljković , who was the first to win the European league with a Greek team in 1996. Another coach of great international stature is the multiple world and European champion Dušan Ivković , who has taken on the coaching position for five different teams (Aris, PAOK, Panionios, Olympiakos, AEK) and has won five European club competitions. Other important coaches are the current NBA coach Scott Skiles, Krešimir Ćosić , Zeljko Pavlicević, Dragan Šakota, Jonas Kazlauskas and Zvi Sherf. The three-time Europa League winner Pinhas Gershon from Israel also worked in Greece .

German speaking actors in Greece

player

Demond Greene played for Olympia Larisa in the 2009/2010 season

Some German basketball players have also played in Greece so far. The most important and successful actor was Michael Koch . The European champion from 1993 played for Panathinaikos Athens between 1996 and 2001 and won with his club, in addition to four championships, in 2000 the European Cup of National Champions . Further positions with Marousi and Ionikos Neas Filadelfias let him play in Greece for a total of seven years until 2003.

Germany's record international player Patrick Femerling played for Olympiakos and joined Panathinaikos in 2004 after a brief stint at FC Barcelona . During a total of four seasons he won the championship twice and the Greek club cup three times.

Christian Welp moved from Bayer Leverkusen to Olympiacos in 1996 , where he stayed for one season. In 1997 he won with Piraeus, in addition to the Greek championship and the cup, the European championship cup and thus became the only German basketball player to date to have achieved a triple .

Other German players who played in Greece are:

Trainer

Dirk Bauermann

Germany's national coach Dirk Bauermann has been the only German-speaking coach to date in Greece. In the 1999/2000 season he coached the Apollon Patras club . In 2001 he was under contract with Dafni Athens for a short time.

Most successful players

Championships

With twelve Greek championships won, Dimitrios Kokolakis is the most successful player to date. It is noteworthy that ten of the eleven most successful players in their careers played for Panathinaikos Athens. With Michael Batiste is merely a legionnaire among the most successful players. Players in bold are currently active in Greece.

space player Period title
1 Dimitrios Kokolakis 1969-1988 12
2 Fragiskos Alvertis 1990-2009 11
- Panagiotis Koroneos 1968-1990 11
4th Konstantinos Tsartsaris 1997-2013 10
- Antonios Fotsis 1996– 10
5 Nikolaos Filippou 1982-1994 09
- Apostolos account 000? –1987 09
- Michael Batiste 2000-2014 09
- Dimitrios Diamantidis 1999-2016 09
10 Nikos Galis 1979-1994 08th
- Giorgos Kalaitzis 1994-2014 08th
- Michalis Romanidis 1982-1994 08th
- Georgios Doxakis 1981-1993 08th
- Antonios Christeas 1955-1970 08th

Overall title

All national titles and successes in the European Cup competitions were taken into account at club level. At national team level, only those tournaments were taken into account that are held under the auspices of FIBA. Players in bold are currently active.

space player title
1 Fragiskos Alvertis 25th
2 Konstantinos Tsartsaris 24
- Dimitrios Diamantidis 24
- Nikolaos Zisis 24
5 Antonios Fotsis 23
6th Theodoros Papaloukas 21st
7th Panagiotis Giannakis 19th
8th Dimitrios Kokolakis 18th
- Vasilios Spanoulis 18th
10 Kostas Sloukas 17th

Greek members of the FIBA ​​Hall of Fame

The FIBA Hall of Fame is the hall of fame of the world basketball association FIBA . The most outstanding players, coaches, referees and sponsors have been included in it since 2007, whereby performance at FIBA ​​tournaments is primarily assessed. So far the following Greeks have been accepted:

Greek actors abroad

Due to the fact that Greece has always been one of the financially strongest leagues, the clubs had no problems keeping the most important Greek players within their own league. Until the end of the 1990s, practically all national players played in the domestic A1 Ethniki. Only with the financial rise of the Russian and Spanish leagues and the change of individual players to the NBA did this situation change in the early 2000s. While all twelve players played in Greece for the first European Championship title in 1987, when they won the title in 2005 there should only be seven players who were under contract with domestic clubs.

Between 2005 and 2011 there was a turnaround. As a result of the fierce competition between Panathinaikos and Olympiakos, who endeavor to sign every free national player, the strongest players return to their own league. During this period only relatively few Greeks played in foreign leagues and were usually not among the strongest players in Greece. In the national team, Nikolaos Zisis was the only player left who earned his money abroad.

In 2011, the Greek financial crisis reached Greek basketball a year late. The two top clubs Panathinaikos and Olympiakos massively reduced their budgets, so that in addition to some important legionnaires, Greek players, including national players such as Bourousis or Fotsis , left the A1 Ethniki again.

Greek players in Europe

Faidon Matthaiou , Kostas Mourouzis and Mimis Stefanidis were among the first Greek players to play abroad in the 1950s .

The most successful Greek player in other European countries is Theodoros Papaloukas . Between 2002 and 2008, the 2005 European champion played for CSKA Moscow and, in this period, won the ULEB Euroleague two times in addition to six Russian championship titles and three cup wins . In the 2011/12 season he was under contract with Maccabi Tel Aviv , where he won the Israeli double and the ABA championship.

After a brief interlude in the NBA , Antonios Fotsis moved abroad several times (2001-2002, 2003-2008, 2011-2013). With Real Madrid , Dynamo Moscow and Armani Jeans Milano , he has won a number of titles, including: a. the ULEB Cup 2006.

Another important player is Nikolaos Zisis who has been continuously active abroad since 2005 and u. a. was under contract with clubs such as Benetton Treviso , CSKA Moscow and Montepaschi Siena . Zisis managed to win the national double with each of these clubs and even won the ULEB Euroleague 2008 with Moscow. He has been under contract with Brose Baskets since 2015 .

Other important Greek players who played in the past for a longer period in other European countries or are still playing there are:

The preferred leagues include the Superleague Russia (since 2010 PBL ), the ACB (Spain) and Serie A (Italy).

Greek players in the NBA

Spanoulis in Houston dress

The first Greek-born player eligible to play for the Greek national team to make the leap into the NBA was Antonios Fotsis . The 2001 player, selected 48th in the drafts , was active for one season with the Memphis Grizzlies . He was followed by other players who usually only stayed in the North American professional league for one season. An exception was Iakovos Tsakalidis , who played in the NBA from 2002 to 2007.

Even if Greek basketball is very successful in Europe and regularly brings out new talent, no top-class Greek player has yet managed to establish himself permanently in the NBA. Vasilios Spanoulis joined the Houston Rockets in 2006 , but left the NBA after a disappointing season for both sides. Other top stars like Dimitrios Diamantidis or Theodoros Papaloukas did not even move to the North American professional league.

In the 2019/2020 season , four Greeks will play in the NBA with Giannis Antetokounmpo , Thanasis Antetokounmpo , Kostas Antetokounmpo and Naz Mitrou-Long .

Surname society Period
Giannis Antetokounmpo Milwaukee Bucks 2013–
Thanasis Antetokounmpo New York Knicks
Milwaukee Bucks 		2014–2016
2019–
Kostas Antetokounmpo Dallas Mavericks
Los Angeles Lakers 		2018–2019
2019–
Nick Calathes Memphis grizzlies 2013-2015
Antonios Fotsis Memphis grizzlies 2001-2002
Iakovos Tsakalidis Phoenix Suns
Memphis Grizzlies
Houston Rockets 		2002–2003
2003–2007
2007
Efthimios Rentzias Philadelphia 76ers 2002-2003
Andreas Glyniadakis Seattle SuperSonics 2006-2007
Vasilios Spanoulis Houston Rockets 2006-2007
Kostas Koufos Utah Jazz
Minnesota Timberwolves
Denver Nuggets
Memphis Grizzlies
Sacramento Kings 		2008–2010
2010–2011
2011–2013
2013–2015
2015–2019
Konstantinos Papanikolaou Houston Rockets
Denver Nuggets 		2014–2015
2015–2016
Georgios Papagiannis Sacramento Kings
Portland Trail Blazers 		2016–2018
2018
Naz Mitrou-Long Utah Jazz
Indiana Pacers 		2017–2019
2019–
Tyler Dorsey Atlanta Hawks
Memphis Grizzlies 		2017-2019
2019
Radoslav Nesterovič

In addition, six players made it into the NBA, who have the Greek passport as their second nationality . The most successful of them is Peja Stojaković , who also did his military service in Greece and in 2011 was the first Greek to win an NBA championship with the Dallas Mavericks .

Surname society Period
Kirgiakos Rampidis ( Kurt Rambis ) Los Angeles Lakers
Charlotte Hornets
Phoenix Suns
Sacramento Kings
Los Angeles Lakers 		1980-1988
1988-1999
1989-1992
1992-1993
1993-1995
Sergei Bazarevich Atlanta Hawks 1994
Peja Stojaković Sacramento Kings
Indiana Pacers
New Orleans Hornets
Toronto Raptors
Dallas Mavericks 		1998–2005
2005–2006
2006–2010
2010–2011
2011
Radoslav Nesterovič Minnesota Timberwolves
San Antonio Spurs
Toronto Raptors
Indiana Pacers
Toronto Raptors 		1999–2003
2003–2006
2006–2008
2008–2009
2009–2010
Dragan Tarlać Chicago Bulls 2000-2001
Marko Jarić Los Angeles Clippers
Minnesota Timberwolves
Memphis Grizzlies 		2002–2005
2005–2008
2008–2009

NBA drafts

Peja Stojaković

So far, 30 players have been selected in the NBA drafts who are Greek citizens. The lowest pick so far is Georgios Papagiannis , who was picked thirteenth in the 2016 draft by the Phoenix Suns .

Pick Surname society year
13 Georgios Papagiannis Phoenix Suns 2016
14th Peja Stojaković Sacramento Kings 1996
15th Giannis Antetokounmpo Milwaukee Bucks 2013
17th Radoslav Nesterovič Minnesota Timberwolves 1998
23 Efthimios Rentzias Denver nuggets 1996
23 Kostas Koufos Utah Jazz 2008
24 Lou Tsioropoulos Boston Celtics 1953
25th Iakovos Tsakalidis Phoenix Suns 2000
30th Marko Jarić Los Angeles Clippers 2000
31 Dragan Tarlać Chicago Bulls 1995
34 Sofoklis Schortsanitis Los Angeles Clippers 2003
37 Panagiotis Fasoulas Portland Trail Blazers 1986
41 Tyler Dorsey Atlanta Hawks 2017
45 Nick Calathes Minnesota Timberwolves 2009
48 Kirgiakos Rampidis ( Kurt Rambis ) New York Knicks 1980
48 Antonios Fotsis Memphis grizzlies 2001
48 Konstantinos Papanikolaou New York Knicks 2012
50 Vasilios Spanoulis Houston Rockets 2004
51 Thanasis Antetokounmpo New York Knicks 2014
57 Loukas Mavrokefalidis Minnesota Timberwolves 2006
57 Aleksandar Vezenkov Brooklyn Nets 2017
58 Georgios Printezis Toronto Raptors 2007
58 Andreas Glyniadakis Detroit Pistons 2003
59 Dimitrios Agravanis Atlanta Hawks 2015
60 Kostas Antetokounmpo Philadelphia 76ers 2018
68 Nikos Galis Boston Celtics 1979
72 David Stergakos Boston Celtics 1978
90 Theofanis Christodoulou Atlanta Hawks 1987
95 Dave Caligaris Detroit Pistons 1978
205 Panagiotis Giannakis Boston Celtics 1982

Greek players in German-speaking countries

The most important Greek players who have been active in Germany so far are the national players and Euroleague winners Ian Vougioukas and Nikolaos Zisis . Previously, Ioannis Kalampokis was the only Greek active in the German-speaking area who played for his national team or was one of Greece's outstanding players. The few players who were also under contract in Germany include the lesser-known Sotiris Gioulekas and Loukas Lazoukits .

The best known Greek active in Switzerland is Andreas Glyniadakis . The center played at Lions de Genève in 2015.

Greek trainers in German-speaking countries

The most important Greek trainer who was active in the German-speaking area is Konstantinos Flevarakis . Flevarakis, who was previously under contract with the traditional Greek clubs AEK and PAOK , coached the BBL club Phantoms Braunschweig from May 2012 to the end of the 2012/2013 season .

With Yannis Christopoulos , another Greek coach was in the service of a Bundesliga club. First he worked as an assistant and then as an interim coach at the basketball club of FC Bayern Munich . In Austria , Chris Chougaz , a former player in the German and Austrian Bundesliga, has been looking after the Oberwart Gunners in the Admiral Basketball Bundesliga since the 2015/16 season .

Ilias Kantzouris has been an assistant coach at Brose Baskets since 2014 .

Basketball in the Greek media

In the Greek mass media , basketball is represented as well as hardly any other sport. 14 sports newspapers appear nationwide every day (as of February 2013), which report on current events on several pages. Even if the main focus is always on the Greek championship, there is also coverage of the amateur leagues, the North American NBA and other leading European championships.

A large number of championship games are broadcast on television by the private pay-TV broadcaster Nova. The ULEB Euroleague games are broadcast by Nova and NERIT .
Live broadcasts of the championship or European Cup games are also offered by the large number of sports radio stations.

Outstanding derbies

Derby between Aris and PAOK

In Greek basketball there are a number of derbies that arouse great emotions in the audience or are even known beyond the national borders. As a rule, these tensions are based on the geographical proximity to one another and the large fan communities that meet at these encounters. The social tensions between the financially stronger capital city clubs from Athens and the sportily lagging representatives from Thessaloniki in northern Greece are also expressed at such games. For security reasons, no guest fans are allowed to be present at meetings between these clubs, as riots occur again and again in the vicinity of these clashes.

The most outstanding derby in Greek basketball are the matches between Panathinaikos Athens and Olympiacos Piraeus. The two clubs, which have the largest fan base in Greece, meet regularly in a wide variety of sports and are currently the most competitive and financially strong clubs in the A1 league. While Panathinaikos has always been a fixture in Greece, Olympiakos is the most glorious time in the period between 1993 and 1997, when you could win five championships in a row and in 1997 even the European Cup. In recent years, the two clubs have been regularly in the finals for the national championship and the cup. At home games of Panathinaikos in the Athens Olympic Hall, season attendance records are regularly set for European basketball.

Another outstanding derby is the one between the two clubs from Thessaloniki, Aris and PAOK. During the 1980s and until the Athens clubs regained their strength in the early 1990s, this was actually the most important in the country. While Aris dominated the Greek league with his dream duo Galis and Giannakis during this time and caused a stir in Europe, only PAOK could stand up to the domestic league. Although the two clubs regularly placed the final candidates for the championship and cup during this period, PAOK was able to win only a few titles. The fact that both clubs had to share the same home with Alexandrio Melathro until 2000 was also explosive .

Other important derbies are PAOK against Panathinaikos or Olympiakos and Aris against Panathinaikos.

Current development

With the win of the second European championship in Belgrade in 2005 , Greek basketball experienced a revival. For the first time after years of stagnation in the Greek basketball halls, the number of spectators rose again. One reason for this was that most of the victorious national players played in their own league. Another reason was the renewed competition between league croesus and record champions Panathinaikos Athens and his arch-rival Olympiacos Piraeus. If the Athenians dominated the league at will until 2005, this changed in the following years. After years of mediocrity and under new leadership, Piraeus had strengthened its team massively and at great expense and opened up to Panathinaikos. In 2007, 2009, 2011 (Athens) as well as 2012 and 2013 (Piraeus) these two clubs won the ULEB Euroleague five times .

Hit by the Greek financial crisis , the already huge gap between Panathinaikos and Olympiakos on the one hand and the rest of the league on the other grew sharply. In 2011 (Olympiakos) and 2012 (Panathinaikos) the crisis finally reached the two top clubs in such a way that many top players left the Greek league as a result.

As a positive side effect of the financial crisis, the young, local talents get significantly more playing time. For example, when Olympiakos won the Euroleague in 2012, three players who were 22 years or younger were used in the final.

See also

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Clubs participating in the 2015/2016 season
  2. ↑ Clubs participating in the 2015/2016 season
  3. ↑ Number of men's cup victories on www.basket.gr (Greek)
  4. ↑ Information about the women's cup competition at www.basket.gr (Greek)
  5. ↑ All time highest scoring average on www.fiba.com (English)
  6. ↑ Statistics for the first EM in 1949 at www.fibaeurope.com (English)
  7. ↑ Statistics on EM 1987 at www.fibaeurope.com (English)
  8. ↑ Statistics on EM 1989 at www.fibaeurope.com (English)
  9. ↑ Statistics on EM 2005 at www.fibaeurope.com (English)
  10. ↑ Squad of the European championship team 1987 on www.fibaeurope.com
  11. ↑ Squad of the European championship team 1987 on www.fibaeurope.com
  12. ↑ EM-Kader 2005  ( page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.@1@ 2Template: Dead Link / www.basket.gr  
  13. ↑ Statistics on the 1986 World Cup at www.fiba.com (English)
  14. ↑ Statistics on the 2006 World Cup (English). (No longer available online.) Archived from the original on August 28, 2017 ; accessed on April 27, 2018 .
  15. ↑ Apostolos Nikolaidis Stadium on stadia.grm
  16. ↑ Alexandrio Melathro on stadia.gr
  17. ↑ Stadium of Peace and Friendship on stadia.gr
  18. ↑ Athens Olympic Hall on stadia.gr
  19. ↑ Athens Indoor Arena on stadia.gr
  20. ↑ PAOK Arena on stadia.gr
  21. ↑ Information on the sports hall in Xanthi
  22. ↑ Information about the sports hall in Heraklion
  23. ↑ International match information on the association's official website ( Memento of the original from September 27, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.basket.gr
  24. ↑ Point information on the official website of the association ( Memento of the original from July 30, 2014 in the web archive archive.today ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.basket.gr
  25. ↑ International match information on the association's official website ( Memento of the original from July 30, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.basket.gr
  26. ↑ Point information on the official website of the association ( Memento of the original from July 30, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.basket.gr
  27. ↑ Coach statistics on www.sentragoal.gr ( Memento of the original from April 8, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.sentragoal.gr
  28. ↑ Members of the FIBA ​​Hall of Fam2 at http://www.halloffame.fiba.com/ ( Memento of the original from September 4, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.halloffame.fiba.com
  29. ↑ Report on Fotsi's first NBA game on www.leoforos.gr (Greek)
  30. ^ Report on Flevaraki's move to Braunschweig
  31. ↑ General information on the rivalry between Panathinaikos and Olympiakos at www.derbys.org
  32. ↑ General information on the rivalry between Aris and PAOK at www.derbys.org
This version was added to the list of articles worth reading on October 25, 2008 .