The history of the greatest Greek basketball team of all times, from 1945 until 2009.
Featuring:
Phaedon Matthaiou, Vangelis Fountoukidis, Giorgos Vassilakopoulos, Kostas Mourouzis, Giorgos Kolokythas, Apostolos Kontos, Takis Koronaios, Dimitris Kokolakis, Philippos Syrigos, Kostas Politis, David Stergakos, Liveris Andritsos, Vassilis Skountis, Fanis Christodoulou, Frangiskos Alvertis, Željko Obradovic and Dimitris Diamantidis.
Cinematography:
Claudio Bolivar
Sound:
Dimitris Kanellopoulos
Associate producer:
Yannis Vikias
Archivist:
Akis Papadopoulos
Scripts/Narration:
Konstantinos Kamaras
Screenplay/Historical Documentation/Directed by:
Elias Giannakakis
Panathinaikos is not the greatest basketball team, because it has won six European Championships, nor is it because it has reached a European Final and 4 FinalFours.
And not because it is the team that holds the most Greek Championships and Greek Cups.
It is the greatest one because, apart from all the above it is the team that has always been at the forefront of Greek basketball. Even when other teams were dominating the sport (like the great Panellinios in the 50s and AEK in the 60s), Panathinaikos was there. It was an equal opponent and got its share of the titles.
And its first “Dynasty”, which began in the 70s opposite the great Olympiacos squad, was succeeded by many others.
That of Politis, in the early 80s, opposite Galis’ Aris, and later on, that of Subotic, which won back supremacy after the reign of Aris and Olympiacos.
Before that, of course, the Giannakopoulos brothers had taken over, in 1987. They were responsible for the take-off of Panathinaikos BC and brought back their first European Championship, in 1996.
But there is no doubt, that the greatest Panathinaikos squad of all was that of Obradovic, which coincided with a more mature and creative period of the Giannakopoulos brothers.
Not enough can be said about the team in the years between 1999 and 2012.
It is one of the greatest teams in the history of world sports in general, not just basketball.
It was my great pleasure and honor to talk with two of the major protagonists, Obradovic and Diamantidis.
I will never forget that, while filming them at the “Hindu’s Tomb”, the three ‘caballeros’, Koronaios, Kontos and Kokolakis, made us feel we were part of the gang.
Nor will I forget, the integrity and graciousness of Stergakos, the awe-inspiring Mourouzis and Matthaiou, and the moving, one-time-only appearance of the magnificent Giorgos Kolokythas.
And, of course, I will always remember Philippos Syrigos’ mention of the ‘second that lasted an eternity’, referring to Kontos’ shot in the game against CSKA, in 1981.
As happens throughout the series, the episode do not have a fan’s bias.
Apart from the ‘eternal second’, the outrageous and shameful Fides affair is discussed.
Using irrefutable arguments, Syrigos restores the truth about Vrancovic’s controversial block in the Final against Barcelona, in 1996.
He points out that so many violations against the ‘greens’ had preceded the block -which really touched the backboard- that if things had not turned out the way they did, it would have been Panathinaikos who would be really wronged.
The history of Panathinaikos BC is so rich, that it could have easily made a two-hour film.
