By Alex Molina / info@eurohoops.net
Spanish National Police have opened an official report against Panathinaikos president Dimitris Giannakopoulos following a series of incidents that took place after the second game of the EuroLeague quarterfinal playoff between Valencia Basket and the Athens-based club.
According to information reported by journalist Juan Carlos Villena, officers entered the locker room area at the Roig Arena in order to identify Giannakopoulos along with several members of the Greek team’s staff. The intervention was prompted by complaints regarding serious incidents involving accredited security personnel at the venue. The report filed by police marks the beginning of an administrative procedure and a formal investigation aimed at clarifying what occurred.
Valencia Basket released a strongly worded statement condemning the actions of the Panathinaikos president. The club accused Giannakopoulos of crossing “all acceptable limits” during the game, alleging that he approached the scorer’s table in an aggressive manner, attempted to influence referees, and refused to comply with instructions from security staff. The Spanish club also confirmed that police action extended beyond the president to other members of the delegation. Valencia Basket announced its intention to submit a formal complaint to the EuroLeague, calling for strict disciplinary measures and highlighting what it described as repeated behavior that damages the sport’s image.
Head coach Pedro Martínez also criticized Giannakopoulos in his postgame press conference, describing his conduct as unacceptable and contrary to the core values of sport.
In contrast, Panathinaikos head coach Ergin Ataman defended his president during a tense and unusual press conference in which he declined to discuss the game itself. Instead, he focused entirely on the police presence, stating that officers had been stationed outside the team’s locker room with the intention of detaining members of the club’s staff, including Giannakopoulos and the general manager. Ataman remarked that he had never witnessed such a situation in his career and concluded his remarks by shifting attention to the upcoming game in Athens.
The investigation is now underway as authorities work to determine the full sequence of events surrounding the postgame confrontation.
Giannakopoulos reacts on Instagram
Meanwhile, Dimitris Giannakopoulos used once again his Instagram account to share his opinions, sharing some stories addressed to Pedro Martinez.
“Mr. Martinez, what I would like to say to you after the statement you made about me, calling me -I don’t know- with many adjectives, I want to tell you the following: I want to congratulate you, because you are a great coach and what you have done with Valencia is amazing. Valencia is turning into a huge club in basketball and you are one of the reasons why this is happening. But considering what you said about me, I’m sorry but you are a liar. I never approached the referees’ table, I was behind the Panathinaikos bench and I was expressing my disappointment for a foul that had not been given. And to be honest, in these two games I don’t think Valencia should talk about the refereeing. Good rest of the series”.
Continuing with another “story”, Mr. Giannakopoulos also said: “As you can see, the referees don’t report anything either. Because nothing happened. The only thing that happened is that you lost 2-0 at your stadium, after a fantastic season that you had. But if you want to become a great team and not just a good team you have to learn and lose. And don’t try to blame the team that won”.
And Dimitris Giannakopoulos also spoke about a “fiction book” he is currently reading: “I came across a chapter that a coach extremely disrespectful (to be polite) against the owner of another team. Now the extremely fictional part is when this happens because the owners of another club who hate and envy the same owner have given part of the new stadium the government is building for them to the daughter of the coach and she is pat of the new stadium project”.