Panathinaikos Superfoods and Olympiacos square off in the Finals with only one target on their mind, to win the Championship.
The two Greek giants easily eliminated their opponents in the semi-finals, PAOK Thessaloniki and Promitheas Patras respectively, and now have their sights set on their upcoming battle.
The “Greens”,who have the home-court advantage, enter the series as the grand favourite to win the title, given their chemistry and current playing condition.
Following their elimination from Real Madrid in the Euroleague playoffs, Panathinaikos rapidly enhanced their performance and are now playing at very high standards on both ends of the floor.
With Nick Calathes as the undisputed leader and the supporting cast offering decent solutions, both defensively and offensively, the defending champions will rely on their great playing condition to make the difference in the Finals.
Coach Xavi Pascual has seen all his players be at their very best and dominate both Rethymno and PAOK to easily advance to the Finals.
The “Greens” are undefeated in the Greek Basket League (31-0) and are considered the favourites not only to win the title, but to sweep the series.
Against their arch rivals, the squad will need to impose a run and gun playing style and score in transition in order to take the upper hand in the game.
The question now is whether Olympiacos can turn things around and win the championship to end the season in a successful way.
The “Reds” have dealt with so many injuries during the season, which have significantly affected their chemistry and this was one of the main reasons for their elimination from the Final Four.
Coach Giannis Sfairopoulos and his players saw Zalgiris Kaunas conquer them in the play-off series and they are still trying to return to the previous high standards.
The “Reds” have faced many ups and down in the postseason so far, while their injured players haven’t been in the ideal shape yet.
Consequently, they enter the series as the underdog, while it is widely believed that they don’t stand a chance against a Panathinaikos squad that plays very well in the last month.
Coach Sfairopoulos will rely on Vassilis Spanoulis and Giorgos Printezis to be the game changers, but the experienced coach is expecting from all his players to step up and improve their overall performance.
The “Reds” have to play excellent defence and score in transition, otherwise their playing style will become much more predictable and it will be easier for Panathinaikos to stop them.
A potential loss to the Finals will be painful for both clubs, as it will lead to a series of changes in the roster and the squad’s bench.
More specifically, it’s still uncertain whether coach Sfairopoulos and coach Paascual will be relieved of their duties after the end of the season, while many players (especially in the “Reds” roster) may be let go, if their team doesn’t win the title.
That said, everything is on the line for both competitors in the Greek Basket League Finals, which start on Sunday, June 3rd, as both clubs will fight tooth and nail for the title in one of Europe’s biggest basketball rivalries.
