Panathinaikos BC

Infobox Basketball club
color1 =#FFFFFF
color2 =#336600
name =Παναθηναϊκός ΚΑΕ
Panathinaikos BC
nickname =The Shamrock
Greens
logo =PAO Current Logo.png imagesize =150px
leagues =Greek League,
Greek Cup,
Euroleague
founded =1922
arena =Athens Olympic Indoor Hall
(capacity: 18.900)
location =Athens, Greece
colors =green and white
president = Pavlos Giannakopoulos
coach =flagicon|Serbia Željko Obradović
championships = (4) European Championships
(1) Intercontinental Cup
(29) Greek Championships
(11) Greek Basketball Cups
website = [http://www.paobc.gr/ www.paobc.gr]
h_body = 01925b
h_pattern_b = _thinsidesonwhite
h_shorts = 01925b
h_pattern_s = _blanksides
a_body = 01925b
a_pattern_b = _blackshoulders
a_shorts = 01925b
a_pattern_s =

Panathinaikos Basketball Club (Greek name: "Κ.Α.Ε. Παναθηναϊκός", transliterated into English as: K.A.E. Panathinaikos) is the professional basketball team of the Athens-based Greek sport club Panathinaikos. The team is also widely known by the name PAO, which stands for Panathinaikos Athlitikos Omilos. The club is owned by the pharmaceutical magnates Pavlos and Thanassis Giannakopoulos. The parent athletic club was founded in 1908 [ [http://www.paobc.gr/en/history.asp PAOBC Team History.] ] and the basketball team in 1922, and it has since developed into the most successful basketball team in Greece and among the best in Europe. Panathinaikos has won 29 Greek National Championships, 11 Greek Cups, 4 European Championships and 1 Inter-continental Cup.

Some of the well-known players that have played with the club over the years have included: Dominique Wilkins, Byron Scott, Antonio Davis, Dino Raja, Tracy Murray, Tony Delk, John Salley, Nikos Galis, Dejan Bodiroga, Panagiotis Giannakis, Željko Rebrača, Stojko Vranković, Žarko Paspalj, Fanis Christodoulou, among others. Those players, along with the successful management of Pavlos Giannakopoulos, have made Panathinaikos one of the most successful and well-known teams of the last decade-and-a-half on the continent of Europe and the only team that has won four Euroleague titles after the modern era final four format was established.

History

In April of 1996, at the Final Four (F4), Panathinaikos was the first Greek team to win the European Championships (now called the Euroleague), beating FC Barcelona in a unique tournament final, by a score of 67-66. In September of the same year, the team also won the 1996 Intercontinental Cup championship, prevailing by 2-1 wins in a 3 game series over Olimpia Venado Tuerto of the Argentine League, a team which featured players Walter Herrmann and Andres Nocioni. The scores were 83-89, 83-78, 101-76. 1996 Intercontinental Cup championship roster: Fragiskos Alvertis, Nikos Ekonomou, John Amaechi, Michael Koch, Hugo Sconochini, Byron Dinkins, Ferran Martinez, Giannis Georgikopoulos, Leonidas Skoutaris, (head coach: Božidar Maljković). [http://www.sansimera.gr/archive/articles/show.php?id=245&sid=3&feature=PAO_BC]

In 2000, at the Thessaloniki Euroleague Final Four, Panathinaikos were the Champions of Europe for the second time, beating Macabbi Tel Aviv 73-67 in the final. In 2002, at the Bologna Euroleague Final Four, Panathinaikos brought to Athens the most prestigious European trophy for the third time, beating hosts Kinder Bologna 89-83 in the final. At the 2007 Euroleague Final Four, which was held on its home court of OAKA in Athens, Panathinaikos became the European Champions for the fourth time, beating the defending champions CSKA Moscow 93-91 in the final.

Panathinaikos has advanced to the Final Four of the Euroleague or its predecessors another four times: Tel Aviv in 1994 (3rd), Zaragoza in 1995 (3rd), Paris in 2001 (2nd) and Moscow in 2005 (3rd). Other significant successes are: the two participations in the semifinals of the Cup Winners' Cup (1969, 1998), as well as the course up to the semi-finals of the Champions' Cup for the season 1971-72 (eliminated by Ignis Varese (78-70, 55-69). In the 1981-82 season, Panathinaikos participated in the finals of the Champions' Cup of that time, eliminating consecutively the teams of CSKA Moscow and Levski Sofia.

The team, which is famous for its fans' passionate support, also holds the highest attendance record in the Euroleague, which is [http://www.paobc.gr/en/match.asp?match_id=362&year_competition_id=37 20,000 fans] , achieved in a home match in OAKA against Benetton Treviso on March 29, 2006, for the second phase of the Euroleague 2005-06. An attendance of 18,900 fans has also been achieved three times in home matches of the Greens, against Efes Pilsen in 2005 and TAU Cerámica (twice) in 2006.

On October 11, 2007, Panathinaikos played against the Houston Rockets [http://www.nba.com/games/20071011/PANHOU/boxscore.html] , and on October 18, 2007, Panathinaikos played against the then defending NBA champions, the San Antonio Spurs [http://www.nba.com/games/20071013/PANSAS/boxscore.html] . Panathinaikos is the first Greek team to ever play in the USA against NBA teams.

International record

Coach: flagicon|Greece Kostas Keramidas

* [http://www.eurobasket.com/team.asp?Cntry=GRE&team=7765&Women=1 Panathinaikos Women team at Eurobasket.com]

elected former players

*flagicon|Greece Toula Kalentzou
*flagicon|Greece Viktoria Klantzou
*flagicon|Greece Evina Maltsi
*flagicon|Bulgaria Eva Guneva
*flagicon|United States Erin Batth
*flagicon|United States Kim Butler
*flagicon|United States Mandi Carver
*flagicon|United States Tracy Gahan
*flagicon|United States Vicki Hall
*flagicon|United States Yvette Jarvis "(first African-American and first salaried female athlete to play in the Greek Women's Basketball League)"
*flagicon|United States Kelly Komara
*flagicon|United States Casey Nash

* [http://www.eurobasket.com/team.asp?Cntry=GRE&team=7765&option=Panathinaikos%20Athens%20%20(GRE-A1)&Cntr=GRE&logo=&Women=1 Completed list of former Panathinaikos Women players by Eurobasket.com]

Notes

External links

* [http://www.paobc.gr/ Panathinaikos BC - Official website] (in Greek & English)
* [http://www.eurobasket.com/team.asp?Cntry=GRE&Team=92 Panathinaikos BC at Eurobasket.com]
* [http://www.greenwebfans.com/ Panathinaikos Fans' Site] (in Greek & English)
* [http://www.galanissportsdata.com/basketball/mena1/season2007_08/a1teamrs.asp?t=01 Galanis Sports Data]