Greek Basketball Cup 2023: schedule, teams, and new format / News - Basketnews.com

The 2023 version of the Greek Cup includes a newly-introduced Final 8 format, a historic team from the country's third division, and several restrictions on the ticket purchase policy.

Credit: Hellenic Basketball Federation Credit Hellenic Basketball Federation

All around Europe, it's time for a little break in the domestic leagues, which will be filled by the local cups, and the Greek Cup is no exception.

In just a few days, teams will fight for the first domestic title of the season. The tension and the excitement that the domestic cups generate are something that can't usually be found during the regular season of the local leagues.

If you're missing some info or details about these competitions, there's no need to worry because we've got you covered.

In this article, we will focus on the Greek Cup, which returns to Heraklion, Crete, from February 16 to February 19. The main points of reference can be summed up in the following:

Format & Teams

While last year, the Greek Basketball Federation decided to host a Final Four after 18 years, this year marks the introduction of a new format that's already in place in several countries: the Final 8.

The Greek federation's motto is that "basketball is a celebration," and that's one of the reasons its new chairman, Vangelis Liolios, always declared that a Final 8 would be the ideal solution so that fans from all over Greece would be able to watch the event.

Of the eight teams present in Heraklion, seven won their place on the basis of the Greek Basket League standings at the end of the first round and after 11 games, from top-seeded Olympiacos Piraeus to seventh-placed AEK Athens.

The team that completes the picture is a familiar name along Greek league followers. Panionios, the 1991 Greek Cup winners and 2014 semi-finalists, have gone through many ups and downs over the last seasons that saw them relegated to the third division twice (2015, 2020). They're still playing there.

Panionios received the No.1 in the draw, determining the pairings in the quarter-finals, which means they will face AEK Athens in the first knockout game. On the other hand, as Olympiacos and Panathinaikos were placed on opposite sides of the table, the two main rivals can only face off in the semifinal to be held on February 18.

On the tournament's last day, only the final game will be held, and at least one underdog team (Panionios, AEK, PAOK, Peristeri) will compete for the trophy. It must be noted that Promitheas Patras didn't make the cut after racking up three straight (2020-22) Final Four berths.

Credit Hellenic Basketball Federation

Teams

Panionios Cosmorama (1) Olympiacos Piraeus (2) Panathinaikos Athens (3) Peristeri bwin Athens (4) PAOK mateco Thessaloniki (5) Kolossos H Hotels Rhodes (6) Aris Thessaloniki (7) AEK Athens (8)

Schedule

Quarter-finals

Feb. 16, 14:45 CET: Panionios Cosmorama 88:93 AEK Athens (1) Feb. 16, 18:15 CET: Peristeri bwin Athens 77:64 PAOK mateco Thessaloniki (2) Feb. 17, 14:45 CET: Olympiacos Piraeus 82:51 Aris Thessaloniki (3) Feb. 17, 18:15 CET: Panathinaikos Athens 87:80 Kolossos H Hotels Rhodes (4)

Semi-finals

Feb. 18, 14:45 CET: Panionios Cosmorama vs. Peristeri bwin Athens (5) Feb. 18, 18:15 CET: Olympiacos Piraeus vs. Panathinaikos Athens (6)

Final

Feb. 19, 18:15 CET: Winner 5 vs. Winner 6

Talking points

Olympiacos Piraeus

Last year, Olympiacos put an end to their 11-year drought by winning their 10th trophy behind an MVP-worthy performance by Tyler Dorsey. The Greek-American guard, as well as any previous MVP for that matter, won't be in Crete to defend his title, but the Reds are the clear frontrunners to win it again. Olympiacos have built an impervious 10-game winning streak against archrivals Panathinaikos. As mentioned above, the two teams might lock horns in the semis if both manage to overcome their opponents in the quarter-finals. Credit Vangelis Stolis

Panathinaikos Athens

Panathinaikos are by far the winningest team in the Greek Cup's history, as they have been Cup holders 20 times. Since 2003, the Greens have lifted 14 out of 20 trophies. They failed to make it to the final game on just three occasions: 2004, 2018, and 2020.

However, last year, they lost 73-81 to Olympiacos in the final game after failing to score a single field goal in the last quarter, where the Reds made a 23-6 run.

The big question mark in PAO's camp is whether coach Dejan Radonjic will make any changes to the 12-man lineup in terms of non-Greek players.

With the addition of Matt Thomas, the Greens have nine non-domestic players (Paris Lee, Nate Wolters, Marius Grigonis, Dwayne Bacon, Mateusz Ponitka, Derrick Williams, Arturas Gudaitis, Andrew Andrews). Still, they're entitled to register up to seven of them, while six will play in each game.

Which three will stay out in Crete? That's for coach Dejan Radonjic to decide, and it's also subject to how quickly Thomas will adjust to the new environment.

For the time being and as long as Andrews still holds one of the spots without being an active player on the roster, the Montenegrin's hands are tied.

Panionios

In 2019, the Athens-based club became homeless since the arena in the Nea Smyrni area was demolished to be replaced by a new installation for a total cost of 20,850,000 euros.

The new indoor gym will be a multipurpose sports center, accommodate up to 3,500 spectators, and is expected to be completed by the end of 2024.

Panionios are still competing in Greece's third division, but that seems to be a temporary situation, as the team has been dominating the low-level league.

In fact, the two-time FIBA Korac Cup semi-finalists (1994, 1999) and one of the country's most important teams for nearly three decades qualified for the Final 8 by beating (among others) second-division club Iraklis Thessaloniki in the mini-tournament comprising squads not currently playing in the Basket League.

On top of that, one of Greece's - and the club's - basketball legends, Fanis Christodoulou, has taken on the team manager position.

The former international forward had stayed away from the spotlights since his retirement in 1998 but has now come forward in order to help restore his childhood team back to the elite.

AEK Athens

After the most tumultuous season in their recent history, AEK seem to have returned to some kind of normality this year. Under coach Ilias Kantzouris, who had served as Andrea Trinchieri's assistant at Brose Bamberg, the team has reason to believe that any title is up for grabs.

AEK are still in contention for the BCL playoffs following two lackluster seasons of mediocrity. Latvian guard Janis Strelnieks adds the experience, former NBA guard Tim Frazier has still got to learn the ropes in European basketball, and big man Akil Mitchell is having a career-best season that can lead him to a higher level.

AEK won the Cup against all odds vs. Olympiacos in Heraklion in 2018 and then again vs. Promitheas in 2020 in the same gym. They have won the trophy 5 times altogether.

Peristeri Athens

Vassilis Spanoulis' maiden season as a head coach was filled with expectations that the 40-year-old legend has only partly managed to live up to. Peristeri didn't make the BCL TOP 16, despite having the biggest budget in their recent history, which means ever since they were promoted again to Greece's top tier.

French guard Sylvain Francisco, one of BAXI Manresa's leaders in their 2022 BCL title game run, pulls the strings, along with Croatian center Miro Bilan.

But former Panathinaikos guard Marcus Denmon is maybe the most important player with his shot-making ability, especially from distance. If he can produce, Peristeri can do some serious damage if taken lightly.

Credit FIBA

PAOK Thessaloniki

Facing Peristeri and then Panionios or AEK leaves the door open for PAOK to make the final. Lacking a reliable big man, the squad coached by Aris Lykogiannis mostly counts on its perimeter players to make things work. In their BCL games, PAOK showed that they're capable of beating almost any team if their American ballers (with former UCLA standout Jaylen Hands leading the pack) take matters into their own hands. If that's not the case, PAOK might end up being a mere footnote in this Final 8.

Aris Thessaloniki

With 40-year-old Giannis Kastritis at the helm for another season, Aris are wreaking havoc in the Greek league whenever they play at home. In their arena, the team once called 'The Emperor' of Greek basketball has easily beaten the likes of Panathinaikos, PAOK, and AEK. In Crete, the obstacles will be considerably higher. Even if the squad from Greece's second-largest city beats Olympiacos and creates a huge upset, they'll most likely have to repeat the feat against Panathinaikos just one day later. Nevertheless, dynamic big man Chevez Goodwin has been collecting double-doubles, former Olympiacos guard Vassilis Toliopoulos is in his career-best form this season, and fans will keep expressing their loyalty whenever and wherever their team shows up.

Kolossos Rhodes

With an impeccable 7-0 record so far in their home court, Kolossos rightfully earned a spot among the quarter-finalists. Coach Ilias Papatheodorou is guiding the team from the Greek island. However, as in the case of Aris, pulling off one miracle won't be enough for them. Former Virtus Bologna and AEK Athens center Yannick Moreira has had a season full of ups and downs, 2012 NCAA champ Marquis Teague never lived up to the hype surrounding his choice as a first-round NBA Draft pick, while another first-round selection, James Young, can keep the team's hopes high.

The venue

The gym called "Dyo Aorakia" took its name from the two hills circling the area of Nea Alikarnassos, where the installation is located.

In the place where Crete's biggest indoor hall was officially inaugurated in 2007, an historical - albeit quite unpleasant - event had taken place 35 years earlier.

On August 25, 1972, the last-to-date execution of a death convict in Greece was carried out between those two hills. 27-year-old Vassilis Lymperis was sentenced four times to death by firing squad for setting his wife, mother-in-law, and two young children on fire in January of that same year.Starting from 2010, when the Greek All-Star Game was hosted, the gym has been the seat for many events, including five Greek Cup finals (2014, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2022). It has a capacity for 5.200 spectators, and it's slated to be full, in contrast to last season when COVID measures allowed for a maximum capacity of 40% in the two Greek Cup game days.

Credit Municipality of Heraclion Last season, tickets were made available to local residents by the Federation on an individual basis to avoid any possibility of fans traveling to Crete from Athens or other parts of the country. Fans can only purchase their tickets online through the event's platform. No single-game tickets will be sold, meaning those interested in attending the Final 8 buy their entrance to the total of seven matches that can be played (four quarter-finals, two semi-finals, and the final game). Ticket prices range from 69 to 130 euros, whereas the seats priced from 170 to 259 euros have been fully booked. And here comes the most interesting part. According to the Greek federation, "the tickets' beneficiaries are the athletes who have completed their registration in the Electronic Register of the Hellenic Basketball Federation, as well as the guardian/parent who made the registration of the minor athlete." Also entitled to attend are those who had bought an electronic ticket for one or more Greece NT games vs. Great Britain, Spain, Belgium, Latvia, and the Acropolis Tournament.

Each fan can reserve up to two tickets. Places will be randomly assigned, always depending on the category chosen by the buyer, based on their Social Security number.

Furthermore, the Federation assures: "the fans' safety is our main concern. That's why the list will be cross-checked with the help of the authorities. Also, when entering the arena, an ID certificate must be displayed along with the ticket."

Credit HBF

Last year, when vaccination certificates had to be displayed by fans and media alike, entrance to the arena could take several minutes.

Now, the main issue for both the police force and the federation will be to keep an eye on fans coming from different parts of Greece. In any case, controlling and verifying entering the gym is of the utmost priority for all parties involved.

One can also argue that a Final 8 that gathers the teams with the largest and loudest fanbases in Greece deserves a bigger venue. But that's another story, one the Greek federation should look at as soon as the 2023 tournament is over and if no major incidents take place.

Throwback to last year

In last year's final, Olympiacos beat Panathinaikos 81-73, as Tyler Dorsey was named the MVP of the tournament. Support BasketNews so we could make even better content.