The Greek enemies face each other at OAKA on Friday night
It’s almost time: Panathinaikos vs. Olympiacos is days away!
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5 Mins read
Basketball fans right across the globe are all looking forward to one fixture this week: Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens versus Olympiacos Piraeus. The Greek derby – this week’s Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Rivalry Series game – is always must-watch television, and this latest edition has all the hallmarks of a classic.
Both the Greens and the Reds are on winning streaks, with Panathinaikos having won three straight while Olympiacos has emerged victorious from its last two.
Some big teams have been beaten by the Greek duo over that stretch, too, with Ergin Ataman’s men defeating Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul and Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade on the road in Rounds 5 and 7, respectively, and Georgios Bartzokas’s troops downing Real Madrid and FC Barcelona in last week’s double-round week.
All that is the perfect recipe for this 22nd edition of the Greek derby in the EuroLeague this century.
“It’s wild. You can’t describe it to people. You have to live it, you have to feel it, you have to see it,” explains Olympiacos forward Sasha Vezenkov.
“One of the craziest games we’ll play all season,” adds Panathiniakos guard Kendrick Nunn.
Both Vezenkov and Nunn have experienced the passion of this rivalry before, but is a newbie feeling ahead of derby day?
“Two teams who really don’t like each other and there’s a big history there, so now I get to experience it,” comments Olympiacos’s Evan Fournier, who joined the club after spending 12 seasons in the NBA.
“It has to change, it has to change,” declares new Panathinaikos forward Cedi Osman, fresh off seven seasons in the NBA, after discovering that Olympiacos has won the last six EuroLeague derbies.
Greens coach Ergin Ataman remains stunned by the intensity shown whenever Panathinaikos and Olympiacos face off.
“I’ve never seen in my life that kind of passion for the game, for the team,” he says. “They are part of the team. They are like in the locker room.”
How to watch the Greek derby
Make sure to tune in for the Greek derby pre-game and post-game shows on YouTube, while you can catch the game itself on EuroLeague TV from 20:15 CET.