“Panos came, entered and changed the game. Congratulations because he is always ready, he is an excellent teammate and worker. I always say the best about him and he knows I’m by his side. That was clearly why we came in so well.”. This is what Dinos Mitoglou said to the camera of sport-fm.gr about him Panagiotis Kalaitzakisand he couldn’t be more right.
It may be that the “devil’s week” of Panathinaikos was marked by the serious injury of Matias Lessor, and it makes sense. Anyone would trade the team’s two wins if the Frenchman could somehow avoid the fracture that will keep him out for the next 4 months. But if there’s one thing we can stand on when it comes to the racing part, it’s the performance of “P.K.”
THE Ergin Atamandesperately looking for a way to keep his team from getting into… walking the floor, he drafted the international guard/forward into the starting five in both matches with Armani Milan and Baskonia. As a result, he was fully justified for this particular choice, as Kalaitzakis was the absolute game changer and a key factor in the victory in both matches.
If we consider that essentially the Panathinaikos he “cleaned” both of these encounters from the first period, in which the 25-year-old competed, it can be seen how important his presence was. The relentless pressure on the ball, the steals, the points in transition, and in general the “aggressiveness” he showed in defense, was the “spark” that was missing from the “greens” in previous games. The lead was taken both times +20 early onthe OAKA entered the equation and the “seven star” got the two easiest wins of the season.
A block on one end and a fastbreak layup on the other— Kalaitzakis doing it all! ?? ??
The OAKA crowd LOVES it as @Paobcgr gets off to a blazing start against @Baskonia ! ?? ?? pic.twitter.com/g2CYucG40Q
— SKWEEK (@skweektv) December 19, 2024
If someone is not convinced by the above, there are also numbers that certify its unimaginable effectiveness Kalaitzakis in his game Panathinaikou. The “greens” were +15 against Armani with him on the floor and +34 against Baskonia. In total, that is, the “seven-star” was almost 50 points better than his opponents in these two games, having “P.K.” in his top five!
And if someone thinks that these numbers were coincidental, it is worth mentioning that Kalaitzakis is the most positively influential player of the European champion in general in the season, as the “greens” are 38.1 points per 100 possessions better than their opponents while he is fighting. Defense plays the dominant role in this, as the international guard/forward has defensive rating 97.8. In other words, Panathinaikos barely accepts 97.8 points per 100 possessions when he is “fifty”, while his corresponding number in total is 116. That is, we are talking about an improvement of almost 20 points…
Obviously, these statistics are heavily influenced by his short playing time Kalaitzakiswho comes to the court usually for specific minutes, even for some phases which may not be indicative of the “big picture” of a match. Nevertheless, the defensive improvement of Panathinaikos while he is playing is certainly not a coincidence, just as it is not a coincidence that he played a key role in the two biggest victories of the “seven stars” this year. THE Ergin Ataman he has the luxury of having one of the top “role players” in Europe, completely attuned to his role and an excellent teammate.
Source: Sport Fm
I am currently a news writer for News Bulletin247 where I mostly cover sports news. I have always been interested in writing and it is something I am very passionate about. In my spare time, I enjoy reading and spending time with my family and friends.
