Georgios Vovoras on Ataman: 'One of the best EuroLeague coaches in last decade' / News - Basketnews.com

Georgios Vovoras applauds Ergin Ataman's roster mastery: "He assembles the roster exactly the way he wants."

Credit: Vangelis Stolis, Betsafe-LKL Credit Vangelis Stolis, Betsafe-LKL

Georgios Vovoras has been making waves since returning to the coaching benches, taking over Neptunas Klaipeda in late February and maintaining an undefeated record in the Lithuanian Basketball League to this day.

2-pointers this season

55%19,9Points made:19,9Accuracy:54,5%Place in standings:10Record max:27Record min:12Most made 2FGs:Mathias LessortTeamEuroLeagueStatisticsSchedule

Before his current tenure, Vovoras spent nine years with Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens, primarily in an assistant role. He even took the reins as head coach in 2020-21 and 2022. His recent stint with PAO included an assistant role last season.

Despite his focus on Neptunas, Vovoras keeps a keen eye on EuroLeague basketball, particularly his long-time club, Panathinaikos.

"Panathinaikos completely changed the roster. Only Grigonis and Kalaitzakis remained from last season. It is not easy to make a roster revamp and jump from 17th place to 2nd spot," Vovoras assessed PAO's season for BasketNews' Lukas Katilius. "I think Panathinaikos is the biggest surprise of the EuroLeague season. Of course, they have a lot of talent, great players, but for coach [Ergin] Ataman to reach such a result in the first year is unique. We have to pay respect to the Panathinaikos organization.

"Of course, Real is a team that had a wonderful start to the season with [Facundo] Campazzo. I think Real will be in the EuroLeague Final Four again and will be the main candidate to win the trophy," Vovoras continued on the EuroLeague topic.

He also praised the EuroLeague's Play-In Tournament, stating, "The Play-In Tournament was a great decision for the EuroLeague. Until the very end, we witnessed many teams fighting for postseason berths. Now, we'll have some intriguing quarterfinal matchups. Let's see what unfolds there."

When asked about his relationship with Panathinaikos, Vovoras responded warmly, saying, "I spent almost nine years at Panathinaikos, experiencing great moments and winning trophies. Despite the challenges of the last 2-3 seasons, I maintain a strong bond with the entire organization. It was my family for almost nine years.

"We can see that Panathinaikos is back where it should be this year," he added. "The [OAKA] arena is sold out in almost every home game, about 4,000 fans traveled for the game in Munich. I am happy for Panathinaikos."

Credit R. Lukoševičius

Panathinaikos recently handed a long-term contract to shooting guard Marius Grigonis.

What does Vovoras think of this club move?

"Marius has played great and at a high level this season. He has confidence from the coach. In my opinion, Ataman is one of the best EuroLeague coaches in the last 10 years," Vovoras stressed." I also like that Ataman assembles the roster exactly the way he wants, and Grigonis fits the system perfectly.

"Grigonis felt it from the first game and is having a good season," he added. "The player has adapted to the coach's wishes, and Panathinaikos is not thinking about just one season. They wanted to build a core, they gave him a contract that he fully deserved. He likes Greece, his family likes Greece, most Lithuanians who played for Panathinaikos, enjoy Athens. As a fan of Panathinaikos, I am happy with this decision."

Vovoras' contract with Neptunas runs until the summer of 2025. However, Neptunas have the option to end it this summer.

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