EuroLeague fines Panathinaikos, Ataman for statements against referees / News - Basketnews.com

Panathinaikos and Ergin Ataman reacted to the referees' performance following their Game 1 against Maccabi. The EuroLeague has sanctioned the Greek club and the Turkish coach with a total fine of €65,000.

Credit: Vangelis Stolis Credit Vangelis Stolis

AfterPanathinaikos AKTOR Athenslost Game 1 of the playoff series againstMaccabi Playtika Tel Aviv, PAO's head coachErgin Atamanmade a series of statements against the game's referees. The league then decided tomake a statement about itand the way he chose to communicate his complaints.

Points this season

48%82,1Points made:82,1Accuracy:48,5%Place in standings:9Record max:99Record min:65Best scorer:Kendrick NunnTeamEuroLeagueStatisticsSchedule

Moreover, the league warned that disciplinary procedures had already been initiated against the coach.

One day before Game 3 of the series tips off, Euroleague Basketball announced that the Turkish coach has been sanctioned with a total fine of €35,000.

Ataman received a €30,000 bill "for his public statement related to the performance of the referees following EuroLeague Playoffs Game 1, under Article 24.2.c) of the Euroleague Basketball Disciplinary Code" and another €5,000 for his lack of compliance with the obligations towards media availability prior to EuroLeague Playoffs Game 2, under Article 24.2.k.

The latter penalty is related to his decision to not speak to Israeli reporter Moshe Barda during PAO's open-to-media practice of Wednesday, April 24. Ataman claimed that the practice was closed to the media and added that the media availability time had expired.

Furthermore, the Greek club has been sanctioned with a fine of €30,000, for its public statement related to the performance of the referees following Game 1, under Article 24.2.c.In the press release, the Greek club attacked the referees, with references to the previous tenure of Jordi Bertomeu, the former CEO and President of EuroLeague Basketball, whom PAO perceives as having led "unfair" management while he was in charge.

The release also made mention of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict as a possible factor of "biased" referee management.

Thank you for reading us! Help us even more.