For the last six straight editions of the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Final Four, one man has always been present: Sertac Sanli. The Turkish big man, who lifted his first EuroLeague championship with Anadolu Efes Istanbul in 2021, became a two-time champion in Abu Dhabi by going all the way with Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul.

Tribute to the Champs: Sertac Sanli

For the last six straight editions of the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Final Four, one man has always been present: [Sertac Sanli](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/sertac-sanli/002968/). The Turkish big man, who lifted his first EuroLeague championship with Anadolu Efes Istanbul in 2021, became a two-time champion in Abu Dhabi by going all the way with Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul.

Ever since 2019, Sanli has known what is required at the Final Four. Aside from 2020, when the season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic and therefore the Final Four didn’t take place, Sanli has featured in the last six editions of the Final Four. Now 33, his experience was important in helping Fenerbahce secure its second EuroLeague crown eight years after first becoming Europe’s champion. 

The best plays of Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul center Sertac Sanli during the 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague season.

Sertac Sanli: Tribute to the Champs

Sanli played in 33 games this season for coach Saras Jasikevicius’s squad, averaging 5.5 points and 2.4 rebounds in a little over 13 minutes per night. Particularly during the regular season, he netted 7 or more points 14 times, showing that he was an important contributor for the team.

Although he played a total of 12:33 minutes in the postseason, including 3:06 minutes at the Final Four, his know-how and wise words were important traits for Coach Jasikevicius, whose side replicated the feat of Zeljko Obradovic’s 2017 squad by winning the EuroLeague.

More Fenerbahce News

Mr. Final Four added a second EuroLeague title to his résumé in Abu Dhabi

He extended his contract for three more years 


Panathinaikos, Dimitris Moraitis together until 2028

[Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/panathinaikos-aktor-athens/roster/pan/?season=2024-25) and playmaker [Dimitris Moraitis](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/dimitris-moraitis/006544/) have agreed to a contract extension that will keep them together through the end of the 2027-28 season, the club announced Tuesday.

Moraitis (1.90 meters, 26 years old) has spent the last two seasons with the Greens. He played in only one EuroLeague game last season, scoring 2 points in 4 minutes against Anadolu Efes Istanbul in Round 15. He saw much more playing time in the Greek League, where he averaged 3.4 points and 1.5 assists in 17 games. 

Moraitis has helped the Greens win the Greek League, the Greek Cup and the EuroLeague in his time with the club. He started his career with Panionios Athens and also played for AEK Athens, Kolossos Rhodes and Peristeri Athens before joining Panathinaikos. He has also been a member of the Greek national team and took part in the 2023 Basketball World Cup.

<center><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="el" dir="ltr">Η ΚΑΕ Παναθηναϊκός AKTOR ανακοινώνει την επέκταση της συνεργασίας της με τον Δημήτρη Μωραΐτη έως το καλοκαίρι του 2028. ☘️<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WeTheGreens?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WeTheGreens</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/paobcaktor?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#paobcaktor</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/LiveTheGreenMagic?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#LiveTheGreenMagic</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Club1908?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Club1908</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/OneClubOneApp?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#OneClubOneApp</a> <a href="https://t.co/Zpwr7xohhp">pic.twitter.com/Zpwr7xohhp</a></p>&mdash; Panathinaikos BC (@Paobcgr) <a href="https://twitter.com/Paobcgr/status/1934980666958967244?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 17, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></center>


More Panathinaikos news

He extended his contract for three more years 

Top 10 photos of the Final Four Games

Top 10 photos from the Final Four Games

The club announced it on Monday afternoon 


Polonara diagnosed with myeloid leukemia 

Virtus Segafredo Bologna shared on Monday that power forward Achille Polonara is currently hospitalized at Sant’Orsola Malpighi in Bologna after being diagnosed with myeloid leukemia. Over the last few weeks, Polonara underwent specialized medical tests, which confirmed the diagnosis. 

This comes after an October 2023 bout with a testicular tumor. The tumor was surgically removed and his treatment also included a round of chemotherapy before Polonara was able to return to basketball courts in mid-December 2023.

Euroleague Basketball joins the entire Virtus Segafredo Bologna organization, the European basketball family and all those close to Achille and his loved ones to wish him a speedy recovery.

Forza, Achi!

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Achille Polonara diagnosed with myeloid leukemia 

Anadolu Efes Istanbul announced on Sunday that Luca Banchi would not remain with the club as its head coach

Efes parts ways with Coach Luca Banchi

Anadolu Efes Istanbul announced on Sunday that Luca Banchi would not remain with the club as its head coach. 

Banchi, 60, joined Efes in January and helped Efes finish the regular season on an 8-0 tear to climb into sixth place. Efes then took Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens the distance in a thrilling five-game playoff series before bowing out. 

Efes was Banchi's second coaching stop last season after he opened the season with Virtus Segafredo Bologna. He resigned his position there after a 2-10 start.

Banchi has coached five different clubs in the EuroLeague. He debuted with Montepaschi Siena of his native Italy in 2012 and has since spent time with EA7 Emporio Armani Milan, Brose Bamberg and Virtus, which he joined just before the start of the 2023-24 season. Banchi guided Virtus to the Play-In Showdown in his lone full season with the club.

<center><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="tr" dir="ltr">Anadolu Efes Spor Kulübü olarak Sayın Luca Banchi ile yollarımızı ayırmış bulunuyoruz.<br><br>Kendisine kulübümüze verdiği emekler için teşekkür eder, bundan sonraki kariyeri için başarılar dileriz.<br><br>Thank you Coach! <a href="https://t.co/OzsN9LuWMP">pic.twitter.com/OzsN9LuWMP</a></p>&mdash; Anadolu Efes SK (@AnadoluEfesSK) <a href="https://twitter.com/AnadoluEfesSK/status/1934219351143403968?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 15, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

He began his EuroLeague career as an assistant coach with Montepaschi Siena between 2006 and 2012. Banchi helped it reach the Final Four in both 2008 in Madrid and 2011 in Barcelona. He later led Milan to the club's first EuroLeague Playoff appearance this century in 2014. Banchi also coached two seasons in the EuroCup, first with Turin of Italy in 2017-18 and then with Lokomotiv Kuban Krasnodar of Russia in 2019-20.

His trophy case includes winning the FIBA Intercontinental Cup with Lokomotiv in 2019 and Italian League championships with Milan in 2013 and 2014 as well as the Italian Cup in the first of those seasons. Banchi, who has also coached clubs in Greece and France and spent a season as an assistant coach in the G League. He also coached the Latvian national team, with which he was named the Best Coach of the 2023 Basketball World Cup after leading Latvia to an unexpected fifth-place finish.

More Efes News

Banchi guided Efes to the EuroLeague Playoffs in his lone season with the club

Efes parts ways with Coach Banchi

He just finished his second season with the Greens


Panathinaikos extends Jerian Grant through 2028

Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens and guard Jerian Grant have reached a new agreement to keep working together until the end of the 2027-28 season, the club announced Saturday. 

Grant (1.96 meters, 32 years old) averaged 8.6 points on 43.0% three-pointers, 3.2 assists and a PIR of 10.6 in 41 EuroLeague games last season, helping Panathinaikos reach the Final Four and win the Greek Cup title. Last season, Grant helped the Greens to win the EuroLeague title, the club's seventh crowd and first in 13 years. He had an all-around performance in the Championship Game against Real Madrid, getting 11 points, six rebounds, five assists, two steals and a PIR of 17. Grant also won the Greek League title with the Greens in 2024. 

<center><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="und" dir="ltr">Η ΚΑΕ Παναθηναϊκός AKTOR ανακοινώνει την επέκταση της συνεργασίας της με τον Τζέριαν Γκραντ έως το καλοκαίρι του 2028.☘️<br><br>____________________________________________<br><br>Panathinaikos BC AKTOR is pleased to announce the extension of its partnership with Jerian Grant until the… <a href="https://t.co/pcz1QPk8fH">pic.twitter.com/pcz1QPk8fH</a></p>&mdash; Panathinaikos BC (@Paobcgr) <a href="https://twitter.com/Paobcgr/status/1933832472803881247?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 14, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></center>

He joined Panathinaikos from Turk Telekom Ankara, which he guided to the BKT EuroCup Final in 2023. Across 22 games in the competition with Turk Telekom, the American guard averaged 14.9 points, 3.2 rebounds, 6.1 assists, 1.3 steals and an 18.7 PIR to earn EuroCup MVP and All-EuroCup First Team honors. A member of a famed basketball family in which his father, uncle and two of his brothers played (and still play) professionally, Jerian played five seasons in the NBA with the New York Knicks, the Chicago Bulls, the Washington Wizards and the Orlando Magic. He spent time in the G League with the Windy City Bulls and the Capital City Go-Go, too. He went on to play for Promitheas Patras in Greece and EA7 Emporio Armani Milan in Italy before joining Turk Telekom. 

Jerian Grant just finished his third EuroLeague season with Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens, his second with the team.

2024-25 EuroLeague highlights: Jerian Grant, Panathinaikos

"Ι am truly excited! I wanted to be here, the team wanted me here, and the timing was perfect for us to get the deal done. From the moment I arrived, Panathinaikos has treated me like family, which made the decision an easy one. Every time I put the Panathinaikos jersey on it is an honor, and I go out there and show it with my effort on the court," Grant said after the agreement. "The goal is to make history with this club — to achieve success at the highest level and to become a team so remarkable that history will never forget us. We currently have seven stars, and with the team we are putting together there is no reason we cannot have ten. To all the fans, you are now a part of my family, and I am genuinely excited to play in front of you for the next three years."

Age is just a number. A decades-old mantra that has been used more and more in the world of professional sports, with athletes prolonging their prime into the latter stages of their careers, got its Turkish Airlines EuroLeague version in Errick McCollum. The 37-year-old guard became one of the feel-good stories of the entire season, and rightfully so.

Tribute to the Champs: Errick McCollum

Age is just a number. A decades-old mantra that has been used more and more in the world of professional sports, with athletes prolonging their prime into the latter stages of their careers, got its Turkish Airlines EuroLeague version in [Errick McCollum](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/errick-mccollum/005216/). The 37-year-old guard became one of the feel-good stories of the entire season, and rightfully so.

McCollum, a former EuroCup MVP and champion, was widely known for his scoring abilities but he had been away from the EuroLeague for almost four years. In mid-January, however, he joined a Fenerbahce side in the midst of an injury crisis. Little did we know that McCollum, who came to fill the holes caused by injuries, would become a difference-maker and one of the key factors in Fenerbahce’s climb to the EuroLeague throne.

Errick McCollum's 13 points in 15 semifinal minutes helped Fenerbahce beat Panathinaikos in the semifinals.

Errick McCollum's 13 points in 15 semifinal minutes

It took the veteran guard a couple of games to adjust, but then in nine appearances between Rounds 23 and 31, he averaged 15.4 points on 45.9% three-point shooting. McCollum got injured the next round but he returned in time for the playoffs to help Fenerbahce sweep Paris Basketball. In Abu Dhabi, he emerged once again as one of the team’s heroes at the Final Four, the first time he had reached European basketball's showpiece event.

In the semifinals against Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens, McCollum scored all 13 of his points in the last 15 minutes of an 82-76 win. He finished the game with a +12, the biggest plus-minus among all Fenerbahce players that night. He went on to score 3 points in the championship game, but with a +8 in the plus-minus section, playing a key part in Fenerbahce’s triumph in Abu Dhabi.

It was a perfect ending to this perfect marriage between McCollum and Fenerbahce, which ended in the dream scenario of becoming the 2024-25 EuroLeague champion.

After changing more than a dozen teams and five countries over the past 15 years, the experienced scoring guard was the mid-season signing Fenerbahce needed

Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade is once again the ABA League champion after a 90-75 win over Buducnost VOLI Podgorica in Game 4 of the best-of-five finals series which ended on Thursday night. In a packed-to-the-rafters Belgrade Arena, Partizan finished off Buducnost for a 3-1 series win to celebrate its record eighth league title.

Partizan regains ABA League crown

Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade is once again the ABA League champion after a 90-75 win over Buducnost VOLI Podgorica in Game 4 of the best-of-five finals series which ended on Thursday night. In a packed-to-the-rafters Belgrade Arena, Partizan finished off Buducnost for a 3-1 series win to celebrate its record eighth league title.

Partizan took the lead for good in the second quarter behind Sterling Brown and Brendon Davies. The hosts were 49-44 ahead at halftime, then pulled away to a double-digit lead by opening the third quarter with an 8-0 run, with Davies and Iffe Lundberg enjoying starring roles. Yogi Ferrell kept Buducnost’s hopes alive as the visitors cut the margin to single digits on several occasions.

However, Carlik and Tyrique Jones pushed the margin to 81-62 in fourth as Partizan cruised to the title. Davies and Brown led Partizan with 18 points apiece, Carlik Jones had 17 points and 9 assists, while Lundberg and Isaac Bonga each scored 13. Ferrell netted 23 points for Buducnost.

<center>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="lv" dir="ltr">ŠAMPIONI!⚫️⚪️<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/KKPartizan?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#KKPartizan</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ABALiga?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ABALiga</a> <a href="https://t.co/T9aFb55lnN">pic.twitter.com/T9aFb55lnN</a></p>&mdash; KK Partizan Mozzart Bet (@PartizanBC) <a href="https://twitter.com/PartizanBC/status/1933277018009055691?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 12, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

The ABA League Finals MVP was Tyrique Jones thanks to his performances in an 89-94 Partizan road win in Game 1 (24 points, 10 rebounds) and an 83-67 win in Game 3 (12 points, 10 rebounds).

The season does not end here for Partizan, however, as it moves on to play the Serbian League playoffs, where it faces FMP Zeleznik in the semifinals. The other Serbian League semifinal will feature Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade and Spartak Subotica.

More Partizan News

Coach Zeljko Obradovic's team ousted Buducnost

Jilson Bango spent the first half of the season in the Spanish League with Casademont Zaragoza, only to be signed in early February by Fenerbahce Istanbul when the team was struck by injuries to frontcourt players.

Tribute to the Champs: Jilson Bango

Not even half a year ago, [Jilson Bango](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/jilson-bango/013696/) was not even playing in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague, so the idea of celebrating winning the crown at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi was at best a far-off dream. Bango spent the first half of the season in the Spanish League with Casademont Zaragoza, only to be signed in early February by [Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/fenerbahce-beko-istanbul/ulk/) when the team was struck by injuries to frontcourt players.

Even though Fenerbahce saw the 26-year-old Bango not just as a mid-season fill-in, but a long-term solution at center and accordingly signed him to a multi-year deal, it was a great relief for the team that it did not take Bango long to start showing that he could contribute. In only his third appearance, Bango gave Fenerbahce a first-half boost with 8 points and 5 rebounds in less than 10 minutes to pave the way for [a 24-point road win at EA7 Emporio Armani Milan](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/news/fenerbahce-crushes-milan-76-100/). He followed it up a week later with 8 points in a season-high 16 minutes in [a victory over LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/news/fenerbahce-seals-postseason-spot-by-downing-asvel-92-82/).

Tribute to the Champs: Jilson Bango, Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul

Then, in the playoffs, with Nicolo Melli sidelined with an injury, Bango played his role to perfection in Game 3 in the French capital, collecting 6 points and 3 rebounds in less than 7 minutes to help Fener sweep Paris.

Though Bango did not play at the Final Four, he certainly knew how to celebrate Fenerbahce’s title. A mid-season signing turned into one of this campaign’s fairytale stories: Bango became the first Angolan-born player to win the EuroLeague crown.

Bango became the first Angolan-born player to win the EuroLeague