Minas Gekos (alternate spelling: Gkegos) (
Greek
Greek may refer to:
Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe:
*Greeks, an ethnic group
*Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family
**Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...
: Μηνάς Γκέκος; born November 7, 1959, in
Kurtuluş
Kurtuluş is a neighbourhood of the Şişli district of Istanbul that was originally called ''Tatavla,'' meaning 'stables' in Greek (). The modern Turkish name means "liberation", "salvation", "independence" or "deliverance". On 13 April 1929, si ...
,
Istanbul
Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...
, Turkey) is a Greek professional
basketball coach
Basketball coaching is the act of directing and strategizing the behavior of a basketball team or individual basketball player. Basketball coaching typically encompasses the improvement of individual and team offensive and defensive skills, as wel ...
and a retired 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 (appro ...
player. At 6' 1" (1.87
m) in height, he played at the
point guard
The point guard (PG), also called the one or the point, is one of the Basketball positions, five positions in a regulation basketball game.
A point guard has perhaps the most specialized role of any position and is usually the shortest player ...
and
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 basketball positions, positions in a regulation basketball game ...
positions.
Professional career
Gekos started his playing career with
İstanbul Teknik Üniversitesi in 1975. He later went to Greece, and joined
AEK Athens
A.E.K. (; Athlitikí Énosis Konstantinoupόleos, ''Athletic Union of Constantinople'') is a major Greek multi-sport club based in Nea Filadelfeia, Attica. The club is more commonly known in European competitions as A.E.K. Athens.
Establishe ...
, where he played until 1991. With AEK, he won the
Greek Cup
The Greek Football Cup (), commonly known as the Greek Cup or Betsson Greek Cup for sponsorship reasons is a Greek football competition, run by the Hellenic Football Federation.
The Greek Cup is the second-most important domestic men's footba ...
in 1981, and also played in the Greek Cup finals in 1978, 1980, and 1988.
Then he continued his career with
Panathinaikos
Panathinaikos Athlitikos Omilos (, literally in English: "Panathenaic Athletic Club" or Panathinaikos A.C.), also known simply as Panathinaikós , is a major Greek multi-sport club based in the City of Athens. Panathinaikos is one of the mos ...
, from 1991 to 1994. As a member of the
Panathinaikos
Panathinaikos Athlitikos Omilos (, literally in English: "Panathenaic Athletic Club" or Panathinaikos A.C.), also known simply as Panathinaikós , is a major Greek multi-sport club based in the City of Athens. Panathinaikos is one of the mos ...
roster, he won the Greek Cup in 1993, although he did not play in the final. Overall, he played in 4 Greek Cup Finals, and scored a total of 73 points in those games. He returned to
AEK Athens
A.E.K. (; Athlitikí Énosis Konstantinoupόleos, ''Athletic Union of Constantinople'') is a major Greek multi-sport club based in Nea Filadelfeia, Attica. The club is more commonly known in European competitions as A.E.K. Athens.
Establishe ...
, for the last season of his career as a player (1994–95).
In the top-tier level
amateur
An amateur () is generally considered a person who pursues an avocation independent from their source of income. Amateurs and their pursuits are also described as popular, informal, autodidacticism, self-taught, user-generated, do it yourself, DI ...
Greek Championship (1963–1992), he scored a total of 6,511 points, which was the which was the
9th most total points scored in the competition.
Τα “κανόνια” του ελληνικού Πρωταθλήματος: Μηνάς Γκέκος .
/ref> In the Greek A1 National League (which only counts Greek League games played since the 1986–87 season), he played in a total of 188 games, and scored 2,701 points.
National team career
Gekos played in 53 games
A game is a Structure, structured type of play (activity), play usually undertaken for entertainment or fun, and sometimes used as an Educational game, educational tool. Many games are also considered to be Work (human activity), work (such as p ...
with the senior men's Greek national team. With Greece's senior national team, he played at the 1979 FIBA EuroBasket and the 1983 FIBA 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 final ...
. He also won gold medals at the 1979 Balkan Championship, and the 1979 Mediterranean Games
The 1979 Mediterranean Games, officially known as the VIII Mediterranean Games, and commonly known as Split 1979, were the 8th Mediterranean Games. The Games were held in Split, Croatia, Split, SFR Yugoslavia, Yugoslavia, from 15 to 29 September ...
.
Coaching career
After he retired from playing professional basketball, Gekos 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 in 1995, when he became an assistant coach under Vlado Đurović and Slobodan Subotić
Slobodan "Piksi" Subotić ( sr-Cyrl, Слободан Суботић, ; born 15 August 1956) is a Greek-Slovenian professional basketball coach and former player. He last served as the head coach for Budućnost of the ABA League, Montenegrin Lea ...
, in AEK Athens
A.E.K. (; Athlitikí Énosis Konstantinoupόleos, ''Athletic Union of Constantinople'') is a major Greek multi-sport club based in Nea Filadelfeia, Attica. The club is more commonly known in European competitions as A.E.K. Athens.
Establishe ...
. In 1997, he became an assistant coach, under Subotić Subotić ( sr-Cyrl, Суботић, ) is a South Slavic surname. Notable people with the surname include:
* Dejan Subotić (1852–1920), Serbo-Russian general
* Ana Subotić (born 1983), Serbian long-distance runner
*Bojan Subotić (born 1990), Ser ...
, with Panathinaikos
Panathinaikos Athlitikos Omilos (, literally in English: "Panathenaic Athletic Club" or Panathinaikos A.C.), also known simply as Panathinaikós , is a major Greek multi-sport club based in the City of Athens. Panathinaikos is one of the mos ...
. He became the head coach
A head coach, senior coach, or manager is a professional responsible for training and developing athletes within a sports team. This role often has a higher public profile and salary than other coaching positions. In some sports, such as associat ...
of Esperos Kallitheas
Esperos (in ) is a sports club in Kallithea (within greater Athens, Greece), founded in 1943 during the Nazi occupation of the country (1941–44).
History
Started as a football club and participated during World War II in the games organised by ...
, in 1999.
He then became the head coach of Apollon Patras
:''The first version of this article has been based in the text of :el:Α.Σ. Απόλλων of the :el:Κύρια Σελίδα, Greek Wikipedia published under the GFDL.''
A.S. Apollon Patras (Greek language, Greek:''A.Σ. Απόλλων Πατ ...
, in 2000. He next became head coach of Papagou
Papagou ( or Παπάγος ''Papagos'') is a suburban town and municipal unit in the eastern part of the Athens#Athens Urban Area, Athens agglomeration, Greece. The town is named after Marshal Alexandros Papagos, a general who led the Greek Army ...
, in 2003. After that, he was Panagiotis Giannakis
Panagiotis "Notis" Giannakis (, ; born January 1, 1959), alternatively spelled Panayiotis Yiannakis or Yannakis, is a former Greek professional basketball player and coach. He is considered to be one of the greatest sportspeople of Greece. He st ...
' assistant coach in Maroussi
Marousi or Maroussi (), also known as Amarousio (), is a city and a suburb in the northeastern part of the Athens urban area, Greece. Marousi dates back to the era of the ancient Athenian Republic; its ancient name was '' Athmonon'' () and it r ...
, and Luka Pavićević
Luka Pavićević ( sr-cyr, Лука Павићевић; born 17 June 1968) is a Montenegrin professional basketball coach and former player. Most recently, he served as the head coach for Alvark Tokyo of the Japanese B.League.
A point guard, P ...
's assistant coach in Panionios
Panionios G.S.S. Football Club (Greek: ΠΑΕ Πανιώνιος Γ.Σ.Σ.), the ''Pan-Ionian Gymnastics Club of Smyrna'' (Πανιώνιος Γυμναστικός Σύλλογος Σμύρνης, ''Panionios Gymnastikos Syllogos Smyrnis''), ...
.
He then worked as the head coach of Panionios
Panionios G.S.S. Football Club (Greek: ΠΑΕ Πανιώνιος Γ.Σ.Σ.), the ''Pan-Ionian Gymnastics Club of Smyrna'' (Πανιώνιος Γυμναστικός Σύλλογος Σμύρνης, ''Panionios Gymnastikos Syllogos Smyrnis''), ...
, AEK Athens
A.E.K. (; Athlitikí Énosis Konstantinoupόleos, ''Athletic Union of Constantinople'') is a major Greek multi-sport club based in Nea Filadelfeia, Attica. The club is more commonly known in European competitions as A.E.K. Athens.
Establishe ...
, and Kolossos.
Awards and accomplishments
Achievements as a player
* 2× Greek Cup
The Greek Football Cup (), commonly known as the Greek Cup or Betsson Greek Cup for sponsorship reasons is a Greek football competition, run by the Hellenic Football Federation.
The Greek Cup is the second-most important domestic men's footba ...
Winner: (1981, 1993)
* 3× Greek Cup
The Greek Football Cup (), commonly known as the Greek Cup or Betsson Greek Cup for sponsorship reasons is a Greek football competition, run by the Hellenic Football Federation.
The Greek Cup is the second-most important domestic men's footba ...
Runner-up: (1978, 1980, 1988)
Achievements as an assistant coach
* 2× Greek League Champion: (1998, 1999)
See also
* Players with the most points scored in the Amateur Greek Basketball Championship (1963–1992)
References
External links
FIBA Europe Player Profile
Hellenic Basketball Federation Player Profile
Τα “κανόνια” του ελληνικού Πρωταθλήματος: Μηνάς Γκέκος
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gekos, Minas
1959 births
Living people
AEK B.C. players
AEK B.C. coaches
Apollon Patras B.C. coaches
Constantinopolitan Greeks
Esperos B.C. coaches
Greek basketball coaches
Greek men's basketball players
Greek Basket League players
İstanbul Teknik Üniversitesi B.K. players
Kolossos Rodou B.C. coaches
Panathinaikos B.C. players
Panionios B.C. coaches
Panathinaikos B.C. non-playing staff
Papagou B.C. coaches
Basketball players from Istanbul
Point guards
Shooting guards
Turkish people of Greek descent
Mediterranean Games gold medalists for Greece
Mediterranean Games medalists in basketball
Competitors at the 1979 Mediterranean Games
People from Şişli
20th-century Greek sportsmen