Greek Basketball League

HEBA A1 National
ESAKE A1 Ethniki

Current season, competition or edition: A1 Ethniki 2009-10
File:Esake Logo.jpg A1
Sport	Basketball
Founded	1927
CEO	Vassilis Economidis
No. of teams	14
Country	Greece
Continent	Europe
Most recent champion(s)	Panathinaikos
TV partner(s)	Nova, Skai, ERT
Official website	Esake.gr Template:El icon Basket.gr Template:El icon

The A1 Ethniki (Greek: A1 Εθνική Κατηγορία), which means literally A1 National in English, commonly referred to as either the A1 Basket (Greek: A1 Μπάσκετ), the Greek League, or the Greek Championship is the highest professional club basketball league in Greece. It is run by HEBA, which is called ΕΣΑΚΕ in Greek. It is ranked as one of the 3 "A" level national domestic leagues in European basketball by the ULEB League Rankings System. It consists of 14 teams and runs from October to June, with teams playing 26 games each during the regular season. The first official Greek Championship was held in the 1927-28 season, although the first unofficial one started in the year 1925. The league's main sponsors are OPAP, which is the league's name sponsor and the Greek National Tourism Organization.

History

File:HEBAlogo.gif

Official Greek League English version logo.

Basketball first came to Greece in the year 1910. By the year 1925 the first unofficial Greek championship had begun and in 1927 the first official championship began. There are three different official championship periods. The first one lasted from 1927 to 1963, when there wasn't a national championship and the champions of every district played at a later stage to define the Greek Champion. The second era started in the 1963-64 season when the Greek First Division (A Ethniki) was founded. In 1969, the EOK took over the duties of overseeing the competition and did so until the year 1992. The third era has existed since the 1986-87 season, when the A1 division (with regular season and playoffs) and the A2 division (called the A2 Ethniki or Greek A2 League) were formed.

The Greek League has been one of the most competitive basketball leagues in Europe through the years and it was widely regarded as the second best national league in the world after only the NBA in the 1990s decade. It currently ranks among the best national domestic leagues in the world (excluding the NBA), such as Liga ACB in Spain and Lega A in Italy. It is considered one of the 3 European "A" level leagues under the ULEB League Rankings System. The league has several great powers which belong to the most traditional European basketball clubs, especially the Euroleague giants Panathinaikos and Olympiacos. Other teams that have made significant success throughout the long history of Greek basketball are Aris and AEK Athens. These teams along with PAOK are considered the most successful Greek teams.

Despite the championship being contested 69 times, only nine teams have won so far. The dominating team of the league has been Panathinaikos, having earned the championship 30 times. Only three teams have participated in every championship since the foundation of the first division in 1964: Panathinaikos, AEK Athens and Aris.

Promotion and relegation

A Ethniki, in its current form, has been organized since the 1992-93 season by the Greek Basketball Clubs Association (HEBA, in English, "Hellenic Basketball Clubs Association"). 30 pro Greek basketball teams are split into two different divisions. The first division championship, which is called the "A1", in which 14 teams compete for the Greek National Championship and the second level championship, which is called the "A2", in which 16 teams compete for the second division crown. The bottom two place finishing teams each year in the A1 division standings are relegated to the A2 Ethniki due to poor performance, while the top 2 teams each year from the A2 division are promoted to the A1 Ethniki due to good performance.

Arena standards

Currently, Greek clubs must play their home games in arenas that seat at least 1,000 people in order to play Greek domestic league matches. Starting with the 2012-13 season, clubs must play their home Greek League matches in arenas that seat at least 3,500 people. Several Greek clubs have two arenas that they primarily use. One for domestic Greek League matches, and one for European-wide matches.

Greek clubs that play in the Euroleague or the Eurocup, must play their home games in those leagues in arenas that fit the arena standards of those leagues. Currently, a 5,000 seat arena minimum for the Euroleague, and a 2,500 seat arena minimum for the Eurocup. Starting with the 2011-12 season, the minimum arena seating capacity to compete in the Euroleague will be 10,000, and the minimum arena seating capacity to compete in the Eurocup will be 5,000.

The clubs for the 2009-10 season

Club	Position 2008-09	Greek League Arenas	Capacity	European Cups Arenas*	Capacity
AEK	9th	Helliniko Olympic Arena, Athens	15,000	OAKA Indoor Hall, Athens	19,250
Aris	4th	Alexandrio Melathron, Thessaloniki	5,500	Alexandrio Melathron, Thessaloniki	5,500
Colossus	8th	Venetoklio Indoor Hall, Rhodes	1,300
Ilisiakos	2nd (A2)	Ilissia Indoor Hall, Athens	1,700
Kavala	10th	Kalamitsa Sports Center, Kavala	1,700
Maroussi	3rd	Maroussi Indoor Hall, Athens	1,700	OAKA Indoor Hall, Athens	19,250
Olympia	11th	Larissa Neapolis Arena, Larissa	5,500	Larissa Neapolis Arena, Larissa	5,500
Olympiacos	2nd	Peace and Friendship Stadium, Athens	14,905	Peace and Friendship Stadium, Athens	14,905
Panathinaikos	1st	OAKA Indoor Hall, Athens	19,250	OAKA Indoor Hall, Athens	19,250
Panellinios	5th	Panellinios Indoor Hall, Athens	1,700	Helliniko Olympic Arena, Athens	15,000
Panionios	6th	Glyfada Indoor Hall, Athens	5,000	Helliniko Olympic Arena, Athens	15,000
PAOK	7th	PAOK Sports Arena, Thessaloniki	8,500	PAOK Sports Arena, Thessaloniki	8,500
Peristeri	1st (A2)	Peristeri Arena, Athens	4,000
Trikala	12th	Trikala Indoor Hall, Trikala	2,500

• *Arenas that meet ULEB European arena requirements, and where the clubs play their home games at if they are competing in the Euroleague or the Eurocup.

AEK

Aris

Colossus

Peristeri

Kavala

Maroussi

Olympia

Olympiacos

Ilisiakos

Panathinaikos

Panellinios

Panionios

PAOK

Trikala

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2009-10 Greek A1 League Season Club Locations.

Champions

• 1927-28 to 1962-63: Panhellenic Championship
• 1963-64 to 1985-86: A Ethniki
• 1986-87 to present: A1 Ethniki

Season Team 1927–28 Iraklis 1928–29 Panellinios 1929–30 Aris 1930–31 not held 1931–32 1932–33 1933–34 1934–35 Iraklis 1935–36 Near East 1936–37 Athens University 1937–38 not held 1938–39 Panellinios 1939–40 Panellinios 1940–41 not held due to World War II 1941–42 1942–43 1943–44 1944–45 1945–46 Panathinaikos 1946–47 Panathinaikos 1947–48 not held 1948–49 Olympiacos 1949–50 Panathinaikos 1950–51 Panathinaikos 1951–52 not held 1952–53 Panellinios 1953–54 Panathinaikos 1954–55 Panellinios

Season Team 1955–56 not held 1956–57 Panellinios 1957–58 AEK Athens 1958–59 PAOK 1959–60 Olympiacos 1960–61 Panathinaikos 1961–62 Panathinaikos 1962–63 AEK Athens 1963–64 AEK Athens 1964–65 AEK Athens 1965–66 AEK Athens 1966–67 Panathinaikos 1967–68 AEK Athens 1968–69 Panathinaikos 1969–70 AEK Athens 1970–71 Panathinaikos 1971–72 Panathinaikos 1972–73 Panathinaikos 1973–74 Panathinaikos 1974–75 Panathinaikos 1975–76 Olympiacos 1976–77 Panathinaikos 1977–78 Olympiacos 1978–79 Aris 1979–80 Panathinaikos 1980–81 Panathinaikos 1981–82 Panathinaikos 1982–83 Aris

Season Team 1983–84 Panathinaikos 1984–85 Aris 1985–86 Aris 1986–87 Aris 1987–88 Aris 1988–89 Aris 1989–90 Aris 1990–91 Aris 1991–92 PAOK 1992–93 Olympiacos 1993–94 Olympiacos 1994–95 Olympiacos 1995–96 Olympiacos 1996–97 Olympiacos 1997–98 Panathinaikos 1998–99 Panathinaikos 1999–00 Panathinaikos 2000–01 Panathinaikos 2001–02 AEK Athens 2002–03 Panathinaikos 2003–04 Panathinaikos 2004–05 Panathinaikos 2005–06 Panathinaikos 2006–07 Panathinaikos 2007–08 Panathinaikos 2008–09 Panathinaikos

Performance by club

Club	Champions	Winning years
Panathinaikos	30	1946, 1947, 1950, 1951, 1954, 1961, 1962, 1967, 1969, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1977, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1984, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009
Aris	10	1930, 1979, 1983, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991
Olympiacos	9	1949, 1960, 1976, 1978, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997
AEK Athens	8	1958, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1968, 1970, 2002
Panellinios	6	1929, 1939, 1940, 1953, 1955, 1957
PAOK	2	1959, 1992
Iraklis	2	1928, 1935
Near East	1	1936
Athens University	1	1937

A1 Finals

Season	Home court advantage	Result	Home court disadvantage	1st of Regular Season	Record
1992–93	Panathinaikos	1–3	Olympiacos	PAOK	22–4
1993–94	Olympiacos	3–2	PAOK	Olympiacos	22–4
1994–95	Olympiacos	3–2	Panathinaikos	Olympiacos	24–2
1995–96	Olympiacos	3–2	Panathinaikos	Olympiacos	24–2
1996–97	Olympiacos	3–1	AEK Athens	Olympiacos	21–5
1997–98	Panathinaikos	3–0	PAOK	Olympiacos	21–5
1998–99	Olympiacos	2–3	Panathinaikos	Olympiacos	21–5
1999–00	Panathinaikos	3–0	PAOK	Olympiacos	21–5
2000–01	Panathinaikos	3–2	Olympiacos	Panathinaikos	22–4
2001–02	AEK Athens	3–2	Olympiacos	AEK Athens	23–3
2002–03	Panathinaikos	3–1	AEK Athens	Panathinaikos	21–5
2003–04	Panathinaikos	3–0	Maroussi	Panathinaikos	22–4
2004–05	Panathinaikos	3–1	AEK Athens	Panathinaikos	22–4
2005–06	Panathinaikos	3–0	Olympiacos	Panathinaikos	24–2
2006–07	Panathinaikos	3–2	Olympiacos	Panathinaikos	24–2
2007–08	Panathinaikos	3–2	Olympiacos	Panathinaikos	23–3
2008–09	Olympiacos	1–3	Panathinaikos	Olympiacos	25–1

By Club

Club	W	L	Total
Panathinaikos	11	3	14
Olympiacos Piraeus	5	7	12
AEK Athens	1	3	4
PAOK	0	3	3
Maroussi	0	1	1

Number of seasons in the A National and A1 National by club (1963-64 - 2009-10)

The number of times that clubs participated in the top Greek A National League, while it existed from the 1963-64 season to the 1985-86 season. As well as the number of times that clubs have participated in the top Greek A1 National League, since it began with the 1986-87 season. Only three clubs, Panathinaikos, Aris, and AEK Athens have played in the top division every year since its formation.

Club Times Panathinaikos 47 Aris 47 AEK Athens 47 PAOK 46 Olympiacos Piraeus 44 Iraklis 40 Panionios 39 Sporting 31 Panellinios 29 Apollon Patras 27 Maroussi 22 Peristeri 19 Pagrati 17 Larissa 16 XANO 12 Ionikos Nikaias 12 Dimokritos 9 Dafni 8 Irakleio 8 Near East 7

Club Times Papagou 7 Esperos 6 Makedonikos 6 Olympia 6 BAO 5 Triton 4 Amyntas 4 Ionikos NF 4 Colossus 4 Ilisiakos 4 Egaleo 3 Aetos 3 Anatolia 2 HAN Nikaias 2 Apollon Kalamarias 2 Niki Volou 2 Philippos 2 Milonas 2 Ambelokipi 2 Peiraikos 2

Club Times Olympiada Patras 2 Kavala 2 Trikala 2 Pierikos 1 Serron 1 MENT 1 KAOD 1 Rethymno 1

Greek League Awards

MVP Award

Season	MVP	Team
1987-88	- Nikos Galis	Aris Thessaloniki
1988-89	- Nikos Galis	Aris Thessaloniki
1989-90	- Nikos Galis	Aris Thessaloniki
1990-91	- Nikos Galis	Aris Thessaloniki
1991-92	Giorgos Sigalas	Olympiacos Piraeus
1992-93	Giorgos Sigalas	Olympiacos Piraeus
1993-94	Giorgos Sigalas	Olympiacos Piraeus
1994-95	Giorgos Sigalas	Olympiacos Piraeus
1995-96	Giorgos Sigalas	Olympiacos Piraeus
1996-97	David Rivers	Olympiacos Piraeus
1997-98	Dino Radja	Panathinaikos
1998-99	Dejan Bodiroga	Panathinaikos
1999-00	Dejan Bodiroga	Panathinaikos
2000-01	Alphonso Ford	Peristeri
2001-02	Dimos Dikoudis	AEK Athens
2002-03	Jaka Lakovič	Panathinaikos
2003-04	Dimitris Diamantidis	Iraklis
2004-05	Jaka Lakovič	Panathinaikos
2005-06	Dimitris Diamantidis	Panathinaikos
2006-07	Dimitris Diamantidis	Panathinaikos
2007-08	Dimitris Diamantidis	Panathinaikos
2008-09	Vassilis Spanoulis	Panathinaikos

Best Young Player

• 2001-02: Nikos Zisis (AEK Athens)
• 2005-06: Dimitrios Tsaldaris (Aris Thessaloniki)
• 2006-07: Georgios Printezis (Olympia Larissa)
• 2007-08: Ian Vougioukas (Rethymno)
• 2008-09: Kostas Papanikolaou (Aris)

Coach of the Year

• 2006-07: Željko Obradović (Panathinaikos)
• 2007-08: Soulis Markopoulos (Maroussi)
• 2008-09: Željko Obradović (Panathinaikos)

Greek League all-time and season by season stats leaders

• See Greek League all-time and season stats leaders

See also

• Greek Cup
• Greek A2 League
• HEBA Greek All Star Game
• HEBA

NBA players that have played in the Greek League

The following is a list of players that have played in both the NBA and the Greek League. Player nationalities are listed as the players are registered in the league (through 2009-10 season). List may be incomplete.

(Non-EU Players - USA): Dominique Wilkins Byron Scott Rolando Blackman Ricky Pierce Tony Campbell Ruben Patterson Carey Scurry James Donaldson Sedale Threatt Richard Dumas Reggie Theus Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf Roy Tarpley Blue Edwards Oliver Miller Xavier McDaniel Terry Catledge AJ English Anthony Bowie Larry Stewart Scott Skiles Walter Berry Tracy Murray Cliff Levingston Lawrence Funderburke Victor Alexander Gary Trent Thurl Bailey PJ Brown Mitchell Wiggins Anthony Goldwire Zendon Hamilton Andrae Patterson Billy Thomas Dickey Simpkins Marty Conlon Erick Barkley Jamel Thomas Anthony Cook Dean Garrett Rafael Addison CJ Watson Ryan Robertson Randolph Keys Jeff McInnis Paul Shirley Todd Mitchell Josh Grant Lavor Postell Alex Acker Edgar Jones

Todd Fuller Darius Washington Brad Sellers Sam Vincent Ed Stokes Randy White Travis Mays Josh Childress Chris Carr Joe Crispin Horace Jenkins Toby Bailey Lionel Chalmers William Avery Brent Scott Chris Garner Tony Dawson Dontae Jones Harold Ellis Terrence Rencher Buck Johnson Jimmy Oliver Ashraf Amaya Pat Durham Andy Toolson Eddie Johnson Tyus Edney Roger Mason Willie Anderson Jermaine Jackson Rodrick Rhodes Eddie Gill Steven Smith Ben Handlogten Shawn Respert Matt Walsh Sharone Wright Irving Thomas Trevor Ruffin Anthony Avent JR Bremer Melvin Sanders Chris Jent Mark Landsberger Johnny Rogers Sam Jacobson Matt Freije Scott Roth Josh Davis Priest Lauderdale Marc Jackson

Chris Morris Antonio Davis Tony Delk John Salley Lynn Greer Joseph Forte Tom Scheffler Edgar Jones Sean Higgins Charles Shackleford Gary Grant Qyntel Woods Michael Anderson Joseph Blair Charles Smith Terence Morris Chris King Antonio Harvey Jannero Pargo Mike Batiste Alphonso Ford Dean Tolson Danny Vranes Clint Richardson Richard Rellford Jack Haley Kannard Johnson Tony White Marcus Liberty Desmon Farmer Ryan Lorthridge Steve Burtt Alvin Sims Jason Hart David Vaughn AJ Guyton Ernest Brown Jerrod Mustaf Anthony Bonner Kasib Powell Britton Johnsen Lonny Baxter Donnell Harvey Mateen Cleaves Audie Norris Evric Gray Mike Brown Maurice Evans Quincy Lewis Rodney Buford Brandon Hunter

DeMarco Johnson James Robinson Michael Hawkins Tony Dumas Amal McCaskill John Wallace Aaron Miles Anthony Grundy Jerome Allen Dell Demps Matt Bullard Derrick Dial Shawnelle Scott Tyrone Nesby Henry Turner Ben Davis Byron Dinkins Donell Taylor Bill Edwards Joe Arlauckas Lloyd Daniels Brandon Williams Bracey Wright Brett Vroman JJ Anderson Anthony Frederick David Rivers Stanley Roberts Khalid Reeves Frankie King Torraye Braggs Isaiah Morris Will Solomon Ryan Stack Jeremy Richardson Von Wafer Bruno Sundov Taurean Green Devin Green Juan Dixon Vonteego Cummings John Edwards Marcus Haislip Carl Thomas Willie Burton

(Non-EU Players): Mike Smrek José Ortiz Guillermo Diaz Luis Flores Andres Guibert Fabricio Oberto Pepe Sánchez Rubén Wolkowyski Shane Heal Mark Bradtke Mamadou N'Diaye Ruben Boumtje-Boumtje Julius Nwosu Rony Seikaly

Bosman Players: John Amaechi Steve Bucknall Pat Burke İbrahim Kutluay Dino Radja Stojko Vranković Dalibor Bagarić Željko Rebrača Žarko Paspalj Ratko Varda Aleksandar Radojević Miloš Babić Martin Müürsepp Geert Hammink

Hanno Möttölä Torgeir Bryn Šarūnas Jasikevičius Arvydas Macijauskas Linas Kleiza Alexander Volkov Christian Welp Jeff Nordgaard Nikoloz Tskitishvili Predrag Drobnjak

Domestic Players: Vassilis Spanoulis Peja Stojaković Rasho Nesterović Antonis Fotsis Andreas Glyniadakis Kurt Rambis Marko Jarić Jake Tsakalidis Efthimios Rentzias Dragan Tarlać

Unsigned NBA Draft picks that have played in the Greek League

The following is a list of unsigned NBA Draft picks that have played in the Greek League. Player nationalities are listed as the players are registered in the league (through 2009-10 season). List may be incomplete.

David Young Bryan Bracey Chris Owens Rashad Wright Rick Rickert Wendell Alexis Conrad McRae Ken Barlow Craig Robinson Pete Mickeal Scoonie Penn Andre Hutson Marcus Taylor DeVon Hardin Reyshawn Terry Sam Clancy Steve Logan JR Pinnock Darryl Middleton Derrick Hamilton Earl Harrison Darnell Robinson

Erik Meek Tim Burroughs Anthony Pelle Rodney Dent Mike Jones Robert Dozier Patrick Beverley Greg Wiltjer Marcelo Nicola Brad Newley Yotam Halperin Andrew Betts Dejan Bodiroga Miloš Vujanić Nikola Peković Mladen Šekularac Robertas Javtokas Eurelijus Žukauskas Renaldas Seibutis Sani Bečirovič Frédéric Weis Alain Digbeu

Nikos Galis Panagiotis Giannakis Georgios Printezis Sofoklis Schortsanitis Loukas Mavrokefalidis Fanis Christodoulou Panagiotis Fasoulas David Stergakos Dave Caligaris

Other notable players that have played in the Greek League

The following is a list of some other notable players that have played in the Greek League. Player nationalities are listed as the players were registered in the league at the time they played in Greece (through 2009-10 season). This does not necessarily reflect changes of nationality after the named player left the Greek League—for example, J. R. Holden now has Russian nationality along with American. List may be incomplete.

JR Holden Ariel McDonald Drew Nicholas Ramūnas Šiškauskas Nikola Vujčić Arijan Komazec Jaka Lakovič Dejan Tomašević Zoran Savić Theodoros Papaloukas Dimitris Diamantidis Ioannis Bourousis Nikos Zisis Steve Giatzoglou Nikos Stavropoulos Dimitris Papanikolaou Panagiotis Vasilopoulos

Fragiskos Alvertis Georgios Kolokithas Bane Prelević Kostas Tsartsaris Lazaros Papadopoulos Dimos Dikoudis Nikos Hatzivrettas Giorgos Sigalas Panagiotis Liadelis Aggelos Koronios Georgios Kastrinakis Apostolos Kontos Nikos Ekonomou Michalis Kakiouzis Michalis Pelekanos Yannis Giannoulis

Sponsors

• OPAP
• Greek National Tourism Organization
• Molten
• Gatorade
• Germanos
• Champion

External links

• Official HEBA Site Template:El icon
• Euroleague.net HEBA - Greek League Page
• Sportingreece.com A1
• Official Hellenic Basketball Federation Site Template:El icon
• A1 League at Sportime Magazine Template:El icon
• Basketblog.gr Template:El icon
• Greekhoopz.com Template:El icon
• Greekbball.com Template:El icon
• Galanis Sports Data
• Esake.gr Archives Template:El icon
• Basket.gr History Template:El icon
• Official HEBA A1 Weekly Video Highlights
• HEBA A1 Weekly Video Highlights