# Panathinaikos Adds Two



## luther (Nov 2, 2007)

Eurobasket.com reports that Panathinaikos has signed Nikola Pekovic and Antonis Fotsis for next season. Pekovic (6-11 C, 1986) is coming off a breakout season with Partizan in which he averaged 16.4 ppg and 6.9 rpg overall, and 17.9 ppg and 8 rpg in the regular season Euroleague games. He was considered a possible 2nd round pick whom a team might leave in Europe for a year or two, but this deal (while I don't know how long it is) might make that difficult in the future. Assuming he plays well, he will very likely earn more in Europe than the team that drafts him would have available to pay him unless it is under the cap. ... Antonis Fotsis (6-10 F, 1981) is a former Grizzlies player who has had a decent career since returning to Europe. The good-shooting forward averaged 10.3 ppg and 6.2 rpg for Dynamo Moscow in ULEB Cup competition. It is his second stint with Panathinaikos.


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## Krstic All-Star (Mar 9, 2005)

Two good pickups for an already powerful team. Their frontline always seems to be big, compared to other Euroleague teams.


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## luther (Nov 2, 2007)

What's their team salary look like, I wonder? They, along with CSKA, Tau, Real Madrid and Maccabi, must spend a (relative) fortune. Is there a resource for Euroleague/ULEB Cup/international league salaries?


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## luther (Nov 2, 2007)

By the way, I really like Fotsis. I first saw him in the 1999 Hoop Summit and was very interested. (He had 15.) I thought he deserved more of a chance with the Grizzlies. And as an aside, that international team in the 1999 Hoop Summit had some nice talent: Fotsis, Nets' Bostjan Nachbar, Lakers' Vlad Radmanovic, ex-NBA center Bruno Sundov, ex-NBA center Olumide Oyediji, ex-Purdue center Ivan Kartelo, annual NBA hopeful PG Yuta Tabuse, European standout Vlado Ilievski...quite an assembly.


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## Krstic All-Star (Mar 9, 2005)

luther said:


> What's their team salary look like, I wonder? They, along with CSKA, Tau, Real Madrid and Maccabi, must spend a (relative) fortune. Is there a resource for Euroleague/ULEB Cup/international league salaries?


I can't vouch for accuracy, but you can try this partial listing: http://www.ballineurope.com/european-basketball/euroleague/budgets-of-basketball-clubs-in-europe/



> *Panathinaikos Athens* (Euroleague) 42,120,000


 :whistling:


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## luther (Nov 2, 2007)

I wonder, though, is "team budget" the same as total salaries? I am shocked at Maccabi being so low. They always have so many talented import players, you'd think they pay more. CSKA, as expected, isn't stingy.


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## Stojakovic4 (Jun 6, 2008)

Panathinaikos and CSKA Moscow pay the most on players in Europe. they do more than double any other European Basketball teams. They are both owned by multi Billionaires.


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## Rule_By_His_Own_Hand (Jun 20, 2006)

There were many reports on this. Basically, all things considered (how the NBA figures salary) last year CSKA had €33 million ($51 million US), Panathinaikos had €30 million ($46 million US), and Olympiacos had €24 million (37 million).

This year it said CSKA is athourized for €35 million ($54 million US), and Olympiacos is also said to be authorized for the same budget.

While Panathinaikos is said to be authorized for the same budget as last year.

To give you an idea how these salaries are exploding, in 2004 Olympiacos' budget was €2 million, Panathinaikos' budget was €4 million and CSKA's budget was €7 million.

I would speculate that in about 5 years time the Euroleague will surpass the NBA as the top league worldwide in basketball. Because this is determined by how much the players earn. The best players will simply be where they make the most. And the trend is rapidly towards the Euroleague and away from the NBA.

keep in mind these are NET salaries. NET. NBA are gross. This gives you an idea of how big the money has gotten in Europe.


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## Rule_By_His_Own_Hand (Jun 20, 2006)

luther said:


> I wonder, though, is "team budget" the same as total salaries? I am shocked at Maccabi being so low. They always have so many talented import players, you'd think they pay more. CSKA, as expected, isn't stingy.


Well for example they pay salaries in dollars just like the NBA. That's a huge difference from clubs like CSKA or PAO that play salaries in euros.


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## argusa (May 7, 2008)

Rule_By_His_Own_Hand said:


> There were many reports on this. Basically, all things considered (how the NBA figures salary) last year CSKA had €33 million ($51 million US), Panathinaikos had €30 million ($46 million US), and Olympiacos had €24 million (37 million).
> 
> This year it said CSKA is athourized for €35 million ($54 million US), and Olympiacos is also said to be authorized for the same budget.
> 
> ...


That is unbelievable. It seems like the day might not be far off when the number one prospect in the USA signs in Europe.


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## luther (Nov 2, 2007)

argusa said:


> That is unbelievable. It seems like the day might not be far off when the number one prospect in the USA signs in Europe.


That is exactly the point I was trying to make in another thread on this board: that with international (well, from the American perspective "international") teams paying more, acquiring more talent and their currencies worth more than the U.S. dollar, the day may not be far off when there are real bidding wars over legitimate NBA-caliber talent, not just borderline players.


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## argusa (May 7, 2008)

Luther,
I read that thread. Some said that the elite US players would not make that jump because of cultural reasons. I think they'll go where the money is. If the clubs in Europe start paying more, what do you think that will do to Stern's hopes of making a global NBA?


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## luther (Nov 2, 2007)

argusa said:


> Luther,
> I read that thread. Some said that the elite US players would not make that jump because of cultural reasons. I think they'll go where the money is. If the clubs in Europe start paying more, what do you think that will do to Stern's hopes of making a global NBA?


Actually, I think it would help Stern's plan. Only a few Euroleague clubs can afford such major salaries, and the fact is, they still don't quite compete with NBA teams. But if, say, half a dozen teams really competed, it would only help make the distinction between them (as an NBA division) and the other, "lower-class" European teams.


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