Panagiotis Giannakis ( el, Παναγιώτης Γιαννάκης, ; born January 1, 1959), alternatively spelled Panayiotis Yiannakis or Yannakis, is a retired Greek professional
basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...
player and
coach
Coach may refer to:
Guidance/instruction
* Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities
* Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process
** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers
Transportation
* Coac ...
. As a player, he was primarily a
point guard
The point guard (PG), also called the one or the point, is one of the five positions in a regulation basketball game. A point guard has perhaps the most specialized role of any position. Point guards are expected to run the team's offense by ...
, but he could also play at the
shooting guard
The shooting guard (SG), also known as the two, two guard or off guard,Shooting guards are 6'3"–6'7"BBC Sports academy URL last accessed 2006-09-09. is one of the five traditional positions in a regulation basketball game. A shooting guard's m ...
position. During his playing career, Giannakis was also widely-known under his nickname of "''O Drákos''" (), or "The Dragon" in
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ...
.
A true floor general, Giannakis began his
club basketball playing career in Greece, with
Ionikos Nikaias. After that, he before moved to the Greek club
Aris Thessaloniki
Athlitikos Syllogos Aris Thessalonikis, means Athletic Club Aris Thessaloniki
...
, where he spent the most important part of his pro playing career. In
Thessaloniki
Thessaloniki (; el, Θεσσαλονίκη, , also known as Thessalonica (), Saloniki, or Salonica (), is the second-largest city in Greece, with over one million inhabitants in its metropolitan area, and the capital of the geographic region of ...
, he helped to lead "The Yellows" (Aris) to three consecutive
EuroLeague Final Four appearances between 1988 and 1990, as well as to a
FIBA European Cup
The FIBA Saporta Cup was the name of the second-tier level European-wide professional club basketball competition, where the domestic National Cup winners, from all over Europe, played against each other. The competition was organized by FIBA E ...
(later renamed to Saporta Cup) title
in 1993. In the summer of 1993, he was transferred to the Greek club
Panionios Athens, and finally a year later, to the Greek club
Panathinaikos Athens, with whom he won a
EuroLeague championship
in 1996. On February 3, 2008, Giannakis was chosen as one of the
50 Greatest EuroLeague Contributors
The 50 Greatest EuroLeague Contributors (2008) of FIBA European Champions Cup and EuroLeague history were awarded and chosen on February 3, 2008, in Madrid, Spain. The occasion was the fiftieth anniversary since the founding of the inaugural sea ...
over the previous half-century by
EuroLeague Basketball
Euroleague Basketball is the private company that runs and operates the top continental-wide basketball men's professional sports club competitions in Europe, the first-tier level EuroLeague, and the second-tier level EuroCup. It has been or ...
's Experts Committee.
Giannakis was, along with
Nikos Galis
Nikolaos Georgalis ( el, Νικόλαος Γεωργαλής; born July 23, 1957), commonly known as either Nikos Galis ( el, Νίκος Γκάλης), or Nick Galis, is a retired Greek professional basketball player. Galis, who during his playin ...
,
Panagiotis Fasoulas
Panagiotis "Panos" Fasoulas (alternate spelling: Fassoulas; Greek: Παναγιώτης Φασούλας; born May 12, 1963 in Thessaloniki) is a Greek politician and former professional basketball player. He was selected in the second round by ...
, and
Fanis Christodoulou, one of the four main stars of the legendary late 1980s
Greece men's national basketball team
The Greece men's national basketball team ( el, Eθνική Oμάδα Καλαθοσφαίρισης Ελλάδος) represents Greece in international basketball. They are controlled by the Hellenic Basketball Federation, the governing body for ...
that put Greece on the world basketball map. He was Greece's
team captain, when they won the gold medal at the
EuroBasket
EuroBasket, also commonly referred to as the European Basketball Championship, is the main international basketball competition that is contested quadrennially, by the senior men's national teams that are governed by FIBA Europe, which is the ...
of
1987, and were the silver-medalists at the same championship
two years later. Furthermore, Giannakis was also an important member of the Greece men's national team, when they reached the EuroBasket's semifinals in
1993 and
1995
File:1995 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: O.J. Simpson is acquitted of the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman from the year prior in "The Trial of the Century" in the United States; The Great Hanshin earthquake str ...
, as well as the
FIBA World Cup
The FIBA Basketball World Cup, also known as the FIBA World Cup of Basketball or simply the FIBA World Cup, between 1950 and 2010 known as the FIBA World Championship, is an international basketball competition contested by the senior men's nat ...
's semifinals in
1994
File:1994 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1994 Winter Olympics are held in Lillehammer, Norway; The Kaiser Permanente building after the 1994 Northridge earthquake; A model of the MS Estonia, which sank in the Baltic Sea; Nels ...
.
After his playing career ended, Giannakis was the
head coach
A head coach, senior coach or manager is a professional at training and developing athletes. They typically hold a more public profile and are paid more than other coaches. In some sports, the head coach is instead called the "manager", as in asso ...
of the Athenian professional club team,
Maroussi Athens
Maroussi B.C. ( gr, K.A.E. Μαρούσι, link=off) alternately translated as Marousi, Amaroussi, or Amaroussion, is a professional basketball club that is based in Marousi, a northern suburb of Athens, in Greece. The club's full name is Gymnast ...
, which he led to the forefront of the
Greek League. Giannakis was also the head coach of the Greek
EuroLeague powerhouse
Olympiacos Piraeus, which he led to the
2010 EuroLeague Final, and of the
Greece men's national basketball team
The Greece men's national basketball team ( el, Eθνική Oμάδα Καλαθοσφαίρισης Ελλάδος) represents Greece in international basketball. They are controlled by the Hellenic Basketball Federation, the governing body for ...
. Under Giannakis' guidance, the Greece men's national team won the gold medal at the
2005 EuroBasket, and the silver medal at the
2006 FIBA World Cup
The 2006 FIBA World Championship was the 15th FIBA World Championship, the international basketball world championship for men's national teams. The tournament was hosted by Japan and held from 19 August to 3 September 2006. It was co-organised by ...
in Japan, where Greece upset
Team USA, by a score of 101–95. He was also the head coach of the senior
Chinese national team.
Early years
Giannakis was born and raised in a
poor
Poverty is the state of having few material possessions or little income. Poverty can have diverse neighborhood of
Nikaia
Nicaea, also known as Nicea or Nikaia (; ; grc-gre, Νίκαια, ) was an ancient Greek city in Bithynia, where located in northwestern Anatolia and is primarily known as the site of the First and Second Councils of Nicaea (the first and sev ...
,
Athens
Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates a ...
. Ηis parents, Dimitris, owner of a motorbike workshop, and Kalliope, a
weaver, gave birth to five boys. Panagiotis was the youngest child of the family.
Giannakis started playing
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly ...
around his neighborhood. He showed an early inclination to sports, and also tried the sport of
basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...
. He began watching the games of a local basketball club, and he was later approached by the head coach of the youth team of
Ionikos Nikaias, who asked him to join their team.
Club playing career
Ionikos Nikaias
Giannakis began his
club career with the youth teams of
Ionikos Nikaias, in 1971. His first head coach,
George Vassilakopoulos
George Vassilakopoulos (alternate spellings: Georgios, Giorgos, Vasilakopoulos, Vassilacopoulos, Vasilacopoulos; el, Γιώργος Βασιλακόπουλος; born 18 January 1939) is a Greek politician, former professional basketball player ...
, moved Giannakis up to the club's senior men's first team, from the youth squad, in 1972, when he was at the age of just 13. The club was playing in the
Greek 2nd Division at the time. In 1975, the club was
promoted up to the top-tier level
Greek First Division. Giannakis' exceptional play with Ionikos Nikaias, at such a young age, drew the eyes of pro basketball experts on him.
On January 24, 1981, Ionikos Nikaias, led by a then 22-year-old Giannakis, played against
Aris Thessaloniki
Athlitikos Syllogos Aris Thessalonikis, means Athletic Club Aris Thessaloniki
...
, which was led by
Nikos Galis
Nikolaos Georgalis ( el, Νικόλαος Γεωργαλής; born July 23, 1957), commonly known as either Nikos Galis ( el, Νίκος Γκάλης), or Nick Galis, is a retired Greek professional basketball player. Galis, who during his playin ...
. Aris won in a tight game, by a score of 114–113. The game is memorable in the history of Greek pro club basketball, because in the game, Giannakis scored 73 points, and Galis scored 62 points, as they achieved the second and fourth most points ever scored in a single game of the Greek League basketball championship.
[ Greek Basket League statistical leaders]
Boston Celtics
In 1981, the American basketball coach
Dick Dukeshire, who had coached Giannakis with the
Greek men's national basketball team
The Greece men's national basketball team ( el, Eθνική Oμάδα Καλαθοσφαίρισης Ελλάδος) represents Greece in international basketball. They are controlled by the Hellenic Basketball Federation, the governing body f ...
, asked Giannakis to move to the
USA, to play
college basketball
In United States colleges, top-tier basketball is governed by collegiate athletic bodies including National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the United States Collegiate Athleti ...
at the
Hellenic College
Hellenic College Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology (HCHC) is an Orthodox Christian liberal arts college and seminary in Brookline, Massachusetts. Its mission is to educate individuals for life and service in the Orthodox Christian co ...
. Dukeshire believed that Giannakis was good enough to play in the
NBA. At that time, the
Boston Celtics
The Boston Celtics ( ) are an American professional basketball team based in Boston. The Celtics compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Atlantic Division. Founded in 1946 as one of t ...
used the facilities of the Hellenic College's campus in
Brookline, Massachusetts
Brookline is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, in the United States, and part of the Boston metropolitan area. Brookline borders six of Boston's neighborhoods: Brighton, Allston, Fenway–Kenmore, Mission Hill, Jamaica Plain, and ...
, for their training camp and practices. Dukeshire believed that if Gianankis was training with the school's team at the same time that the Celtics were there, that he had a chance to make the Celtics roster. Giannakis eventually agreed to move to the USA, and joined the Hellenic College Owls team.
While at training at Hellenic College, Giannakis was eventually noticed by the Celtics, and they invited him to join the team's 1981 summer league camp. However, during the summer training camp, Giannakis suffered a career-threatening
knee injury
In humans and other primates, the knee joins the thigh with the leg and consists of two joints: one between the femur and tibia (tibiofemoral joint), and one between the femur and patella (patellofemoral joint). It is the largest joint in the h ...
that required multiple
knee surgeries, and a lot of rehab time. After recovering from his knee surgery, Giannakis averaged 25 points per game with the Hellenic College Owls. Giannakis then went back to Greece, where he finished the season with his previous club team
Ionikos Nikaias, in order to help them avoid a
league relegation.
Giannakis was ultimately selected by the Boston Celtics, in the 9th round of the
1982 NBA Draft, with the 205th overall draft pick. Giannakis then took part in the team's
1982–83 preseason training camp. About a week before the start of the regular season, the Celtics traded center
Dave Cowens
David William Cowens ( ; born October 25, 1948) is an American former professional basketball player and NBA head coach. At , he played the center position and occasionally played power forward. Cowens spent most of his playing career with the B ...
to the
Milwaukee Bucks
The Milwaukee Bucks are an American professional basketball team based in Milwaukee. The Bucks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division. The team was founded in 196 ...
, in exchange for point guard
Quinn Buckner
William Quinn Buckner (born August 20, 1954) is an American former professional basketball player and coach. He played collegiate basketball for the Indiana University Hoosiers, and won a national championship in 1976. He was a captain of both ...
, and due to that, they no longer had the need for another point guard. The Celtics then asked Giannakis to join their
CBA affiliate team, as a way to test how he could adjust to the American style of basketball, with the chance for him to earn an NBA contract with the main team later on. However, Giannakis declined the offer, and returned to Greece, where he would play for the rest of his career.
Aris Thessaloniki
On August 3, 1984, Giannakis transferred to the Greek club
Aris Thessaloniki
Athlitikos Syllogos Aris Thessalonikis, means Athletic Club Aris Thessaloniki
...
, after the club paid a transfer fee contract buyout to
Ionikos Nikaias for his player rights, in the amount of 42 million
Greek Drachmas, which was considered a huge amount of money for a transfer buyout at that time. Giannakis also personally received a
BMW car, a
sporting goods store, and an 8 million drachmas signing bonus from Aris. With Aris, Giannakis teamed up with
Nikos Galis
Nikolaos Georgalis ( el, Νικόλαος Γεωργαλής; born July 23, 1957), commonly known as either Nikos Galis ( el, Νίκος Γκάλης), or Nick Galis, is a retired Greek professional basketball player. Galis, who during his playin ...
, to form one half of an historic "tag-team", that took both Greek and European basketball by storm, for the years to come. From the 6th of March 1985, to the 5th of November 1988, the backcourt duo of Galis and Giannakis, led Aris Thessaloniki to an 80-game winning streak in the Greek League.
Giannakis' first season with Aris Thessaloniki, the 1984–85 season, was a great success. He won both the
Greek League championship, and the
Greek Cup title. In the final of the latter, Giannakis made 8-out-of-12 three-pointers, and led his team to victory over
Panathinaikos Athens. And that was only the beginning, as six more consecutive Greek League championships, and five more Greek Cup titles with Aris were to follow.
With Aris Thessaloniki, Giannakis also took part in three consecutive
EuroLeague Final Fours. He played at the
1988 Ghent Final Four, at the
1989 Munich Final Four, and at the
1990 Zaragoza Final Four. Aris Thessloniki joined the elite of European basketball clubs at that time, but a European-wide title did not come for Giannakis and his team until a few years later.
In June of 1991, Giannakis was chosen as a member of The Balkans Selection All-Star Team that played against
The European Selection All-Star Team, at the
1991 FIBA Centennial Jubilee. The 1991 FIBA Jubilee event was held in order to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the creation of the sport of basketball in 1891, by the Canadian
James Naismith
James Naismith (; November 6, 1861November 28, 1939) was a Canadian-American physical educator, physician, Christian chaplain, and sports coach, best known as the inventor of the game of basketball. After moving to the United States, he wrote ...
. The
FIBA Jubilee All-Star Game took place at the
Peace and Friendship Stadium, in
Piraeus
Piraeus ( ; el, Πειραιάς ; grc, Πειραιεύς ) is a port city within the Athens urban area ("Greater Athens"), in the Attica region of Greece. It is located southwest of Athens' city centre, along the east coast of the Saro ...
,
Athens
Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates a ...
, Greece, and it included numerous legends of European basketball. The Balkans' All-Star Selection won the game, by a score of 103–102.
In the
1992–93 season, Aris and Giannakis won the championship of the European-wide secondary-level
FIBA European Cup
The FIBA Saporta Cup was the name of the second-tier level European-wide professional club basketball competition, where the domestic National Cup winners, from all over Europe, played against each other. The competition was organized by FIBA E ...
competition, which later became known as the FIBA Saporta Cup. Aris beat the
Turkish Super League club
Efes Istanbul, by a score of 50–48 in the final, which was held in
Turin
Turin ( , Piedmontese language, Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital ...
. By then,
Nikos Galis
Nikolaos Georgalis ( el, Νικόλαος Γεωργαλής; born July 23, 1957), commonly known as either Nikos Galis ( el, Νίκος Γκάλης), or Nick Galis, is a retired Greek professional basketball player. Galis, who during his playin ...
had already previously left Aris Thessaloniki, and joined Panathinaikos Athens, and Giannakis had become the de facto leader and franchise player of Aris.
Panionios Athens
In 1993, after spending nine seasons with
Aris Thessaloniki
Athlitikos Syllogos Aris Thessalonikis, means Athletic Club Aris Thessaloniki
...
, Giannakis moved to the Greek club
Panionios Athens. With Panionios Athens, he averaged 14.0 points, 3.6 rebounds, 3.3 assists, and 1.4 steals per game, in the Greek Basket League's 1993–94 season. In that same season, he also competed with the club in the European-wide third level competition, the
FIBA Korać Cup
The FIBA Korać Cup was an annual basketball club competition held by FIBA between the 1971–72 and 2001–02 seasons. It was the third-tier level club competition in European basketball, after the FIBA European Champions' Cup (later renamed th ...
. During the
Korać Cup season, he averaged 17.0 points, 3.7 rebounds, 3.4 assists, and 2.0 steals per game.
Panathinaikos Athens
After spending a season with
Panionios Athens, Giannakis then moved to the Greek club
Panathinaikos Athens, where he played from 1994 to 1996. It was with Panathinaikos Athens that he finished his club playing career. With Panathinaikos Athens, Giannakis finally won the championship of the top-level European-wide club competition, the
FIBA EuroLeague. Panathinaikos and Giannakis won the title at the
1996 Paris Final Four. He also won the
Greek Cup title with Panathinaikos Athens that same year. It was the seventh Greek Cup title that he had won in his playing career, to go along with his seven
Greek League championships. Giannakis ended his pro club playing career in 1996. During his club playing career he competed in a total of five
EuroLeague Final Fours, as he played in three with
Aris Thessaloniki
Athlitikos Syllogos Aris Thessalonikis, means Athletic Club Aris Thessaloniki
...
, and two with Panathinaikos Athens.
Overall, during his pro
club career, Giannakis scored a total of 9,291 points, in 493 games played in the
Greek Basket League
The Greek Basket League (GBL), often also referred to as the Greek A1 Basketball League, or Greek Basketball Championship (originally called Panhellenic Basketball Championship), and also known as the Stoiximan Basket League for sponsorship reaso ...
, for a career scoring average of 18.8 points per game. While in the EuroLeague, he scored a total of 1,514 points, in 119 games played, for a career scoring average of 12.7 points per game.
National team playing career
Giannakis led the
Greek under-16 junior national team to the silver medal at the
FIBA Europe Under-16 Championship of
1975
It was also declared the ''International Women's Year'' by the United Nations and the European Architectural Heritage Year by the Council of Europe.
Events
January
* January 1 - Watergate scandal (United States): John N. Mitchell, H. R. ...
. A year later, he debuted with the
Greece men's national basketball team
The Greece men's national basketball team ( el, Eθνική Oμάδα Καλαθοσφαίρισης Ελλάδος) represents Greece in international basketball. They are controlled by the Hellenic Basketball Federation, the governing body for ...
, as a 17-year-old, versus the
Czechoslovakian national team. With Greece's junior national teams, he also played at the
1976 FIBA Europe Under-18 Championship
The 1976 FIBA Europe Under-18 Championship was an international basketball competition held in Santiago de Compostela, Spain in 1976.
Final standings
Team roster
Mile Stanković, Aleksandar Petrović, Pero Vučica, Predrag Bogosavljev, D ...
, and at the
1978 FIBA Europe Under-18 Championship
The 1978 FIBA Europe Under-18 Championship was an international basketball competition held in Italy in 1980.
Final ranking
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
Awards
External linksFIBA Archive{{International youth ...
.
Giannakis' first appearance with Greece at a major
FIBA
The International Basketball Federation (FIBA ; French: ) is an association of national organizations which governs the sport of basketball worldwide. Originally known as the (hence FIBA), in 1989 it dropped the word ''amateur'' from its nam ...
international tournament, was at the
1979 EuroBasket
The 1979 FIBA European Championship, commonly called FIBA EuroBasket 1979, was the 21st FIBA EuroBasket regional basketball championship, held by FIBA Europe. Twelve national teams affiliated with the International Basketball Federation enter ...
. He won gold medals at the
1979 Balkan Championship, and at the
1979 Mediterranean Games. Giannakis also represented Greece at the
1980 FIBA European Olympic Qualifying Tournament, the
1981 EuroBasket, the
1983 EuroBasket
The 1983 FIBA European Championship, commonly called FIBA EuroBasket 1983, was the 23rd FIBA EuroBasket regional basketball championship, held by FIBA Europe. It took place from 26 May to 4 June 1983 in France. Italy defeated Spain in the fina ...
, the
1984 FIBA European Olympic Qualifying Tournament, and at the
1986 FIBA World Cup
The 1986 FIBA World Championship was the 10th FIBA World Championship, the international basketball world championship for men's teams. It was hosted by Spain and was held from 5 to 20 July 1986. The final phase of the tournament was held at the ...
. With Greece, he won the gold medal at the
1986 Balkan Championship.
Giannakis was the
team captain of the Greece men's national team that won the gold medal at the
1987 EuroBasket
The 1987 FIBA European Championship, commonly called FIBA EuroBasket 1987, was the 25th FIBA EuroBasket regional basketball championship, held by FIBA Europe. It was held in Greece between 3 and 14 June 1987. Twelve national teams entered the ev ...
. He also played with Greece at the
1988 FIBA European Olympic Qualifying Tournament. He won the silver medal at the
1989 EuroBasket, and he also represented Greece at the
1990 FIBA World Cup
The 1990 FIBA World Championship was the 11th FIBA World Championship, the international basketball world championship for men's teams. It was hosted by Argentina from 8 to 19 August 1990. The final phase of the competition was held at the Luna Pa ...
.
Giannakis also represented Greece at the
1991 FIBA Centennial Jubilee, which commemorated the 100th anniversary of the creation of the sport of basketball, by the Canadian
James Naismith
James Naismith (; November 6, 1861November 28, 1939) was a Canadian-American physical educator, physician, Christian chaplain, and sports coach, best known as the inventor of the game of basketball. After moving to the United States, he wrote ...
. The Jubilee tournament took place at the
Peace and Friendship Stadium, in
Piraeus
Piraeus ( ; el, Πειραιάς ; grc, Πειραιεύς ) is a port city within the Athens urban area ("Greater Athens"), in the Attica region of Greece. It is located southwest of Athens' city centre, along the east coast of the Saro ...
,
Athens
Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates a ...
, Greece. In three games played during the tournament, Giannakis averaged 14.3 points per game.
Galis also played with Greece at the following major tournaments: the
1991 EuroBasket
The 1991 FIBA European Championship, commonly called FIBA EuroBasket 1991, was the 27th FIBA EuroBasket regional basketball championship, held by FIBA Europe. It was held in Italy between 24 and 29 June 1991. Eight national teams entered the even ...
, the
1992 FIBA European Olympic Qualifying Tournament, the
1993 EuroBasket, the
1994 FIBA World Cup
The 1994 FIBA World Championship was the 12th FIBA World Championship, the international basketball world championship for men's teams. The tournament was hosted by Canada from August 4 to 14, 1994. The tournament was held at SkyDome and Maple Le ...
, and the
1995 EuroBasket
The 1995 FIBA European Championship, commonly called FIBA EuroBasket 1995, was the 29th FIBA EuroBasket regional basketball championship held by FIBA Europe, which also served as Europe qualifier for the 1996 Summer Olympics, giving a berth to ea ...
. Gianankis retired from the Greece men's national team as a player, on August 2nd, 1996, after competing with Greece at the
1996 Atlanta Summer Olympics.
During his playing time with the Greece men's national team, Giannakis participated in 29 official FIBA international competitions, and in 40 official international competitions overall. Giannakis holds the all-time career record for the most
caps with the Greece men's national team, with 351. That is also the all-time career record for any European
national team. He also holds the all-time career record for the most total points scored with the Greece men's national team, with 5,301 points. That is also the all-time career record for any European national team.
Career as a head coach
National teams
Greece
Unconventionally, the very next year after he retired from playing with the Greece men's national team, Giannakis started his
coaching
Coaching is a form of development in which an experienced person, called a ''coach'', supports a learner or client in achieving a specific personal or professional goal by providing training and guidance. The learner is sometimes called a ''coa ...
career as the
head coach
A head coach, senior coach or manager is a professional at training and developing athletes. They typically hold a more public profile and are paid more than other coaches. In some sports, the head coach is instead called the "manager", as in asso ...
of the
Greece men's national basketball team
The Greece men's national basketball team ( el, Eθνική Oμάδα Καλαθοσφαίρισης Ελλάδος) represents Greece in international basketball. They are controlled by the Hellenic Basketball Federation, the governing body for ...
, in 1997. He stayed the head coach of the Greece national team for two years. He led the team to a fourth-place finish at the
1997 EuroBasket
The 1997 FIBA European Championship, commonly called FIBA EuroBasket 1997, was the 30th FIBA EuroBasket regional basketball championship held by FIBA Europe, which also served as Europe qualifier for the 1998 FIBA World Championship, giving a be ...
, and to a fourth-place finish at the
1998 FIBA World Cup
The 1998 FIBA World Championship was the 13th FIBA World Championship, an international basketball tournament held by the International Basketball Federation and hosted in Greece from 29 July to 9 August 1998. The tournament was contested by 16 n ...
.
Giannakis returned to the head coach position of the Greece men's national team in 2004, for the
2004 Athens Summer Olympics, where he led the Greek team to a fifth-place finish. In the next year, under his coaching guidance, Greece won the
2005 EuroBasket gold medal, which marked the second time that Greece had won the
EuroBasket
EuroBasket, also commonly referred to as the European Basketball Championship, is the main international basketball competition that is contested quadrennially, by the senior men's national teams that are governed by FIBA Europe, which is the ...
title, and the first time they had won it since
1987. Giannakis became the first person to win the EuroBasket, both as a player (
1987), and as a head coach (
2005
File:2005 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico; the Funeral of Pope John Paul II is held in Vatican City; " Me at the zoo", the first video ever to be uploaded to YouTube; Eris was discover ...
).
In 2006, he coached the Greece men's national team to a second-place finish at the
2006 FIBA World Cup
The 2006 FIBA World Championship was the 15th FIBA World Championship, the international basketball world championship for men's national teams. The tournament was hosted by Japan and held from 19 August to 3 September 2006. It was co-organised by ...
. In the
World Cup's semifinals, which were held on September 1, 2006, Giannakis' Greek team, beat the heavily favored
Team USA, for the first time, by a score of 101–95. After 2006, Giannakis no longer simultaneously coached on both the professional
club and
national team levels, as he decided to focus his full attention on the Greece men's national team only. Giannakis' salary with the Greece men's national team, eventually reached an annual rate of €1.2 million
net income
In business and accounting, net income (also total comprehensive income, net earnings, net profit, bottom line, sales profit, or credit sales) is an entity's income minus cost of goods sold, expenses, depreciation and amortization, interest ...
.
At the
2007 EuroBasket, Giannakis led Greece to a fourth-place finish. At the
2008 Beijing Summer Olympics
The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 Nat ...
, he led Greece to a fifth-place finish. In December 2008, Giannakis ended his tenure as the head coach of Greece's senior national team. He was succeeded in that role by
Jonas Kazlauskas.
China
Giannakis was also the head coach of the senior men's
Chinese national team. He coached China at the
2013 FIBA Asia Championship
The 2013 FIBA Asia Championship for Men was the intercontinental championship for basketball organized by FIBA Asia that served as the qualifying tournament for the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup in Spain. The tournament was held from August 1–1 ...
. China finished the tournament in fifth place.
Pro clubs
After starting his
coaching
Coaching is a form of development in which an experienced person, called a ''coach'', supports a learner or client in achieving a specific personal or professional goal by providing training and guidance. The learner is sometimes called a ''coa ...
career as the
head coach
A head coach, senior coach or manager is a professional at training and developing athletes. They typically hold a more public profile and are paid more than other coaches. In some sports, the head coach is instead called the "manager", as in asso ...
of the
Greek, Giannakis also moved into coaching in the professional
club level. He coached the
Greek League club
Panionios Athens, until 2002, when he was then named the head coach of the Greek club
Maroussi Athens
Maroussi B.C. ( gr, K.A.E. Μαρούσι, link=off) alternately translated as Marousi, Amaroussi, or Amaroussion, is a professional basketball club that is based in Marousi, a northern suburb of Athens, in Greece. The club's full name is Gymnast ...
. He stayed with Maroussi Athens until 2006. During his time with Maroussi Athens, along with the help of his young star
point guard
The point guard (PG), also called the one or the point, is one of the five positions in a regulation basketball game. A point guard has perhaps the most specialized role of any position. Point guards are expected to run the team's offense by ...
, named
Vassilis Spanoulis, whose playing style and player attributes were often compared to Giannakis', he took the club from relative obscurity, and turned it into the third most prominent team in the Greek League, during that era.
On 3 February 2008, Giannakis signed on to be the head coach of the Greek
EuroLeague power
Olympiacos Piraeus. He signed a two-and-a-half year contract with the team, at an annual salary of
€
The euro sign () is the currency sign used for the euro, the official currency of the eurozone and unilaterally adopted by Kosovo and Montenegro. The design was presented to the public by the European Commission on 12 December 1996. It consists o ...
1.1 million
net income
In business and accounting, net income (also total comprehensive income, net earnings, net profit, bottom line, sales profit, or credit sales) is an entity's income minus cost of goods sold, expenses, depreciation and amortization, interest ...
. In June 2010, Olympiacos Piraeus announced that Giannakis would not coach their team in the next season.
During the two-and-a-half year period that he coached Olympiacos Piraeus, Giannakis had led the team to the 2010
Greek Cup title, which was the team's first title won in eight years, and to three consecutive
Greek League Finals appearances (2008, 2009, 2010). He also led the team to two consecutive
EuroLeague Final Four appearances (
2009
File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; Protests ...
and
2010
File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...
), which were the club's first EuroLeague Final Four appearances since the
1999 Final Four. Those two Final Four appearances also included a
EuroLeague Finals appearance (2010).
After that, Giannakis worked as the head coach of the
French League The French League (: "French League for purging, mutual aid and European collaboration") was a collaborationist
Wartime collaboration is cooperation with the enemy against one's country of citizenship in wartime, and in the words of historian G ...
club
Limoges
Limoges (, , ; oc, Lemòtges, locally ) is a city and Communes of France, commune, and the prefecture of the Haute-Vienne Departments of France, department in west-central France. It was the administrative capital of the former Limousin region ...
, during the
2012–13 season. He became the head coach of the Greek club
Aris Thessaloniki
Athlitikos Syllogos Aris Thessalonikis, means Athletic Club Aris Thessaloniki
...
, in 2017.
Personal life
Giannakis is married to Eugenia, and he has two children, Kalliope and Dimitris. In 2010, he lost his brother (all four of his brothers died during a 10-year span) before an
Olympiacos Piraeus rivalry
derby
Derby ( ) is a city and unitary authority area in Derbyshire, England. It lies on the banks of the River Derwent in the south of Derbyshire, which is in the East Midlands Region. It was traditionally the county town of Derbyshire. Derby g ...
with
Panathinaikos Athens.
Awards and accomplishments
(As a player):
Club career
*
Greek 2nd Division Champion: (1975)
*
Greek League Top Scorer: (1980)
*3×
FIBA European Selection
FIBA All-Star Games were all-star basketball exhibition games, which were also known as "FIBA Festivals". The "FIBA Festival All-Star Games" were held from 1964 to 1995. The FIBA European Selection teams won most of the FIBA Festival All-Star Ga ...
: (1980, 1987, 1990)
*2×
Greek Cup Finals Top Scorer: (1985, 1988)
*
Greek League MVP: (1987)
*
Greek League Assist leader: (1989)
* His personal best for points scored in a single game was 73 points scored, in 1981, as a player of
Ionikos Nikaias (which ironically occurred against
Aris, his future team).
* Selected by the
NBA professional club the
Boston Celtics
The Boston Celtics ( ) are an American professional basketball team based in Boston. The Celtics compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Atlantic Division. Founded in 1946 as one of t ...
, in the
1982 NBA draft.
* 7×
Greek Cup Winner: (1985, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1992, 1996)
* 7× consecutive
Greek League Champion: (1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991)
* Along with
Nikos Galis
Nikolaos Georgalis ( el, Νικόλαος Γεωργαλής; born July 23, 1957), commonly known as either Nikos Galis ( el, Νίκος Γκάλης), or Nick Galis, is a retired Greek professional basketball player. Galis, who during his playin ...
, he led
Aris to an 80-game winning streak in the
Greek League, in the 1980s.
*
FIBA European Cup
The FIBA Saporta Cup was the name of the second-tier level European-wide professional club basketball competition, where the domestic National Cup winners, from all over Europe, played against each other. The competition was organized by FIBA E ...
(Saporta Cup) Champion: (1993)
*
EuroLeague Champion
A champion (from the late Latin ''campio'') is the victor in a challenge, contest or competition. There can be a territorial pyramid of championships, e.g. local, regional / provincial, state, national, continental and world championships, a ...
: (1996)
* In total, he won 16 first tier championships in his pro club career as a player.
* When he retired from his club playing career, he held the record for the most games played in the
Greek League (493).
* He scored 9,291 points in the
Greek Basketball Championship (counting all league formats since the 1963–64 season)
(3rd all-time).
* Member of the
Eurobasket.com website's European Basketball Hall of Fame, inducted as a player.
*
EuroLeague's 50th anniversary
50 Greatest EuroLeague Contributors
The 50 Greatest EuroLeague Contributors (2008) of FIBA European Champions Cup and EuroLeague history were awarded and chosen on February 3, 2008, in Madrid, Spain. The occasion was the fiftieth anniversary since the founding of the inaugural sea ...
List: (2008)
Greek junior national team
*
1975 FIBA Europe Under-16 Championship
The 1975 FIBA Europe Under-16 Championship (known at that time as 1975 European Championship for Cadets) was the third edition of the FIBA Europe Under-16 Championship. The cities of Athens and Thessaloniki, in Greece, hosted the tournament. T ...
:
Greek senior national team
*
1976 Balkan Championship:
*
1977 Balkan Championship:
*
1979 Balkan Championship:
*
1979 Mediterranean Games:
*
1980 Balkan Championship:
*
1983 Balkan Championship:
*
1984 Balkan Championship:
*
1986 Balkan Championship:
*
1987 EuroBasket
The 1987 FIBA European Championship, commonly called FIBA EuroBasket 1987, was the 25th FIBA EuroBasket regional basketball championship, held by FIBA Europe. It was held in Greece between 3 and 14 June 1987. Twelve national teams entered the ev ...
:
*
1989 EuroBasket:
* He holds the record for national team
caps, with 351, with the
Greece men's national basketball team
The Greece men's national basketball team ( el, Eθνική Oμάδα Καλαθοσφαίρισης Ελλάδος) represents Greece in international basketball. They are controlled by the Hellenic Basketball Federation, the governing body for ...
, which is also a record for any European player.
* He holds the record for total Greece men's national team caps, men's and boy's, with 402.
* He holds the record, with 5,301 points scored with the Greece men's National Team.
* He holds the record, with 6,202 points scored in total, with the Greece National Team (men's and boy's).
ΟΙ 10 ΠΡΩΤΟΙ ΑΝΔΡΕΣ ΣΕ ΣΥΝΟΛΟ ΠΟΝΤΩΝ ΠΟΥ ΠΕΤΥΧΑΝ ΣΕ ΟΛΕΣ ΤΙΣ ΚΑΤΗΓΟΡΙΕΣ ΕΘΝΙΚΩΝ ΟΜΑΔΩΝ .
(As a head coach):
Club career
*2× Greek League Best Coach: (2004, 2006)
* Greek Cup Winner: (2010)
Greek senior national team
* 2005 EuroBasket:
* 2006 Stanković Cup:
* 2006 FIBA World Championship:
*2× Best Sports Coach in Greece: (2005, 2006)
*He is the only person to win the EuroBasket
EuroBasket, also commonly referred to as the European Basketball Championship, is the main international basketball competition that is contested quadrennially, by the senior men's national teams that are governed by FIBA Europe, which is the ...
, both as a player (1987 EuroBasket
The 1987 FIBA European Championship, commonly called FIBA EuroBasket 1987, was the 25th FIBA EuroBasket regional basketball championship, held by FIBA Europe. It was held in Greece between 3 and 14 June 1987. Twelve national teams entered the ev ...
), and as a head coach
A head coach, senior coach or manager is a professional at training and developing athletes. They typically hold a more public profile and are paid more than other coaches. In some sports, the head coach is instead called the "manager", as in asso ...
( 2005 EuroBasket).
See also
* List of FIBA EuroBasket winning head coaches
The list of FIBA EuroBasket-winning head coaches shows all of the head coaches that have won the FIBA EuroBasket, which is the main international competition for senior men's basketball national teams that is governed by FIBA Europe, the Europe, E ...
References
External links
Euroleague.net Head Coach Profile
Greek Basket League Profile
Hellenic Basketball Federation Profile
Euroleague.net 50 Greatest Contributors
1982 NBA Draft Profile
Euroleague.net Panagiotis Giannakis - The Greek Dragon
101 Greats: Panagiotis Giannakis
Τα “κανόνια” του ελληνικού Πρωταθλήματος: Παναγιώτης Γιαννάκης
Panagiotis Giannakis' career in a short video
{{DEFAULTSORT:Giannakis, Panagiotis
1959 births
Living people
1986 FIBA World Championship players
1990 FIBA World Championship players
Aris B.C. players
Basketball players at the 1996 Summer Olympics
Boston Celtics draft picks
Competitors at the 1979 Mediterranean Games
FIBA EuroBasket-winning coaches
FIBA EuroBasket-winning players
Greece national basketball team coaches
Greek Basket League players
Greek basketball coaches
Greek men's basketball players
Ionikos Nikaias B.C. players
Limoges CSP coaches
Maroussi B.C. coaches
Mediterranean Games gold medalists for Greece
Mediterranean Games medalists in basketball
Olympiacos B.C. coaches
Olympic basketball players of Greece
Panathinaikos B.C. players
Panionios B.C. coaches
Panionios B.C. players
Point guards
Shooting guards
Basketball players from Athens
FIBA Hall of Fame inductees
1994 FIBA World Championship players