On the eve of his "Night of the Legend" jersey-retirement ceremony, as Olympiacos Piraeus hosts EA7 Emporio Armani Milan on Sunday, three-time Turkish Airlines EuroLeague champion and all-time leading scorer Vassilis Spanoulis spoke to Javier Gancedo of EuroLeague.net about his legacy, his inspirational career, his future and more.
Vassilis Spanoulis jersey-retirement interview: 'An incredible honor'
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"It is an incredible honor for me and I'm proud for this moment. I will try to stay calm and not be sensitive. I will try to enjoy it."
A legend's EuroLeague numbers
Spanoulis, currently the head coach of Greek club Peristeri B.C., finished his 15-season EuroLeague career with averages of 12.4 points, 4.5 assists and 11.7 PIR. He is the all-time leading scorer in EuroLeague history with 4,455 points. He also ranks first in free throws made with 1,131; third in assists with 1,607 and in total PIR with 4,183; sixth in three-pointers made with 518 and games played with 358; and 10th in steals with 273.
"Such a connection between me and the presidents, me and the people of Olympiacos, me and the fans of Olympiacos. It's something incredible. It's something that is real. It's real love, it is not fake love. It is coming from the heart, and from them to me and from me to them. And it's something that will stay forever."
From Green to Red
The Greek guard, nicknamed "Kill Bill", began his EuroLeague with Olympiacos's archrival, Panathinaikos Athens. Spanoulis spent the 2005-06 season with the Greens before heading to the NBA, but in the summer of 2007 he returned to Panathinaikos, where he stayed for a further three campaigns. Across his four seasons as a Panathinaikos player, Spanoulis played 76 games – 23 as a starter – and posted averages of 11.9 points, 2.2 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 1.3 steals, while he also became a EuroLeague champion in the 2008-09 campaign.
Then, in the offseason of 2010, Spanoulis switched between the Greek archrivals, agreeing to join Olympiacos. In Piraeus, he became a legend by leading the team to back-to-back EuroLeague championships in the 2011-12 and 2012-13 seasons. Through his 11 seasons with the Reds, Spanoulis became the club's all-time top scorer with 3,552 points. His averages for Olympiacos read: 12.6 points, 1.7 rebounds and 4.8 assists across 282 appearances, of which he started 231.
"Especially when we talk about Luka [Doncic], about Giannis [Antetokounmpo]... this inspiration and this that I give to the game of basketball and to the players is more than everything for me. It's more maybe than titles."
How to watch Spanoulis's jersey retirement ceremony
Fans in Greece will be able to watch Spanoulis's famous No. 7 Olympiacos jersey be lifted to the rafters before the Reds face off against Milan, with the game being aired exclusively on Novasports 4. For those outside of Greece, make sure to stay up to date on Olympiacos's social media platforms in order to see the latest clips from the jersey retirement ceremony.