For just the second time in the history of the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague, two twin brothers are playing for the same team. The first to do it were Ksistof and Darjus Lavrinovic, who played together at Zalgiris Kaunas in 2012-13, but this season has seen Georgios and Panos Kalaitzakis join forces at Panathinaikos Athens.
Thirteen games into the season, the 23-year-olds have tried to show what they can offer head coach Dejan Radonjic's team. Panos has enjoyed more game time, making 13 appearances and starting 7 times, while Georgios has come off the bench in 4 of his 10 appearances.
In 10 minutes and 58 seconds on the floor each night, Panos is averaging 2.8 points on 53.3% shooting from three-point range, in addition to 1.5 rebounds. Georgios, meanwhile, has played an average of eight minutes and 13 seconds per game, averaging 1.2 points. Yet, while they would both like to have an even greater impact on the team, they recognize that they are currently living out their dream.
"It's a great feeling to obviously play with your twin brother on the same team. It was always a dream of ours growing up, playing on the same team," Georgios acknowledged in an interview with Euroleague Basketball. "[Here at] Panathinaikos, we used to support the team, the club, and now we're here on the same team. It's like a dream come true for us."