Dwayne Bacon's scoring records emphasize Panathinaikos incurable weaknesses / News - Basketnews.com

As Dwayne Bacon's numbers thrive, Panathinaikos are watching their EuroLeague playoff dreams turn into smoke. Time's running out for coach Dejan Radonjic who has been unable to put a super-talented player in the service of a decent team.

Credit: Vangelis Stolis Credit Vangelis Stolis

Dwayne Baconhas been putting on a real show for anyone to see since he came back to Europe and joined Panathinaikos Athens.

Player of the Game EFF 33 Moustapha Fall Points 19 Accuracy 9-10 Rebounds 9 Assists 5

The American swingman provides a unique one-man show, scoring baskets that only a handful (if any) of players currently making a living in the Old Continent could imagine -let alone pull off.

Bacon can execute any one-on-one offensive scheme without getting a screen or help from his teammates. The only assistance he might get is when the other four players in PAO's lineup spread the court so he can play isolation against one, two, or more opponents.

The 27-year-old scorer produced 31 points vs. EA7 Emporio Armani Milan three weeks ago when Panathinaikos prevailed over Ettore Messina's team in overtime. Bacon has been unstoppable offensively many times during the season, especially in the second half of PAO's games.

As coach Fotis Katsikaris recently noted, having a slow start and gearing up in the second part is common among many former NBA players who need some time to warm up and feel the game.

Of course, Panathinaikos don't have that luxury. For instance, against Efes in Istanbul, Bacon went scoreless in the first 20 minutes and unleashed his full potential only when everything had been decided.

The image of Bacon being airborne with several jerseys of a color other than green surrounding him has become one the trademarks of this year's Panathinaikos team. That speaks volumes for the type of squad coachDejan Radonjic, together with GM Argyris Pedoulakis, has put together.

In Friday night's derby, all of Olympiacos' virtues and every single Panathinaikos' weakness were laid bare.

Dwayne Bacon

MIN:32.98PTS:21.18 (52.55%)REB:4.27As:1.45ST:0.82BL:0.09TO:1.55GM:11ProfileEuroLeague2022/2023

The worst EuroLeague team (by far) in the first 20 minutes of games went up against the best (by far) team in the same span. The result was crashing for the hosts, despite Dwayne Bacon's often superhuman efforts.

Credit Vangelis Stolis

When the two Greek powerhouses locked horns at the Peace and Friendship Stadium in early December, Bacon was the man who kept the Greens afloat with 20 points on 9/19 from the field.

He missed the potential game-winner for his side, but no one can say that without him, PAO wouldn't have come close to staging an upset against an arguably better team.

But the most recent derby was a different case. Despite Sasha Vezenkov's absence, Olympiacos were firing on all cylinders. Not because they made tough or lucky shots - they didn't need anything like that.

It was because they executed their game plan, premised upon their exemplary ball movement, with admirable precision while choosing not to trap or double-team Bacon on most occasions.

Thus, the gifted scorer had the chance to get some more attempts for himself. That doesn't mean Bacon's shots weren't contested. The Orlando-born athlete had to deal with a defense that was prepared to present him with a challenge whenever he decided to execute.

There lies Panathinaikos' biggest problem, which is totally independent of Bacon's particular characteristics as a player since it preceded his arrival. Now that the former Hornets forward is in Greece, fans and viewers witness the same routine, especially from the moment Nate Wolters didn't manage to effectively overcome his injury and showed up on the court just to add his name to the 12-man squad.

Panathinaikos couldn't set up any pick-and-roll action and take advantage of his big men. Paris Lee's occasional lobes to Giorgos Papagiannis were rather easy for the Reds' defense to read and neutralize.

Hence, Bacon's isolation was the only way the Greens could get some score. Before the game, Giorgos Bartzokas pointed out that "a large part of the game for Panathinaikos depends on Bacon.

I think you don't have to be an expert to figure it out. He gets a lot of shots, he has great scoring skills.

When he's in good shape and scores, Panathinaikos generally score a lot. When he doesn't score much, they stay low. So, this match-up will be very important."

Since the day he joined the six-time EuroLeague champs, Bacon has changed how Panathinaikos operate offensively with his unparalleled ability to score under any circumstances.

34.8% of his efforts come from isolation, and his effectiveness largely decides his team's output, as Bartzokas noted.

In Friday's derby, Bacon came close to beating his scoring high once again. He didn't just take more attempts than his teammates, but he outdid himself by being exceptionally effective and producing 30 points off 20 attempts. It was his second-best offensive performance in 40 games played in the competition.

Until yesterday's match, Bacon was scoring 31% of his team's total points and had been responsible for 36% of PAO's productivity in the second half.

Against Olympiacos, the American's share reached 45% in the final 20 minutes (16/35) and 42.2% overall (30/71). He also set a career record with six 3-pointers made (6/8). The feat becomes even greater if one looks at his playing time, which did not exceed 31 minutes.

While Bacon's numbers are thriving (21.2 points, 16.9 in PIR), bringing him to the top of the EuroLeague's scoring list, Panathinaikos are drowning. Without any viable alternative other than his miraculous one-against-all heroics, coach Dejan Radonjic has failed to present a sustainable offensive plan.

At one point, it looked like Bacon could grant the Montenegrin coach some extra time on the bench, even though Radonjic initially seemed to despise the idea of having him under his orders.

"Bacon has a different profile than what we need," he told the media in mid-October.

Less than a week later, PAO announced the player, who helped his new team bounce back with four straight wins. When the Greek side reached six wins in 12 games, many thought that Bacon could vault the squad into playoff contention.

However, over the course of two weeks, Panathinaikos suffered a four-game losing streak that has compromised their chances almost beyond repair.

Bacon keeps pulling off miracles. The vast majority of his points are well-earned and deserved. It's the outcome of talent, persistence, athletic ability, and his unique prowess to absorb contact - something only Mike James can pride himself on doing among EuroLeague's 200 players.

No other player can match the level of difficulty Bacon puts into his attempts. His numbers reflect only in part how tough PAO's opponents make things for Bacon every time he steps on the court. Under normal circumstances, almost half of his field-goal attempts would be either forbidden or doomed (or both).

Even if his 3-point percentage is underwhelming (32.4%), Radonjic seems to have made up his mind: a contested, off-balance long-distance shot from Bacon is preferable to an open mid-range shot from Mateusz Ponitka or Panagiotis Kalaitzakis. The bad news about PAO is that Bacon himself thinks so as well.

In some cases, even an unguarded Marius Grigonis doesn't look like a viable plan for the American slasher, who in the case below, preferred to skip the bass and execute over Moustapha Fall's extended arms - to no avail.

Plays like the one mentioned above show how a superior talent can operate within the realm of a team where nothing works properly. Bacon feels he should be the one who shoots the ball regardless of where his teammates are standing on the court and their chances of scoring. Panathinaikos' lack of offensive firepower is translated by Bacon in a style of play that renders the other four players superfluous, as they're reduced to a secondary and rather passive role.

In contrast to Olympiacos' 28 assists in the derby, the Greens only dished out 10. Without generating plays and creating space, motion, and good shooting opportunities, it's impossible for any offense to work.

After the game vs. Milan, Radonjic was asked if he was happy that his team signed the prolific scorer.

"It's clear, I think," Radonjic said with a big smile. "You can see it."

Bacon signed Panathinaikos' sixth win in the season and fourth in a row with a big 31-point game, including some crucial shots. His arrival temporarily changed the Greens' EuroLeague balance.

But after another tough night for Panathinaikos, who suffered their 10th straight loss to their main rivals, it's clear that Bacon can't get Radonjic off the hook anymore. As 2022 draws to a close, Panathinaikos are watching one more season slip away.

Losing the Super Cup final to Olympiacos wasn't a disaster, even if the Greens only scored 52 points against Olympiacos. But missing out on first place in the Greek regular season standings and being unable to compete for a EuroLeague playoff spot is definitely something owner Dimitris Giannakopoulos and the team's fans won't tolerate.

The fans showed their extreme discontent during and at the end of Friday's derby. Despite the protective net placed around the arena and Olympiacos' bench, several objects were thrown, and some found their way onto the court. Roughly 50 fans waited for GM Pedoulakis and team captain Papagiannis to appear from the tunnel long after the game was over to get some explanations and apologies for the squad's inability to be competitive.

Some of the 18,000 fans (editor's note: the official count shows 14,700 tickets were sold, but there were hardly any empty seats at OAKA) showed their indignation when everything had been decided by chanting, "This isn't Panathinaikos" and "PAO's jersey is heavy."

For years, those aggressive chants were directed at the football team. Over the last couple of years, and as Olympiacos have really dominated the Greek derbies, their lyrics are heard more and more often at OAKA.

With the exception of Xavi Pascual in 2018, the last game of all the tacticians fired by Giannakopoulos during the season since 2015 (Dusko Ivanovic, Argyris Pedoulakis, Dimitris Priftis) had been against Olympiacos. All three were dispensed after Greek league regular season losses.

In one of his countless Instagram stories, Giannakopoulos argued that Radonjic should be given the time to work and present a better team.

But that was two months ago, and not much had been decided. It will be a real surprise if Panathinaikos' heaviest-ever home loss to Olympiacos (-24) goes down without consequences.

This time around, Bacon's hero ball has all but exposed Radonjic's inability to get the best out of PAO's increased budget compared to the past couple of seasons. On the other hand, what Bacon's numbers haven't concealed is his team's roster deficiencies and the club's ill-advised decisions on that matter.

Bacon deserves a better team around him. It's no coincidence that he was the only PAO player to receive a round of applause when he went to the bench for good with one minute left on the game clock. Radonjic realized there was no point in keeping his best player on the court just for the sake of appearances.

Credit Vangelis Stolis

In a game where one team had its star player drop 30 points, the other team saw its top performer cheer up his teammates from the sidelines.

"Vezenkov was missing, and that made us come in more focused. This situation created a bigger problem for Panathinaikos," Bartzokas said in the postgame presser.

Yet, even if Bacon had scored 50, Olympiacos would still be victorious. Vezenkov's absence and Alec Peters' disappointing presence were some of the things Panathinaikos could capitalize on but failed to do so.

When the Greeks won in Kaunas, Bacon said his team has "many guys opponents can't defend". Against Olympiacos, there was no single Olympiacos player that the hosts managed to contain.

In October, some wondered whether Dejan Radonjic would be the ideal coach for a player like Bacon.

Now, the question has been reversed and rephrased: "Who could be the coach to make Bacon part of a winning team?"

Last year, Sasa Obradovic tried to answer the riddle and didn't succeed. Yes, Monaco played better and reached the playoffs in a historic run but didn't make the Final Four despite Bacon's contribution.

They had the chance to finish the job in the French league, but ASVEL beat them in the finals, where Bacon went 1/11 from distance in the last three games.

Apart from Panathinaikos' legend Stojan Vrankovic and Ioannis Papapetrou, who relished the chance to meet again with familiar faces, the Greek derby gave several current and former Monaco players the chance to stage a reunion. Mike James took Donta Hall to visit OAKA, as the two joined Bacon and Paris Lee.

Credit Vangelis Stolis

Regardless of the result and turmoil in the Greens' camp, very few places around Europe can beat Athens by night. One can safely assume that Radonjic wasn't in their company.

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