Olympiacos Piraeus returned to the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Final Four last season for the first time in five years, and it will be hoping to carry that momentum into the upcoming campaign. Ultimately, a Vasilije Micic buzzer-beating three-pointer is what prevented Olympiacos from making it to the championship game, but the Reds showed that they are back where they belong. Here are five games for Olympiacos fans to circle in their calendars ahead of the 2022-23 EuroLeague Regular Season.
2022-23 Games to Watch: Olympiacos Piraeus
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Round 1: An early test
To kick off the new season, Olympiacos travels to Spain to face FC Barcelona. Both teams fell short in last year's Final Four, losing out to Anadolu Efes Istanbul and Real Madrid respectively, so they will be determined to get the new campaign off to a good start. The regular season meetings between Olympiacos and Barca were very tight in 2021-22, and another hard-fought game is likely to take place at Palau Blaugrana in Round 1.
Round 11: Forgetting about the past
Olympiacos was seconds away from reaching last year's EuroLeague Championship Game, but Vasilije Micic had other plans, as he nailed a three-pointer at the buzzer to send Efes to the showpiece event. This Round 11 meeting will be the first time that Olympiacos and Efes have come face to face since the Final Four semifinal, which means the Reds will be eager to grab a win on the road and exact a bit of revenge. It won't be easy, though, as Ergin Ataman will make sure his team is ready for this contest.
Round 18: The start of a budding rivalry
One of the best playoff matchups from last year saw Olympiacos and AS Monaco battle for a place in the Final Four, with the series going to a Game 5 in Piraeus. It was the Reds which prevailed, but the series laid the foundation for what could be one of the more interesting rivalries in the EuroLeague. Monaco, still led by star guard Mike James, has added seven new players to its roster as it goes in search of EuroLeague glory, so it will be interesting to see if Olympiacos still has the upper hand or not.
Round 30: Meeting former enemies
The friendship between Olympiacos and Crvena Zvezda mts Belgrade is well known, and the return of Partizan NIS Belgrade to the EuroLeague brings with it some added spice for the Reds. Not only will Olympiacos face one of its former players in Ioannis Papapetrou, who left the club to join arch-rivals Panathinaikos in 2018 before moving to Partizan this summer, but it will also come up against ex-Panathinaikos head coach Zeljko Obradovic, who is now on the Partizan bench. Expect Olympiacos to try and do Zvezda a favor in this clash at Stark Arena.
Round 32: The Greek derby
All Olympiacos fans immediately look for the dates of the Greek derby against Panathinaikos OPAP Athens when the calendar is announced, with this being one of the most eagerly anticipated fixtures in the EuroLeague season. In its penultimate home game of the season, Olympiacos welcomes the Greens to Peace and Friendship Stadium at a time when playoff standings are likely to be impacted by the result of this match. As always, this game is going to be must-watch television.