Panathinaikos (22-11) will aim to seal home-court advantage in the playoffs with a visit from ALBA (5-28), which knows it will finish in last place after losing 10 games in a row.
Matt Thomas, ALBA: 'One of the best teams in the EuroLeague and a breathtaking atmosphere'
The Greens are huge favorites to get the job done, showing unstoppable recent home strength with eight straight wins in Athens. The Greek team came out on top 85-99 as Dinos Mitoglou poured in 24 points with 12 rebounds in Berlin in October. And ALBA faces a massive task in slowing down a multifaceted Panathinaikos offense, typified by Juancho Hernangomez scoring 14 points with just one miss to help down Bayern last week. In the backcourt, Kendrick Nunn is playing with great confidence after averaging 17.4 points in the last five games, with multiple triples in each of those.
Ergin Ataman, Panathinaikos head coach
"It's a EuroLeague game and we must be ready. ALBA does not care about the standings and will come here to play their game. We have to play aggressive defense, share the ball and put on a good performance. Names do not win games, only the hustle. We don't have the luxury to put our second position at risk, We worked hard for it for seven months, so we have to play hard with the help of our fans."
Israel Gonzalez, ALBA head coach
"This week is our last EuroLeague game of the season. The fact that it's still unclear who will be fit to play due to the current infection and injury situation in our roster makes things even more difficult on Thursday in Athens against Panathinaikos."
Ioannis Papapetrou, Panathinaikos forward
"There is caution, after all, like in all games. It doesn't matter where anyone is in the standings, even if we have a big goal at the moment and Alba has no such motivation. There is alertness, there is concentration, there is proper preparation. We will give our best. What we are fighting for right now is very important. The arena will be full for one more game. We want to thank our fans for this."
Matt Thomas, ALBA guard
"Panathinaikos is in very good shape at the moment and is still fighting for second place in the EuroLeague. They're also very strong at home. The Panathinaikos fanbase is big and passionate. With the success this season, the atmosphere in the OAKA Arena and the support is even greater. Basketball is like a religion in Greece - it's a truly unique experience. In the last game of the season, we expect a hot game with one of the best teams in the EuroLeague and a breathtaking atmosphere. We want to give our all once again on Thursday in Athens to give this season a fitting send-off."