Many arrows point to Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens making a trip to Berlin for its first Final Four appearance since 2012. Let’s take a look.
Case for the Final Four: Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens
![Case for the Final Four: Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens](https://media-cdn.incrowdsports.com/1d918523-eb2b-456b-a5ef-3b329c5f9859.jpg?crop=1333%3A750%3Anowe%3A0%3A69)
>Coach Ergin Ataman
No coach in EuroLeague history has taken a team from the ashes and led it to greatness like Ergin Ataman did in his previous job with Anadolu Efes Istanbul. The story is well known; he inherited Efes in December 2017 in last place and the next year they played in the EuroLeague Championship Game. Much of that team was reconstructed in the summer of 2018, which is exactly what Ataman has overseen in Athens, where the Greens retained only two players from last season’s squad. Ataman’s 2018-19 squad grew in strength as the season progressed and was in peak form by the playoffs and for the Final Four. And that is surely the plan he has for Panathinaikos this season.
>The deep roster
The star power up and down the Green’s roster is undeniable. There are former champions of the EuroLeague (Kostas Sloukas), EuroCup (Mathias Lessort, Aleksander Balcerowski), the FIBA World Cup (Juancho Hernangomez) and the NBA (Kostas Antetokounmpo) as well as the reigning EuroCup MVP (Jerian Grant). That winning culture is critical when it counts most. In fact, every player in the rotation – spare EuroLeague newcomer Kendrick Nunn, who played in the NBA Finals – has experience at the highest level of European basketball. Forward Ioannis Papapetrou, who has appeared in only three games due to injury this season, should be a factor down the stretch, too. The mix of experience and winning culture means that Panathinaikos has players who know what it takes to win games.
To date, Coach Ataman has relied heavily on his core of players. Four Panathinaikos players rank among the top 20 in average minutes played: Grant (sixth, 29:53), Dinos Mitoglou (11th, 29:00), Marius Grigonis (19th, 28:16) and Lessort (20th, 28:07). Part of the reason for the extra minutes was absences. Sloukas, Luca Vildoza and Hernangomez have all missed time, Nunn only debuted in Round 7 and Papapetrou is just getting into the swing of things now. When fully healthy, the team’s stars should be able to play a little less thanks to the Greens’ overall depth without sacrificing quality. That level of depth is critical come March, April and May.
![image](https://media-cdn.incrowdsports.com/5fdcf5ee-8891-4136-8f3e-3bb506b1ba45.png?crop=1853%3A1211%3Anowe%3A0%3A0&width=320&resizeType=fill&format=webp 320w, https://media-cdn.incrowdsports.com/5fdcf5ee-8891-4136-8f3e-3bb506b1ba45.png?crop=1853%3A1211%3Anowe%3A0%3A0&width=360&resizeType=fill&format=webp 360w, https://media-cdn.incrowdsports.com/5fdcf5ee-8891-4136-8f3e-3bb506b1ba45.png?crop=1853%3A1211%3Anowe%3A0%3A0&width=640&resizeType=fill&format=webp 640w, https://media-cdn.incrowdsports.com/5fdcf5ee-8891-4136-8f3e-3bb506b1ba45.png?crop=1853%3A1211%3Anowe%3A0%3A0&width=720&resizeType=fill&format=webp 720w, https://media-cdn.incrowdsports.com/5fdcf5ee-8891-4136-8f3e-3bb506b1ba45.png?crop=1853%3A1211%3Anowe%3A0%3A0&width=960&resizeType=fill&format=webp 960w, https://media-cdn.incrowdsports.com/5fdcf5ee-8891-4136-8f3e-3bb506b1ba45.png?crop=1853%3A1211%3Anowe%3A0%3A0&width=1280&resizeType=fill&format=webp 1280w, https://media-cdn.incrowdsports.com/5fdcf5ee-8891-4136-8f3e-3bb506b1ba45.png?crop=1853%3A1211%3Anowe%3A0%3A0&width=1440&resizeType=fill&format=webp 1440w, https://media-cdn.incrowdsports.com/5fdcf5ee-8891-4136-8f3e-3bb506b1ba45.png?crop=1853%3A1211%3Anowe%3A0%3A0&width=1920&resizeType=fill&format=webp 1920w)
> Tip-top form
As mentioned above, Panathinaikos rebuilt its roster over the summer and as such entered the season as a work in progress. In Round 13, Real Madrid came to town and spanked the Greens 78-90. That loss dropped Panathinaikos to a losing record, 6-7, on the season. It would prove to be a turning point. Panathinaikos then won its next three games and has been one of the hottest teams in the league ever since. Only Real Madrid can match the Greens’ 10-3 record in the last 13 rounds. Getting better as the season progresses is always critical for a contender and it’s something that this team has done thus far… and it’s still getting better.
>Home court
The Greens have not lost in 2024 in the Greek capital, reeling off six straight victories at OAKA Altion, including several against Final Four contenders. Overall, Panathinaikos is 11-3 at home, with two of those losses coming in the first month of the season. Entering Round 27 as part of a three-way tie for third place, home-court advantage is within Panathinaikos’s grasp. A top-four finish in the regular season could make a world of difference for Coach Ataman’s side in the playoffs as a packed OAKA could be too much for opponents to overcome.