AS Monaco defeated BKT EuroCup champion Paris Basketball 90-80 in the opening game of the best-of-five French League finals on Tuesday night behind 31 points from EuroLeague MVP Mike James.

Mike James leads Monaco to Game 1 win in French finals

AS Monaco defeated BKT EuroCup champion Paris Basketball 90-80 in the opening game of the best-of-five French League finals on Tuesday night behind 31 points from EuroLeague MVP Mike James. Monaco used a monster second quarter to open 46-30 halftime lead, with James throwing in 21 points in the first half. The margin grew to the 24 midway through the third quarter before Paris trimmed the deficit in the last 10 minutes.

<center><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="fr" dir="ltr">📽 Les highlights de ce match 1️⃣ électrique 🆚️ <a href="https://twitter.com/ParisBasketball?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@ParisBasketball</a> 💥<br><br>📺 <a href="https://twitter.com/LNBofficiel?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@LNBofficiel</a> / <a href="https://twitter.com/lachainelequipe?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@lachainelequipe</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/RocaTeam?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#RocaTeam</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/FinalesBetclicELITE?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#FinalesBetclicELITE</a> <a href="https://t.co/sggZ4oGfRn">pic.twitter.com/sggZ4oGfRn</a></p>&mdash; AS Monaco Basket 🇲🇨 (@ASMonaco_Basket) <a href="https://twitter.com/ASMonaco_Basket/status/1798072026894364701?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 4, 2024</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Elie Okobo contributed 15 points off the bench for Monaco, Jaron Blossomgame added 13 points and 6 rebounds and Alpha Diallo netted 10 points for the winners. Nadir Hifi led the Paris attack with 18 points, TJ Shorts tallied 17 points, 7 rebounds and 6 assists and Justin Simon contributed 11 points and 6 rebounds in defeat.

The series against Paris continues with Game 2 in Monaco on Thursday

Let's take a look back at some of the biggest upsets at the EuroLeague Final Four in the 21st century, in chronological order.

A chronology of Final Four upsets

Real Madrid entered the 2024 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Championship Game with a 31-7 record. However, Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens won the crown, upsetting Real 80-95 to claim the seventh star on its jersey. Let's take a look back at some of the biggest Final Four upsets in the 21st century, in chronological order.

The Euroleague had a new champion, and it was none other than Panathinaikos! The Greens triumphed 83-89 over Kinder Bologna on its own court in the Euroleague Final in a thriller that should go down as one of the great title games in history.

2002 EuroLeague Final: Kinder Bologna vs. Panathinaikos

### Obradovic makes it happen

Back in 2002, Kinder Bologna - now Virtus Segafredo Bologna - was the heavy favorite for many reasons. It was the competition's original champion, hosted the Final Four and had an all-around strong team led by Manu Ginobili, Marko Jaric, Sani Becirovic and Matjaz Smodis. 

Panathinaikos had other ideas and head coach Zeljko Obradovic offered a master class, running his offense through backup center Lazaros Papadopoulos to rally from a 14-point deficit and make it a close game. Then Dejan Bodiroga and Ibrahim Kutluay stepped up to lead the Greens to an 83-89 win. To this date, Panathinaikos remains the only team to win a championship game on its opponent's home court.

Tau Ceramica provided one of the biggest surprises ever in the Euroleague Final Four by beating mighty CSKA 78-85 in the second semifinal of the Final Four in the Olympiysky Arena.

CLASSIC GAME: 2005 EuroLeague Semi Final: CSKA Moscow vs Tau Cermica

### The biggest upset

CSKA Moscow had an outstanding 2004-05 season, smashing records and reaching the Final Four in the Russian capital with just one loss in 20 games. Led by Theo Papaloukas, J.R. Holden, Marcus Brown and David Andersen, CSKA seemed unstoppable, but a fiesty Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz - then Tau Ceramica - stood in the way.

Arvydas Macijauskas led the way with 23 points, including a game-clinching catch-and-shoot three-pointer for the ages. Jose Manuel Calderon had 13 points and Kornel David tallied 11 with 12 rebounds as Tau won 78-85 in Moscow. It wasn't a happy ending for Tau, which was then defeated by Maccabi in the championship game.

In arguably one of the most thrilling title games ever seen in European club basketball, CSKA Moscow won the Euroleague crown for the first time in 35 years and ended Maccabi Tel Aviv's dynasty with a 73-69 victory in the final in front of almost 17,000 fans

CLASSIC GAME: 2006 EuroLeague Final: CSKA Moscow vs Maccabi Elite

### Three-peat interrupted

A year later, Maccabi was looking for a threepeat with most of the same roster that won consecutive EuroLeague titles in 2004 and 2005. Willie Solomon had replaced Sarunas Jasikevicius, but Anthony Parker, Nikola Vujcic, Maceo Baston and Tal Burstein remained with the team. 

After leading 51-32 at halftime en route to beating Baskonia 85-70 in the semifinals, everyone expected a third consecutive title at Sazka Arena in Prague, Czechia. Instead, CSKA claimed its first EuroLeague title in 35 years, beating Maccabi 73-69 behind 18 points and a PIR of 28 (one short of his career-high) from 2006 Final Four MVP Theo Papaloukas.

In a game for the ages, Olympiacos Piraeus came from 19 down in the third quarter to stun CSKA Moscow 61-62 and become the 2012 Turkish Airlines Euroleague champion.

CLASSIC GAME: 2012 EuroLeague Final: CSKA Moscow vs Olympiacos Piraeus

### A comeback for the ages

The 2012 EuroLeague championship game seemed to be over. CSKA had put together one of its strongest rosters ever, led by Andrei Kirilenko, Nenad Krstic and Milos Teodosic. It led 53-34 late in the third quarter and held a 59-52 edge with over 3 minutes left. 

Kostas Papanikolaou brought his team within 61-60 and the rest is history: former MVP Ramunas Siskauskas missed twice from the line with 9.7 seconds left and then Vassilis Spanoulis found Georgios Printezis for his trademark one-handed floater off the baseline. CSKA did not score on its last possession. Spanoulis scored 15 points and was chosen as the 2012 Final Four MVP as Olympiacos won in come-from-behind fashion!

The city of Milan was painted yellow on Sunday as Maccabi Electra Tel Aviv bested Real Madrid 98-86 in overtime for its sixth European championship!

CLASSIC GAME: 2014 EuroLeague Final: Real Madrid vs Maccabi Electra Tel Aviv

### Not one, but two upsets

Maccabi entered the 2014 Final Four with a 19-9 record, with CSKA Moscow (22-7) and Real Madrid (24-5) as the heavy favorites. In the semifinals, CSKA led 55-40 late in the third quarter and held a 67-63 lead with 19.2 seconds left. David Blu hit a three-pointer, then stole the ball at the other end and fed Tyrese Rice for the game-winning layup. 

Two days later, for the first time in 45 years, the championship game between Real and Maccabi went to overtime. Rice scored 14 of his 26 points in overtime to lead Maccabi to an 86-98 victory in front of a sea of yellow fans at the Forum in Milan, Italy. Real had three All-EuroLeague players that season in Rudy Fernandez, Nikola Mirotic and MVP Sergio Rodriguez, and it had beaten FC Barcelona 62-100 in the semifinals... but it was not enough. 

Recalling times when the heavy favorites did not leave the Final Four with a trophy


EuroLeague Fantasy Challenge: 2023-24 season winners

Congratulations to Ilias Preveza of Greece on winning the 2023-24 [EuroLeague Fantasy Challenge](https://euroleaguefantasy.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/home)! Ilias finished atop the pack with his team NEW ENTRY, which tallied 7,633.00 fantasy points, nearly 100 more than anybody else! As our overall winner, Ilias has earned a one-of-a-kind trip for himself and a friend to the 2025 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Final Four including flights, four nights at a hotel and VIP tickets. Ilias also won a EuroLeague TV VIP Subscription for the 2024-25 Season to follow all games live or on-demand.

Nikolas Dimitropoulos was second overall with 7,538.43 fantasy points, followed by Aykut Kadioglu (7,524.95), Georgios Makris (7,494.65) and Giannis Papagiannopoulos (7,467.96). Ivan Jelenkovic won the lottery for the managers with the most points in each of the 34 regular-season rounds. Ivan's team Tara 2016 2, the Round 18 winner, won two tickets to the 2025 Final Four and a EuroLeague TV Subscription for the 2024-25 Season!

Here is a list of winners and their respective prizes:

#### 2023-24 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague season WINNER

**NEW ENTRY - Ilias Preveza, Greece**

\- Winner and friend will be Euroleague Basketball's VIP guests at the 2025 Final Four - including Flights, four nights at a hotel and VIP tickets

\- 1x EuroLeague TV VIP Subscription for the 2024-25 Season

#### 2023-24 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague season, second place

**6 estrellas ☘️ - Nikolas Dimitropoulos, Greece**

\- 10x Regular season game tickets for the 2024-25 season of winner’s choice (based on availability)

\- 1x EuroLeague jersey of winner’s choice

\- 1x EuroLeague TV VIP subscription for the 2024-25 season

\- 1x official EuroLeague Spalding basketball

#### 2023-24 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague season, third place

**JamieFraser - Aykut Kadioglu, Turkiye**

\- 8x Regular season game tickets for the 2024-25 season of winner’s choice (based on availability)

\- 1x EuroLeague jersey of winner’s choice

\- 1x EuroLeague TV VIP subscription for the 2024-25 season

\- 1x official EuroLeague Spalding basketball

#### 2023-24 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague season, fourth place

**Next Big Thing - Georgios Makris, Greece**

\- 6x Regular season game tickets for the 2024-25 season of winner’s choice (based on availability)

\- 1x EuroLeague jersey of winner’s choice

\- 1x EuroLeague TV VIP subscription for the 2024-25 season

#### 2023-24 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague season, fifth place

**Rodos13 - Giannis Papagiannopoulos, Greece**

\- 4x Regular season game tickets for the 2024-25 season of winner’s choice (based on availability)

\- 1x EuroLeague jersey of winner’s choice

\- 1x EuroLeague TV VIP subscription for the 2024-25 season

#### Rounds Winners Lottery (lottery only exclusive to regular season round winners, 34 participants)

**Tara 2016 2 - Ivan Jelenkovic, Serbia (Regular Season Round 18 winner)**

\- 2x Tickets to the 2025 Final Four

\- 1x EuroLeague TV subscription for the 2024-25 season

Crvena Zvezda Meridian Bet Belgrade took a 1-0 lead in the best-of-three Serbian League finals against Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade after holding on for a dramatic 89-88 win on Monday night at Aleksandar Nikolic Hall. Game 2, hosted by Partizan, is scheduled for Wednesday at Belgrade Arena.

Zvezda edges Partizan in Serbian League finals opener

Crvena Zvezda Meridian Bet Belgrade took a 1-0 lead in the best-of-three Serbian League finals against Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade after holding on for a dramatic 89-88 win on Monday night at Aleksandar Nikolic Hall. Game 2, hosted by Partizan, is scheduled for Wednesday at Belgrade Arena.

Zvezda grabbed an early 10-point lead behind Yago Dos Santos, who nailed three three-pointers in the opening quarter, but Partizan rallied behind Aleksa Avramovic, and had a slim 51-52 lead at halftime. The hosts went up again in the third as Dejan Davidovac took over, and opened a 71-62 lead, but Avramovic was at a center of another rally.

With Dos Santos and Nemanja Nedovic both getting injured for Zvezda, teams traded blows with the hosts remaining ahead. Partizan had a final possession and 8 seconds to win the game, but the ball went to Zach LeDay who missed a short jumper in traffic and Zvezda prevailed for its seventh consecutive win over Partizan in all competitions.

Davidovac finished with 23 points and 9 rebounds, while Dos Santos had 18 points and 7 assists. Rokas Giedraitis and Luka Mitrovic each finished with 12 points in a victory. For Partizan, Avramovic had 20 points, 6 assists and 6 rebounds, Danilo Andjusic scored 17 while Jaleen Smith netted 14 in defeat.

 

Milwaukee Bucks and NBA superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo had a great time as he attended the EuroLeague Final Four in Berlin, Germany.

Giannis Antetokounmpo had a Final Four experience to remember

Sitting courtside for the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Semifinals and Championship Game were some of the biggest names on the planet and perhaps none more so than Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo.

Once it became clear that his younger brother, [Kostas Antetokounmpo](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/kostas-antetokounmpo/011221/), would be competing at the Final Four in Berlin with Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens, Giannis didn’t hesitate in booking a trip to attend the games at Uber Arena.

After all, the Bucks’ exit from the NBA Playoffs provided a golden opportunity for the “Greek Freak” to see some EuroLeague basketball up close and personal. Come Sunday night, the two Antetokounmpo brothers were able to come together in celebration as [the Greens won their first EuroLeague title in 13 years](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/news/championship-game-live-real-madrid-vs-panathinaikos/).

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Giannis isn’t the first major star to attend the EuroLeague Final Four, nor will he be the last. For example, last year saw Boston Celtics center Kristaps Porzingis and New Orleans Pelicans big man Jonas Valanciunas fly in to watch the EuroLeague Championship Game in Kaunas, Lithuania. This time, it was the turn of Giannis, Chicago Bulls legend Scottie Pippen and world-renowned actor Bill Murray to get the front-row attention at the Final Four.

It was incredible to see just how engaged Giannis was during the games – even when Kostas wasn’t playing. On Friday, the Milwaukee forward got himself comfortable at Uber Arena early so that he could watch Kostas and Panathinaikos take on Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul in the Final Four’s curtain raiser.

When Kostas delivered a big block on Scottie Wilbekin midway through the second quarter, Giannis quickly got off his seat to applaud his younger brother’s hustle. In fact, it was reminiscent of when fellow NBA superstar Kevin Durant celebrated every big play by AS Monaco as he watched his friend [Mike James](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/mike-james/005985/) in action at Salle Gaston Medecin during the 2022 EuroLeague Playoffs.

Once the first semifinal was over and Panathinaikos had won 73-57, a proud Giannis briefly took over Martin Henlan’s reporting duties by asking Kostas a few questions on EuroLeague TV. Notably, Giannis made clear what he thinks of the EuroLeague before beginning his questions: “EuroLeague basketball, best basketball in the world.”

Giannis Antetokounmpo interviews his brother Kostas on EuroLeague TV

It would have been perhaps understandable if Giannis opted not to show up for the second semifinal between Real Madrid and Olympiacos Piraeus given that Kostas’s night was done, but no. Instead, the two-time NBA MVP returned to his courtside seat and was again amazed by the incredible atmosphere put on by those inside Uber Arena. It also provided Giannis with an opportunity to see Panathinaikos’s competition ahead of Sunday’s championship game.

On Sunday, the trio of Giannis, Pippen and Bill Murray once again earned plenty of off-court attention, with the Greece international being the first to arrive so that he could take in the third-place game between Olympiacos and Fenerbahce. It’s worth remembering that despite Kostas playing for Panathinaikos, Giannis suits up for the Greek national team with the likes of the Olympiacos trio of [Kostas Papanikolaou](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/kostas-papanikolaou/001255/), [Thomas Walkup](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/thomas-walkup/008855/) and [Giannoulis Larentzakis](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/giannoulis-larentzakis/010392/) as well as Fenerbahce big man [Georgios Papagiannis](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/georgios-papagiannis/005844/), so it was a chance to see his friends play.

Having played 7:12 minutes in the semifinal, Kostas Antetokounmpo saw his game time drop to 3:10 in the championship game, yet Giannis was as proud as he could have been – his brother had now won a championship in both the NBA, which came with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2020, and the EuroLeague. Giannis also sought out Greens head coach Ergin Ataman afterward to offer him some words: “You are No. 1, the best coach. I would love to play for you.”

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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Giannis Antetokounmpo to Ergin Ataman: “You are the No1 coach, the best”. <a href="https://t.co/R5ig57visj">pic.twitter.com/R5ig57visj</a></p>&mdash; Vasiliki Karamouza (@karamouza_vas) <a href="https://twitter.com/karamouza_vas/status/1794831567141122264?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 26, 2024</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

For Coach Ataman, he was overjoyed to receive such praise from a player of Giannis’s quality. "Thank you to Giannis Antetokounmpo,” he said in the post-game press conference. “He came after the game and told me that I'm the best coach in the world. If the NBA MVP tells you this, I'm very proud. He didn't say from Europe, he told me \[I’m\] the best coach in the world. Thank you, Giannis."

Indeed, it was such a pleasure to have the 2021 NBA champion at the Final Four that we should all be saying thank you, Giannis. For a true basketball lover, the EuroLeague is like no other league on the planet – and that is something Giannis got to experience during his few days in Berlin.

NBA superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo (right) embraces his brother Kostas (left) after Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens became the 2023-24 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague champion.

The “Greek Freak” saw his younger brother, Kostas, become a EuroLeague champion

Real Madrid v Olympiacos Piraeus (2024-05-24T19:00:00.000Z)

Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens v Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul (2024-05-24T16:00:00.000Z)

Real Madrid v Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens (2024-05-26T18:00:00.000Z)

Olympiacos Piraeus v Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul (2024-05-26T15:00:00.000Z)

Like every year, the pregame show at Uber Arena was in charge of setting the stage for the big games

The spectacular pregame shows were, once again, produced by the multiple award-winning Filmmaster

 The “Ritual of Glory” offered an exciting dialogue between the audience gathered inside Berlin’s Uber Arena and the performers

The extraordinary show cast of dancers, music performers and acrobats created a symbolic celebration with the crowd that put basketball at the center.

One of the most spectacular moments was the entrance of the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague trophy

As always, the Final Four volunteers played a crucial role in the development of the pregame show

All eyes on the prize!

The EuroLeague trophy descended on the floor and was carried to the sidelines for a new owner at the end of the championship game

Mr. BAGS performed also during the halftime show with a set of cover songs

Another energestic moment during the performance of Italian act Mr. BAGS at halftime

Re-live the magic of the shows that entertained the audience at Uber Arena in Berlin before the games of the Final Four and at halftime!

Final Four entertainment in photos

Ergin Ataman lifted his third EuroLeague trophy and first as Panathinaikos BC head coach as the Greens beat Real Madrid in the 2024 championship game.

The magic of coach Ergin Ataman

What [Ergin Ataman](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/teams/panathinaikos-aktor-athens/pan/ataman-ergin/) did this season with Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens is almost unprecedented. He took a team that finished 17th in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague last season and guided it to the championship in the space of just one year. Great praise was deservedly heaped on Coach Ataman after Sunday’s come-from-behind win over Real Madrid.

Sitting courtside for the games, Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo told Ataman after the final: "You are the No. 1 coach, the best. I would love to play for a coach like you."

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Panathinaikos guard [Marius Grigonis](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/marius-grigonis/002328/) gushed to the Lithuanian media about Ataman after the final, too. "I have no idea what he's doing, but he's creating miracles," he said. "Incredible. Everyone wrote us off. He makes miracles, it's not for my head to understand. I'm too stupid to understand, he just goes and wins titles."

Final Four MVP [Kostas Sloukas](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/kostas-sloukas/001926/) also credited Ataman in the post-game press conference in Berlin: “He’s the main reason why I’m over here in Panathinaikos. He was the first guy who believed in the dream, and now we have shown everyone what was the dream – the championship.”

### What is Ataman’s magic recipe?

There are a few rules to the Ataman system that he shared in a 2022 interview shortly before he led Anadolu Efes Istanbul to a second consecutive championship. Aside from his basic coaching principles, which focus on player movement to maximize spacing on offense and tough individual and team defense, the coach believes in giving the players the confidence and freedom to operate on the court.

"Ataman has a very specific approach for a game which is completely to relax the team," [Vasilije Micic](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/vasilije-micic/002580/), who was named the 2021 EuroLeague MVP while playing for Ataman, said before Sunday’s game. “That’s how we played for him and I think that is very efficient.”

<center>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="in" dir="ltr">OOOOEEEE ERGIN ATAMAN ☘️💚<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WeTheGreens?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WeTheGreens</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/paobcaktor?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#paobcaktor</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/F4GLORY?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#F4GLORY</a> <a href="https://t.co/YupIuLuLNE">pic.twitter.com/YupIuLuLNE</a></p>&mdash; Panathinaikos BC (@paobcgr) <a href="https://twitter.com/paobcgr/status/1794862650406670500?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 26, 2024</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Sloukas called the Turkish tactician the “leader of the team” at Sunday’s post-game press conference.

“He trusts the players. He knows what they can do on the court. And he leaves them the space and the time to do it,” Sloukas said before going into specific examples.

“I know he trusts me. He left me in the game. I didn’t have a good semifinal. We spoke yesterday and we said I am going to be better and we are going to win. He knows what I can do. He knows what [Kendrick Nunn](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/kendrick-nunn/012774/) can do. And all players. You saw how he trusted \[Nunn\] today because he had 3 fouls.  He kept him \[on the bench\] and he put him exactly at the moment we needed him and he scored big buckets. And finally, we succeeded in a great victory. I want to say thank you to \[Coach Ataman\] because I believe without him we could not do anything.”

The magic of Coach Ergin Ataman

### What his big statements show

As part of relaxing the team, Ataman regularly makes bombastic statements. This season, he said he would take Panathinaikos to the Final Four from the moment he was handed the reins. And he doubled down after the Greens lost Game 1 of the playoffs at home against Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv.

“I made a promise to all the people here that we will go to the Final Four. And my promise is that. Nothing important, it’s 0-1. We will go to the Final Four. If we don’t go to the Final Four, I won’t be with Panathinaikos next year,” Ataman stated.

In doing so, he shows confidence in his players, while also taking some pressure off them. His bold talk makes Ataman a magnet for the media and allows his players to relax and watch. Reporters looking for a good quote will chase Ataman before they come to [Mathias Lessort](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/mathias-lessort/003842/), Kendrick Nunn or Sloukas.

Then there is team chemistry. “It's important that everybody must understand his role and everybody must respect each other,” Ataman said in that 2022 interview.

And throughout the lengthy season, with domestic competitions and EuroLeague travel, Ataman makes sure that his team functions well together and that they all buy into their roles so that the unit is ready for the big moments. That could be seen in the playoffs and the Final Four as the likes of [Panagiotis Kalaitzakis](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/panagiotis-kalaitzakis/011209/), [Luca Vildoza](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/luca-vildoza/007947/) and [Kostas Antetokounmpo](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/kostas-antetokounmpo/011221/) all made key contributions in limited minutes.

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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Coach Ataman: «You want the 7th star, 7th star is there!» ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WeTheGreens?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WeTheGreens</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/paobcaktor?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#paobcaktor</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/7thStar?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#7thStar</a> <a href="https://t.co/GwARKPJf6M">pic.twitter.com/GwARKPJf6M</a></p>&mdash; Panathinaikos BC (@paobcgr) <a href="https://twitter.com/paobcgr/status/1795122250263269400?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 27, 2024</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

The reason that Coach Ataman’s feat this season is “almost unprecedented” is that Ataman came very close to doing the exact same thing in the past. Efes hired Ataman midway through the 2017-18 campaign, in which they finished dead last. A year later, Efes was in the championship game.

And what came after that? Efes in 2019-20 was looking like a world-beater, leading the standings by two wins before the season was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Perhaps there is now room for great excitement next season among fans of the Greens as their beloved club tries to go back-to-back.

More Panathinaikos News

Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens head coach Ergin Ataman lifts the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague trophy in the direction of the Greens' supporters inside Uber Arena in Berlin, Germany.

The Turkish tactician has separated himself from the pack by winning three EuroLeague crowns in the past four years. How does he do it?

The magic of Ergin Ataman

The Greens flipped the script against Real Madrid en route to the EuroLeague title

Panathinaikos turned the championship game like no team before

Last Sunday night, [Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/panathinaikos-bc-athens/roster/pan/?season=2023-24) was able to celebrate winning its seventh Turkish Airlines EuroLeague crown and the club's first since 2011. And the Greens did so in style, not only during the season as a brand-new team with a new head coach, but also with the way they won the championship game in Berlin, Germany.

Panathinaikos found itself down by 14 points, 41-27, in the opening quarter, which made its eventual win the third-largest comeback in the championship game this century.

That is also tied for the fifth-largest winning comeback in any Final Four game since 2002, while Panathinaikos had never come back from a deficit larger than seven points in a Final Four game before Sunday.

The only other two occasions when a team came back from a larger deficit to win the EuroLeague title was done by a club Panathinaikos knows all too well – Olympiacos Piraeus. The Reds overturned a 19-point deficit in 2012 to stun CSKA Moscow, then a year later erased a 17-point deficit to beat Real Madrid in London.

Interestingly, in both of those games, Kostas Sloukas helped Olympiacos win the crown. On the other hand, Real has now been part of four of the top five biggest comebacks in championship game history, finding itself on the losing side on three occasions.

What Panathinaikos also did on Sunday in Berlin was set a new mark for the biggest victory by a team that was losing by double digits in the championship game.

The Greens trailed 41-27 early in the second before cutting the gap before halftime, then they managed to turn things around after the break and eventually celebrated an 80-95 win.

That margin of 29 points is tied with Olympiacos's triumph in 2013 for the biggest-ever point swing in a championship game, as Panathinaikos found itself down by as many as 14 points before eventually coming away with a 15-point triumph.

But that's not all. Panathinaikos actually led by as many as 18 points in the final moments of the game before Sergio Rodriguez's three-pointer set the final score. That difference of 32 points, from the Greens’ biggest deficit (14) to the largest lead (18), is the biggest point swing in a championship game in which the winner found itself down by more than a single basket.

The previous record (31) for such a point swing was held by Olympiacos in 2013, which trailed by 17 before going up by 14 points in overtime against Real Madrid.

Panathinaikos managed to flip the switch at just the right time, allowing it to achieve a memorable feat and secure a seventh star.

The Greens overturned a 14-point deficit against Real Madrid en route to winning the EuroLeague title

Panathinaikos flipped the championship game script like no team before

Go inside the locker room after the championship game to see how Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens celebrated its first EuroLeague title in 13 years.