It's a Friday night treat as two of the biggest names in basketball play a key game in the battle for home-court advantage in the playoffs.
Panathinaikos, Barcelona collide in superpower showdown
In a monster-clash that is likely to have huge implications on what we will be watching this postseason, Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens (19-11) hosts FC Barcelona (20-10) in the Greek capital.
With four rounds to go in the regular season, these two powerhouses are part of a seven-team push for five remaining Turkish Airlines Euroleague Playoffs spots, but also the race-within-a-race for the all-important home-court advantage in those playoffs.
How tight is that battle? Well, Barcelona might be entering this contest sitting in the second place in the standings, but it could end this week all the way down – in fifth place.
Why Barca needs to win
Barcelona currently has a one-win advantage over a trio of teams with 19 victories – Panathinaikos, AS Monaco and Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul – but a Panathinaikos win in this game can turn things completely upside-down.
Barcelona already got swept by Monaco, lost the head-to-head tiebreaker against Fenerbahce when it fell by 14 points in Istanbul on Wednesday, and now faces Panathinaikos.
Barcelona beat the Greens by 8 points back in Round 6 in November. That margin will be very important and both coaches will keep it in mind during this exciting night in the Greek capital.
However, if Panathinaikos beats Barcelona tonight, while Monaco and Fenerbahce also register victories – Monaco plays Valencia Basket at home and Fenerbahce against EA7 Emporio Armani Milan on the road – all four rivals would have 20 wins.
Within that four-team tiebreaker, Barcelona would have the worst record. It also means that head coach Roger Grimau's team would no longer be the holder of its own destiny, but rather dependent on other results in the final three rounds. Not even winning out in those games would guarantee Barcelona a finish in the top four.
Why Panathinaikos needs to win
But if things sound a little dramatic for Barcelona's ambitions, they are even more so for Panathinaikos, which is coming off a nice bounce-back road win over Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade.
Tuesday's losses by both Olympiacos Piraeus and Virtus Segafredo Bologna did Panathinaikos a favor, but this fixture against Barcelona is still of a must-win variety for head coach Ergin Ataman and his troops.
A loss tonight by the Greens would make Barcelona virtually uncatchable for Panathinaikos, which also already lost its head-to-head tiebreaker against Fenerbahce.
Granted, Panathinaikos did sweep Monaco, but Mike James & co. have the easiest remaining schedule, playing all games against the teams with losing records, including three at home.
Counting on Lessort and Sloukas
It means Panathinaikos will again need all the energy of All-EuroLeague center Mathias Lessort and all the leadership of a three-time champ Kostas Sloukas. On Wednesday, with the Greens knowing they had no room for error, Lessort collected 19 points, 6 rebounds and 4 assists while Sloukas had 17 points and 10 assists in the big road win over Zvezda. Panathinaikos may need another such performance from its star duo on Friday.
Barcelona, on the other hand, will look to start the game much better than it did in a roller-coaster performance against Fenerbahce, where it was down by 25 points midway through the second quarter before starting its rally. Barca will need to do a better job of taking care of the ball, after having 16 turnovers in Istanbul, 6 of which were of Nicolas Laprovittola's doing.
Focus, energy and patience will be the key, and with the stakes so high, these two long-time rivals have set us up for a real Friday night treat.