Panathinaikos has reunited with one of the most decorated players in club history, announcing on Saturday that Mike Batiste has returned as an assistant coach under newly appointed head coach Zeljko Obradovic. The former EuroLeague star signed a three-year contract and will be part of the coaching staff beginning with the 2026-27 season.
The move marks another significant step in Panathinaikos’ offseason overhaul following the return of Obradovic, the legendary coach who led the club to five EuroLeague titles during his first spell in Athens. Batiste was one of the defining players of that era, making the reunion one of the most notable coaching additions of the European summer.
Panathinaikos described Batiste as “the longest-serving foreign basketball player in our club’s history,” a legacy built across two stints with the club from 2003-12 and again during the 2013-14 season. During that time, he established himself as one of the greatest frontcourt players in EuroLeague history.
Batiste helped Panathinaikos win three EuroLeague championships in 2007, 2009 and 2011 while also capturing nine Greek League titles and seven Greek Cups. Individually, he earned All-EuroLeague First Team honors in 2011, was named to the All-EuroLeague Second Team in 2012, won the Greek League MVP award in 2010 and collected Greek League Finals MVP honors in both 2010 and 2011.
His place among the competition’s legends was further cemented in 2025 when he was selected to the EuroLeague 25th Anniversary Team. He was also named among the 101 Greats of European Basketball in 2018 and inducted into the Greek League Hall of Fame in 2022.
Following his retirement, Batiste built more than a decade of coaching experience in the NBA. He began as an assistant with the Canton Charge before moving into player development with the Brooklyn Nets. He later served as an assistant coach with the Charlotte Hornets, Orlando Magic, Washington Wizards, Houston Rockets and most recently the Toronto Raptors, where he spent the past three seasons.
Batiste now joins an extensively reshaped Panathinaikos organization. The club replaced Ergin Ataman with Obradovic while adding Moustapha Fall, Guerschon Yabusele, Brancou Badio and Isaac Bonga to strengthen the roster. Panathinaikos also parted ways with Marius Grigonis, Kenneth Faried, TJ Shorts and Cedi Osman following the 2025-26 campaign.
Last season, Panathinaikos finished seventh in the EuroLeague regular season with a 22-16 record before pushing Valencia to five games in the playoff quarterfinals.
