Last time, Greece won a medal at the FIBA World Cup in 2006. Find out in this article how far they can go without a few key players.
The period without a medal at Mundobasket lasts too long for Greece. With this roster and all the injury problems, that period will likely extend another four years.
FIBA World Cup – Greece: Previous editions and the best results of the national team
Greece achieved the best result at the World Cup 17 years ago. They reach the finals with a win over the United States. There, they fell short after being outplayed by Spain in the battle for the gold.
In addition to final in 2006, Greece reached the semi-finals on two occasions. It was in 1994 and 1998. They lost both times in the semi-finals, and then in the bronze medal match as well.
This is the seventh World Cup for them, and the fifth time in a row that they qualified.
FIBA World Cup – Greece: Road to Mundobasket
Their journey to the Mundobasket wasn’t the easy one. At the start of the qualifiers, they were outplayed by Great Britain for the first time in 37 years. After they, Greece outplayed Turkey on two occasions, and returned “the favor” to the British. Belarus was in the group with them, but they were expelled.
In the qualifiers second round, they had two extremely interesting clashes against Serbia. Giannis Antetokounmpo and Nikola Jokic organized a basketball party in front of 19,150 spectators in Belgrade. That was a qualifying record when it comes to the number of spectators in one game. Serbian national team celebrated after overtime. Giannis scored 40 points with eight rebounds and five assists, while Joker responded with 29 points. eight rebounds and more with an assist.
The already mentioned record was broken in the OAKA just three days later when 19,433 basketball fans cheered Greece to win over Belgium. The most important win, Dimitris Itoudis‘ team achieved three months later in Mons. In a real thriller, they beat Belgium once again by 72:70.
FIBA World Cup – Greece: Roster and focus on those who are expected the most
It is unnecessary to question who will be the leader of this team if he plays at the FIBA World Cup. Giannis Antetokounmpo responded to the invitation sent by Dimitris Itoudis, but it is still unclear whether he will receive the green light from the specialist. Earlier this summer, the “Greek Freak” had a procedure on his left knee and is still not fully fit.
A huge problem could be missing experienced tandem Nick Calathes – Kostas Sloukas. Both of them decided to skip the upcoming tournament due to busy schedule from previous season. Former Partizan player Ioannis Papapetrou could also miss the FIBA World Cup. He is still recovering from a shoulder injury sustained in the ABA League finals.
Tyler Dorsey is unable to play this summer due to private reasons, so Greece chose Thomas Walkup to replace him as a naturalized player.
As the most experienced one, Kostas Papanikolaou will be the voice in the locker room that will influence other players with his authority. It is to be expected that two more Olympiacos basketball players will find a place on the final list. They are Giannoulis Larentzakis and Michalis Lountzis.
Georgios Papagiannis should be starting center. Considering the fact that coach Itoudis will work now with him both in the club and in the national team, the Greek center has a great responsibility and an additional motive. In the previous season, he recorded 11 points and six rebounds for Panathinaikos.
Thanasis Antetokounmpo doesn’t have an important role for the Milwaukee Bucks, but it’s a different story with the national team. Coach Itoudis is seriously counting on him and he will surely be one of the most important individuals on the floor. Especially in defense.
A role in Itodis system could also have Panathinaikos newcomers Dino Mitoglou and Dimitris Moraitis. Along with them is another “Greens” player Panagiotis Kalaitzakis as the one with the most appearances during the qualifiers.
Baskonia forward Nikos Rogkavapoulous is also worth mentioning. Against Serbia, he scored career-high 28 points (5/5 three-pointers) for the national team. By far, he is the best shooter in this team.
FIBA World Cup – Greece: More about head coach – Dimitris Itoudis
Dimitris Itoudis is a name in European basketball that needs no special introduction. Interesting is the fact that he started coaching in Zagreb, where he graduated.. He signed his first professional contract with KK Zagreb, and then managed PAOK, Panionios, and two lower-class Greek teams.
From 1999 until 2012, he worked as an assistant coach of Panathinaikos. It is known that he spent most of his time as Zeljko Obradovic right hand, with whom he is in godfather relations. Good result in Banvit paved his way to CSKA Moscow, and then he arrived at Fenerbahce, where he works today.
He won two EuroLeague titles with CSKA (2016 and 2019). In those two seasons, he also won Coach of the Year Award. Six times he lift the trophy in the VTB League.
![Dimitris Itoudis](https://basketballsphere.com/en/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/Dimitris-Itoudis.png)
FIBA World Cup – Greece: Expectations
Draw for the World Cup placed Greece in Group C with United States, New Zealand and Jordan. It is already clear who will advance to the next stage. United States could be vulnerable in clash for the first place, but only if Greece has Giannis.
Greece has a huge desire to achieve a good result, but a big question mark remains whether they will have a quality for a step forward. 17 years have passed since the last medal at the World Cup.
Public in Greece will not be satisfied with any other scenario than the one in which Giannis Antetokounmpo wear a medal around his neck when they land in Athens. We also believe that the NBA star’s ambitions are identical.