Kostas Sloukas sends a message after departing Olympiacos / News - Basketnews.com

The departure left a bitter aftertaste, Sloukas wrote, but he was sure that he did everything he could during his three-year tenure in the organization.

Credit: EuroLeague Basketball via GettyImages Credit EuroLeague Basketball via GettyImages

After three years in the organization, Kostas Sloukas and Olympiacos Piraeus officially parted ways. Following his departure, the guard sent a message to the club's fans.

Kostas Sloukas

Position:PGAge:33Height:190 cmWeight:95 kgBirth place:Thessaloniki, GreeceProfileNewsStatistics

After the organization officially announced that Sloukas would not come back, the player wrote an extensive Instagram post, detailing his feeling about the situation:

There are good and bad moments in an athlete's life. At Olympiacos, after my return, I experienced a three-year period full of titles and success; a three-year period when the team was only playing in the EuroLeague and ended up in back-to-back doubles in Greece and fans following and supporting the team everywhere.

We experienced recognition at the top of the EuroLeague, the consecration by reaching Final Fours and being accepted by all our opponents.

Today our paths with Olympiacos separate. My unlimited respect for the Angelopoulos brothers was not imposed. It was inspired. That's why we were looking for a solution for so many hours during our recent meeting. Everyone on the team had the same goal. So, we moved on, and we succeeded because whether we lost or won, we always did it together.

From the way things turned out, I feel that I have not been able to inspire the same feeling of respect to everyone.

Yet, a bitter aftertaste cannot change three wonderful years. I'm leaving with a clear conscience that I did what I could - and even more than that - by honoring the jersey, fighting with my teammates, the fans, and the management that trusted me at a difficult time for the organization. I hope I've given it all back to the extent that I could.

As Kostas Melayes from Gazzetta.gr notes, Sloukas' departure had more to do with the role he envision for himself on the team rather than financial compensation for it. The team had offered him a 2+1 deal worth around €4.5-5 million, Melayes writes.

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