FCM website

Kostas Vasiliadis arrived in Bilbao and was presented from his new club. The 26-year old player joined the Basque club after a great season in ACB with Obradoiro and obviously expects a lot from the forthcoming season: "I am very happy to be here and i consider it as a big step forward in my career. Our goals are to participate in the play-offs and reach the Copa del Rey, both are big challenges and we are ready to work hard for them. Changing clubs all the time is tiring, that is why i signed a three year contract with Bilbao and i hope to aciheve a lot with the club".

Fotis Katsikaris, Bilbao's head coach, was full of praise for Vasiliadis who averaged 16 points last season: "Kostas is a killer. The new three point line will not affect him, because he is the type of player who doesn't look from where he shoots as long as he is free. He knows the spanish league and will adjust easily to our club". Vasiliadis will start training with his new teammates, after having short holidays due to his preparation with the Greek national team.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

A European cup winner is coming to Greece. Ben Jacobson (photo left) agreed terms with Ikaros and will be the team's point guard for the following season. The 27-year old American player enjoyed a fine year in Germany, where he lead Gottingen to the FIBA Eurochallenge title, averaging 13,4 points, 3.1 rebounds and 2.4 assists on the road to the final. There, the Northern Iowa graduate provided a splendid performance with 17 points and 4 rebounds to lead Gottingen into their first ever title. Jacobson is expected in Athens the next days to join Ikaros' preparation that has already begun.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

George Dikeoulakos completed a magnificent season for him. After winning the treble with Athinaikos (FIBA Eurochallenge, Greek championship and Greek cup), the Greek coach succeeded to lead the Latvian women national team to the Eurobasket finals. Despite playing without two of their key players in the whole qualifier campaign, Dikeoulakos lead his team into an amazing come-back. A victory in second overtime in Israel and Serbia's thrashing (80-55) in the last match at Riga were enough to secure Latvia's participation in the big rendez-vous next season in Poland.

The Greek coach could not be anything less than satisfied: "It is a great feeling for us. In Latvia our qualification is big news and we proved that we are among Europe's top teams. After losing from Serbia in the first round we sat down and discussed what was going wrong and did the big come back. I want to thank also the crowd for their great support".

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Brooks Sales after two great seasons in Israel is moving to Hungary. The 30-year old American power forward-center agreed terms with the Hunarian runners-up Atomeromu Paks and will reinforce the teams front court for the 2010-2011 season. Sales averaged 11,4 points, 6.5 rebounds and 1.3 assists in 25 games last season for Ironi Ashkelon in Israel and after a noticeable career in Europe, having player for Biella, Udine and Teramo (Italy), Orthez (France), Besiktas (Turkey) and Maccabi Haifa (Israel) is moving to Paks to help them fulfill the goal the lost last season: win the championship.

The Villanova graduate is expected in Hungary the beginning of September to start preparation with his new teammates.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Dimitris Mavroidis was presented yesterday by Bilbao and in his first statements as a player of the Basque club he was obviously excited: "Playing in the spanish ACB is a dream for me. I am very happy to be in Bilbao and i will give my 100% so that the club will realize its goals. My transfer here is a step forward for me to improve my game and i am in the right place to do it". The Greek center spoke about the other two Greeks, coach Fotis Katsikaris and Kostas Vasiliadis, who are also in Bilbao: "For me it will be a big help, because this will be my first year away from Greece and their presence will allow me to adjust faster".

Fotis Katsikaris, the coach of Bilbao, welcomed Mavroidis and sent a message to the fans of the club: "Mavroidis is a great player who fights with his heart and i am sure that the crowd will love him for this". Mavroidis has already started its preparation for the new season with Bilbao, waiting for Kostas Vasiliadis to join him once his obligations with the Greek national team are over.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Lazaros Agadakos agreed terms with Ikaros and the 30-year old center will reinforce the Greek A1 newcomers in their first apperance in the big league. Agadakos has had a noticeable career, having played in Olympiakos, Aris, PAOK, Panionios, Marousi and Peristeri and for the 2010-2011 season will wear Ikaros' jersey. The club's summer preparation will begin on Monday, August 23rd and Agadakos will be present along with the other four FCM players (Kalabokis, Falekas, Petrodimopoulos, Karaboulas).

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

David Young, Greece's top scorer last season in average of points, signed his representation agreement with First Class Management. The American shhoting guard came to Greece half way through the 2009-2010 season to help struggling Trikala and provided some splendid performances, finishing with 20.5 points per match (plus 3.6 rebounds and 1.7 assists in 11 matches), winning two times the MVP of the matchday wards.

Young has significant experience in European basketball as apart from Greece he has also played in Italy (Avellino, Sassari, Scafati), France (Orthez) and Montenegro (Buducnost).

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

FCM is happy to announce that Chris Oliver signed a contract with Tubingen Tigers. The American small forward had a very good season with Gottingen in Germany, where he averaged 14.1 points, 6.3 rebounds and 1.1 assists in 35 matches and celebrated with his teammates the winning of the FIBA Eurochallenge title. Tubingen pursued Oliver and today the American player agreed terms with the club, meaning that for the 4th year in a row he will return to the Basketball Bundesliga.

Before the two seasons in Gottingen the North Carolina born Oliver has also played for Kaiserslautern, after graduating from the University of Radford. The 25-year old player is expected in a few days in Germany to start preparation with his new team.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

George Tsiakos is moving to Italy! The 28-year old power forward/center agreed terms with Legadue's newcomers Igea Barcellona and for the third time in his career he will play outside Greece. Tsiakos has played in Spain for Mallorca and in Latvia for Ventspils, but this time the Greek player will be moving to Sicily, where Igea Barcellona is based.

The former player of Peristeri signed yesterday his one year deal and will travel to Italy in the middle of August to start preparation under the guidance of coach Cesare Pancotto.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Two of the rising stars of European basketball are the newest players of First Class Management. Martins Laksa and Janis Timma (photo left) from Latvia made great performances in the recent U20 and U18 European Championships a few days ago and are now represented by our agency.

Martins Laksa (2.00 - born 1990) was the leader of the Latvian U20 national team in Zadar averaging 11.8 points, 4 rebounds and 1.1 assists in 8 matches, playing for 28.9 minutes per match. The talented forward completed a fine season as he took his first minutes in the senior level, playing with VEF Riga in Eurochallenge, Baltic and VTB leagues, averaging 4.8 points and 2.5 rebounds.

Janis Timma was one of the key factors that Latvia won the bronze medal in the U18 European Championship in Vilnius, for the first time in their recent history. The 1.98 forward averaged 11.2 points, 4 rebounds, 1.8 steals in 9 matches, playing 24.7 minutes per game. Timma came from a great season in Latvia's second division, where despite his young age he dominated the league with great numbers for DSN Riga (17.3 points, 4.3 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 27 games).

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Weyinmi Efejuku came to Europe last season as a rookie, but quickly showed his quality, leading Barons to the title in Latvia. The Providence graduate finished the season as the top scorer, averaging an impressive 22,8 points in the play-offs. His performances obviously didn't go without notice, as many clubs were interested in him, before the Jamaican born guard agreed terms with the Czech champions Nymburk. Efejuku will reinforce the backourt of Nymburk in their quest to retain the title at home and fight for their chance to play in Euroleague for the first time, as they compete in the qualifying round against Charleroi.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

First Class Management announces that Giannis Kalabokis signed a 2-year deal with Ikaros. The 32-year old guard, who won the bronze medal in last summer's Eurobasket with the Greek national team, decided to accept the offer from the newcomers of the Greek A1 and become Ikaros' most recognizable transfer in the club's history. Kalabokis had several offers both from Greece and abroad but Ikaros pressing and their will to sign him, lead to the conclusion of the agreement.

Kalabokis who spent the last 3 seasons with Panionios playing with him in Euroleague and Eurocup, has also played for Olympiakos, AEK and PAOK and for the next two years he will be wearing Ikaros jersey to help them in their effort to establish themselves in the big league of Greece.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Socratis Psaropoulos (photo left) is doing his international debut for Greece in Lithuania's U18 European Championship, but the talented point guard is showing his quality in the big stage. The 18-year old player is averaging 11 points, 2.7 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1 steal in the first six matches of the tournament, coming from the bench as the 6th player and staying on court for 22,7 minutes per match.

Psaropoulos recently signed his first professional contract with Peristeri, the club where he grew up as a player and is expected to have a role in next season's Greek A1. Tomorrow, Greece is facing hosts Lithuania in the quarter finals of the U18 EC, after losing yesterday from Russia, despite Psaropoulos' 18 points. Except from Psaropoulos, another FCM player is also in Greece's squad. Stathis Papadionysiou is not getting much playing time (8 minutes per match), but the 2.01 forward has given solutions to his team, playing great defence and putting energy to the floor.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

First Class Management is happy to announce that five of the most talented Latvian players are now represented by our agency. In alphabetical order, FCM's newest players are:

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

FCM is happy to announce that Blagota Sekulic signed a contract with Cremona Vanoli. The Italian club agreem terms with the player from Montenegro and after many different leagues, Sekulic will play for the first time in Italy. The 28-year old player spent the last season in Berlin, where he played for Alba, averaging 10 points and 5 rebounds. Sekulic has a noticeable career, having worn the jerseys of important clubs like Real Madrid, Aris, PAOK, Marousi, AEK, Partizan and Buducnost. Until now, Sekulic has won one ULEB Cup, one ACB title, 3 Serbian championships and one Serbian Cup and one German Cup.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Every beginning in a youth tournament is hiding surprises, especially for the favorites and Greece almost fell to that trap in the opening match of the U18 European Championship in Lithuania. Their opponent Germany, made a bright start, but it took Socratis Psaropoulos entry from the bench to change the fate of the game. The 18-year old point guard scored 7 quick points to restore Greece in the lead of the score and from then on they never looked back. Psaropoulos, who recently signed his first professional contract with Peristeri, finished the match with 14 points (plus 1 rebounds, 1 assist and 1 steal) with excellente percentages (3/4 2pts, 2/3 3pts) in just 21 minutes.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

An amazing tournament for Nikos Pappas didn't end as he wanted to, as Greece lost for the first time in the U20 European Championship in the final against France and settled for the silver medal. A harsh outcome for the Greeks who had 8/8 wins and were close to repeating last year's success. Pappas made three top class performances in the knock-out stages. Against Russia in the quarter finals he has 27 points and 9 rebounds, against Croatia in the semi-final he finished with 23 points and 8 rebounds and last night he tried to lead Greece with 22 points but they were not enough.

Nevertheless, Nikos Pappas concluded the tournament as the leading scorer by far, averaging 22.1 points per game, plus 4.8 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 2.3 steals. He was obviously member of the tournaments best line-up, but the individual awards were obviously not enough for him. The 20-year old guard will have no time to rest and from tomorrow he will join for the first time the preparation of the Men's national team of Greece, that is on the way for the FIBA World Championship in Turkey at the end of August.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Panagiotis Vasilopoulos has spent most of his summers, playing for the Greek national team, starting from a very young age. Silver medal in the U21 World Championship in 2004, Gold Medal in the Men's 2005 Eurobasket, Silver Medal in the World Championship of 2006 are a great collection, but this summer the forward of Olympiakos will have to pass the big rendez-vous in Turkey. His back is still not 100% well from his injury, so after speaking with the medical staff of the Greek NT and coach Kazlauskas they made the difficult decision not to participate in the World Championship in September. The 25-year old player is following a specific programme in order to fully recover and hopefully be ready for the beginning of the season.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Greece completed an amazing 6-0 wins in the first 2 phases of the U20 European Championship in Croatia, but this time it took a Nikos Pappas basket just 5 seconds before time to beat the tough Serbian team by a narrow 63-62. The guard of Bilbao was sidelined for most of the match due to foul trouble, but at the end he made the crucial basket that gave Greece the victory and the first position of the group. Pappas completed the match with 14 points in just 22 minutes and he is now waiting tomorrow's quarter final against Russia in Zadar. The 20-year old guard completed the first 6 matches of the tournament, averaging 21.2 points, 4.2 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.8 steals, leading Greece into this undefeated run.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Greece's unbeaten run in the U20 European Championship looked likely to come to an end, but Nikos Pappas kept his calm and with 2/2 free throws just 2 seconds before the end of the 4th period, allowed the Greek NT to send the match against Montenegro into extra time where Greece made it 5/5 wins with 83-79. The point guard of Bilbao finished the match with 22 points, 4 rebounds and 3 assists, despite the fact that he had a slow first half (only 8 points until then) and he is still the tournament's top scorer. Greece is already qualified for the quarter finals and tomorrow's match against Serbia will decide their opponent in the knock-out stage.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Greece is enjoying their day off at the U20 European championship in Croatia, being undefeated as yesterday they beat easily Latvia 82-53. Nikos Pappas didn't have to play as much as usual, but he still scored 19 points to remain at the top of the tournament lists (averaging an impressive 24.3 after the first three matches). The 20-year old guard had also 4 rebounds and 5 steals, another category that he is featuring among the best (he is 5th overall). The Greek national team is to play Lithuania tomorrow, at the beginning of the second phase of the tournament. Also, Nikos Pappas is celebrating his 20th birthday today, so all the best wishes to him for personal and professional happiness!

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Another splendid performance for Nikos Pappas was enough for Greece to secure their second win in the U20 European Championship which is held in Croatia. The Greek guard scored 28 points with 5 three-pointers to lead the Greek national team against the hard-fighting Ukraine, contributing also 5 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals, completing a display worthy of his talent. Pappas is already the top scorer of the tournament after two matches and Greece face Latvia in the last match of the group stage, in their effort to finish on top and enter the quarter finals with advantage.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Greece wanted to make a positive start in their quest to defend their European title and thanks to Nikos Pappas they had nothing to worry about. The Greek guard scored 26 points (plus 6 rebounds and 1 assist) to lead the U20 national team into an easy victory against Czech Republic in the opening match of the European Championship that started in Croatia. Pappas had very good percentages (7/7 FTs, 5/7 2pts, 3/6 3pts) and Greece gave no opportunity to their opponents, as they dominated from the beginning of the match.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

He had an excellent season in Spain, it was only normal that he would attract attention from bigger clubs in the ACB. Kostas Vasiliadis will remain in Europe's most competitive league, as he signed a 3-year deal with Bilbao and will meet Dimitris Mavroidis who also signed a few days ago with the Basque club.

The 26-year old player enjoyed an excellent season with Obradoiro, scoring an average of 16.3 points per match, plus 3.8 rebounds and 2.2 assists, being the 7th player in evaluation in the whole league. Vasiliadis' performances lead to him being invited by the Greek national team and is a strong candidate to travel to Turkey for the World Championship in the coming September. This will be the third spanish club for Vasiliadis, after Malaga (where he won the league in 2007) and Obradoiro.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

FCM is happy to anounce that Dimitris Mavroidis signed a 3-year deal with Bilbao, making him the 3rd player of FCM who will participate in Europe's most competetive domestic league (along with Giorgos Printezis kai Kostas Vasiliadis). The 25-year old center had an excellent year with Maroussi, which finished on the 3rd place of the Greek league and also made an amazing season in Euroleague where they qualified to the Top16 in their first participation.

Mavroidis will find the Greek coach Fotis Katsikaris in the Basque country and will definitely enforce Bilbao's frontline in their quest to return to the top positions of the Spanish ACB. The Greek center averaged 9.8 points and 5.8 rebounds in 32 matches this season, including some impressive appearances against Maccabi, Lottomatica Roma and CSKA in Euroleague.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Nikos Pappas got his first senior call, as his name was included in the list that Jonas Kazlauskas announced today for the forthcoming Mundobasket in Turkey. The 20-year old point guard completed a fine rookie season in the Greek A1, earning him the Rookie of the Year award and obviously got the attention of the Lithuanian coach of the Greek NT. A total of 5 players represented by FCM are included in the Greek NT as Pappas will be joined by four others (Giannis Bourousis, Giorgos Printezis, Kostas Vasiliadis and Panos Vasilopoulos). Theo Papaloukas announced that he will not participate in this tournament and therefore was not included in the selection.

The preparation of the Greek national team is scheduled to begin on July 18th and before the finals in Turkey, there is an exciting friendly game arranged against team USA in Athens at the end of August.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Nikos Pappas concluded a great season in the Greek A1 by winning the Rookie of the year award. The U-20 European Champion played for the first time in the Greek A1, on loan to Kolossos from Bilbao, and proved his potential at the highest level. The 20-year old point guard averaged 7.3 points, 1.4 rebounds and 1.2 assists in 27 matches and helped Kolossos make the best season in their history, finishing on the 6th position of the table.

Pappas who is now preparing for the U-20 European Championship with the Greek national team was obviously thrilled: "I am very happy for this and obviously the credits go also to Kolossos for trusting me and the coaching staff. This is only the beginning for me and i hope to continue every year on a better level".

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Weyinmi Efejuku is celebrating the Latvian championship, as last night Barons beat Vef Riga 78-71 and won the final series by 4-3, with the Providence graduate being without a doubt the MVP. The American shooting guard in his rookie season in Europe showed his quality throughout the year and lead Barons to the title, averaging an amazing 22.8 points in the play-offs and grabbing also the top scorer award in Latvia.

In yesterday's last final, the matchwas tied until half time, but during the 3rd period Efejuku gave a 10 point lead to Barons, which they managed to preserve until the end. Efejuku finished the match with 19 points and celebrated with his teammates the second title in 3 seasons for Barons. Congratulations!

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Unicaja Malaga faced a lot of problems during the season, but now that the play-offs started in Spanish ACB, Giorgos Printezis (photo left) and his teammates did the break in Valencia. The Greek international scored 14 points in just 19 minutes to allow the Andalucian club to take the valuable away win against the Eurocup winners and now Malaga is only a win at home away from the semi-finals.

In Latvia. Weyinmi Efejuku gave Barons the lead in the thrilling final series against VEF (3-2 wins for Barons) and they are only one win away from the title. The Providence graduate had another spectacular match with 26 points 3 rebounds and 6 assists to give Barons a narrow victory (81-77). Efejuku is completely on fire during the play-offs and averages the impressive 24 points per game!

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

One of Euroleague's hottest prospects is now a player represented by FCM. Dimitris Mavroidis signed his representation agreement with First Class Management, following his exceptional rookie season in Europe's most prolific competition, where the Greek center made his mark. An average of 9,6 points and 5 rebounds and a key role in Maroussi's amazing run, that took them to the Top16 and almost to the play-offs.

The 25-year old center had a consistent performance throughout the year, with some great matches (19 points against Alba, 12 points and 6 rebounds against Barcelona, 13 points against CSKA). Mavroidis who has been a member of all youth national teams of Greece is widely considered to get his first senior call this summer.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

First Class Management is happy to announce that Arturs Berzins signed a representation agreement with our agency. The talented Latvian power forward (1988, 2.05) is currently a player of Ventspils and had a good season for the 2009 champions, averaging 7.6 points and 3.5 rebounds in 20.4 minutes playing time.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Olympiacos was facing Maroussi for the first semi-final of the Greek play-offs, but had to deal also with the disappointment from the lost final of the Euroleague final four. Theo Papaloukas and Giannis Bourousis took the Piraeus club by the hand and lead the Reds into an easy victory by 69-53. Papaloukas was exceptional with 14 points with great percentages (4/4 2pts, 2/2 FTs, 1/2 3pts), but also contributed in all other parts of the game with 3 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 steals in 25 minutes. Bourousis dominated both paints with 12 points, 11 rebounds and 2 steals in just 18 minutes playing time. Panos Vasilopoulos was unlucky once again as he had problems with his back and was sidelined in order to recover and be available for the next matches.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Weyinmi Efejuku is in awesome form and his 25 points allowed Barons to win on the road against Vef Riga and tie the series of the Latvian finals to 1-1. The Jamaica born shooting guard apart from scoring with excellent percentages (6/2 2pts, 2/5 3pts, 7/8 FTs), also contributed 3 rebounds and 4 assists for Barons, who now look to take advantage of their home court in the tihrd final.

Efejuku makes an impressive end of the season as he averages 24.8 points in the Latvian play-offs, leading Barons to the finals.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

A great honour for Kostas Vasiliadis, as he was elected 5th guard-forward of the year at Europe's most competitive league, the Spanish ACB. The Greek shooting guard had an excellent season for newcomers Obradoiro, averaging 16 points and 3.8 rebounds in 30 minutes playing time, although his performances were not enough to save the Galician club. Vasiliadis had numerous great nights this season, his best being an amazing match against Real Madrid when he lead Obradoiro to their first ever win against the Spanish giants. Vasiliadis got 15 votes in a ballot between players, coaches and press, where Juan Carlos Navaro got the first place.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

First Class Management's players of Olympiacos are already in Paris, preparing themselves for the biggest rendez-vous of the season. Theo Papaloukas, Panagiotis Vasilopoulos (photo left) and Giannis Bourousis are looking forward for the Euroleague final four, which is scheduled to start on Friday, with the Greek team facing Partizan Belgrade in the semi-final.

Papaloukas is making a big record, as this will be his 8th consecutive appearance in a Euroleague final four and is hoping that after 2006 and 2008, he will get his 4rd Euroleague title. Bourousis and Vasilopoulos have both been crowned European champions in a national level with Greece in 2005, but are still to play a European final with Olympiakos as last season they lost in the Euroleague semi-final.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Aris Lykogiannis has done a tremendous job for Ikaros, leading the club from B'Division to the Greek A1, winning two consecutive promotions. FCM is happy to announce that the Greek coach and Ikaros renewed their partnership for the following season, where the club from Kallithea will make its first appearance in the big league.

After signing his new contract, Lykogiannis was obviously thrilled with the new challenge: "I am very happy to stay here, the conditions in Ikaros are ideal for any coach. There is a very busy summer ahead for us, but it also important to finish the current season as good as we started it". Ikaros is currently on top of A2 division, with 3 matches left to play and is the big favorite for winning the championship in the Greek A2.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ikaros/Esperos completed the miracle and 4 matches before the end of the Greek A2 league has already conirmed a spot for next season's Greek A1! The newcomers of this season's A2 - participating for the first time in their history - proved to be the best and most consistent team and FCM is thrilled to have played a big part in this success. The coach Aris Lykogiannis (photo left) and five key players of the team (Alexis Falekas, Vaggelis Karaboulas, Chris Petrodimopoulos, Giorgos Kerasovitis and Kostas Tziallas) are all represented by our agency.

From all of us, the warmest congratulations to our players and Aris Lykogiannis for their achievement!

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

George Dikeoulakos (photo left) made history again for the Greek basketball, as he bacame the first coach to ever leade a women's team to a triple crown! Athinaikos cruised in the Greek cup final four that was held in Veria and after winning the FIBA Eurocup and the Greek league (where his team is undefeated for the second year running). This title marks the end of an amazing season for the Greek coach, who got european recognition for his work, since apart from winning a european title, he was also appointed as Latvia's women national team selector and he will try to lead them into qualifying for the Eurobasket 2011.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In Spain, Giorgos Printezis (photo left) made a great performance for Unicaja Malaga, leading his team into a very important victory for the regular season. The Greek international scored 21 points with excellent percentages (9/11 2pts) in 27 minutes, plus 2 assists and 3 steals, in a thrilling 96-93 win for the Andalucian club. In Greece, Nikos Pappas and Kolossos gave Olympiacos a hard time, before the Euroleague title contenders got the victory in Rhodes. The U-20 European champion scored 12 points and continues an excellent season for Kolossos, who is currently on the 5th spot of the table.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Silvano Poropat is doing a magnificent job for Ventspils. After taking over in January, the Croatian coach has reformed last season's Latvian champions and their finally performing according to their skills. Ventspils managed to qualify for the Baltic League final four, to be held in Vilnis on April 24-25 where they are facing Euroleague's Zalgiris Kaunas in the semi-final.

But they are also in course for keeping their title at home. Poropat's team made the break in the first match of the semi-final series against VEF Riga (81-80), despite playing without 5 players due to injury and they will certainly try to reach the finals in order to fight for what they won last season.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

First Class Management is happy to announce that Stavros Toutziarakis (photo left) is added to its list of players. The 23-year old center (2.10cm) signed his representation agreement with FCM today and is looking forward for his next steps. Toutziarakis, a constant member of the Greek youth national teams for many years, is averaging 4 points and 3 rebounds in just 9 minutes playing time this season for AEK.

Panagiotis Vassilopoulos had a good game yesterday for Olympiakos, in the Reds victory on the road against Peristeri. The 26-year old forward scored 11 points (with 2/2 3pts), plus 4 rebounds in just 18 minutes, showing that he is also ready for the big rendez-vous in Paris for the Euroleague final four in a few weeks time.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

One of the last castles for the Greek basketball fell last night, as Athinaikos became the first ever Greek women team to lift a European cup! George Dikeoulakos has the honour to lead his magnificent team to the Eurocup title, despite losing from russian Nadezdha in the second final that took place in Athens.

The Greek coach is leading Athinaikos to an unprecedent triple crown, as his team is for second season in a row unbeaten in the Greek league and is also qualified for the final four of the Greek cup, being the clear favorite. If we add last season's double and the gold medal in the men's U-18 European Championship with Greece (where Dikeoulakos was assistant coach), it makes a glorious sum of 6 titles in two years.

Dikeoulakos' work is obiously making great results, something that the Greek coach is hoping to keep on happening in the near future, as he is the new coach of Latvia's national team, with the goal to reach the women's Eurobasket of 2011 and the qualifiers scheduled to be played this summer. From all of us in FCM, congratulations George!

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Europe´s greatest have a rendez-vous in Paris for this year´s Euroleague final four and of course the FCM players could not be absent. Theo Papaloukas, Giannis Bourousis and Panos Vasilopoulos will travel to the city of lights with the hope of becoming the new european champions between 7-9 May and allow Olympiacos to sit on the european throne after 14 years. The Greek club qualified to the final four after eliminating Prokom with 3-1 wins, which made Theo Papaloukas the player with the most presences in Europe´s biggest tournament, since this will be the 8th consequetive season that the 32-year old point guard will fight for the Euroleague title. A great accomplishment for Papaloukas, who last month was selected among Euroleague's top 10 players of the last decade, not only for his final four participations, his two titles and the 2006 MVP prize, but also because he is Euroleague's all time assist leader.

Bourousis will play his 2nd final four in the row after Berlin´s experience last season, whereas Vasilopoulos who got injured a few days before Berlin's final four will have a chance to play for the first time. Olympiacos will face Euroleague´s surprise team Partizan, a team they know well as they played against them in the regular season. The Greeks lost in Belgrade and won easily in Piraeus, meaning that this will be an exciting semi-final. The other two clubs that will be in Paris are Barcelona and CSKA Moscow. From all of us, the best of luck.

George Dikeoulakos is enjoying the finest period of his career, as a few hours ago Athinaikos beat Nadzedha in the first final of Women Eurocup in Russia and took a big advantage for the return final next Thursday in Athens. The Greek coach saw his team play an exceptional final, leading the match almost in its entire duration and the final result (65-57), means that Athinaikos needs a simple victory (or even a defeat until 6 points) to become the first women club of Greece to ever lift a European trophy.

Dikeoulakos last month was announce as the new head coach of Latvia's women national team, a great recognition for his work the past two seasons both in Athinaikos (undefeated in the Greek league the last two seasons) and in the Greek Women NT, where as the assistant coach lead them to the 5th spot of last summer's Eurobasket.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

What a great time this has been for Fotis Katsikaris. The Greek coach lead Bilbao the Eurocup final four for the first time in the Basque club's history. Bilbao lost the second quarter final at home against Nymbourk, but their 13-point victory in Czech Republic last week was more than enough to give them the ticket to Vitoria, where the Final Four will take place. But it's not only in Europe where Bilbao is doing great. Successive victories for the Spanish ACB have lead Katsikaris' team from worrying about relegation, to fighting for a spot in the play-offs, as they are one win away from the top 8 clubs of the league.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It is with great pleasure that First Class Management announces that George Dikeoulakos is the new coach of Latvia's women national team. The Greek coach who is doing miracles with Athinaikos the past couple of years was selected by the Latvian Federation to lead the Women National Team for the next two years. The big goal of course is to qualify for Eurobasket 2011 and there to fight for one of the spots that will send Latvia to the London 2012 Olympic Games.

Dikeoulakos, who is to compete for the Eurocup trophy in the beginning of April when Athinaikos is facing Nadzedha in a double final, flew to Riga and was presented from the Latvian Federation to the members of the press. Dikeoulakos becomes the first Greek coach who will take over a Women selection of another country and of course all of us wish him the best.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

He has won the Euroleague title 2 times. He has played in 7 final-fours. He is the all-time leader in assists in Euroleague. And he is one of the last players who can change the fate of a team when he is on the court. No wonder that Theo Papaloukas was elected among the 10 best players for this decade in the procedure that was run by the Euroleague organization and included both fan and experts voting.

The 33-year old point guard spent 6 extremely successful seasons in Moscow with CSKA and lead them to the european throne after a quarter od a century. Papaloukas was the MVP of the Prague final four in 2006, when CSKA returned to the top of European basketball. In 2007, he almost won the title himself in an epic final in Athens and in 2008 he wore again the winner's medal in his chest. Last year, he returned to Olympiacos and after 10 years the Greek club qualified to the Berlin final four, something that is very likely to happen this year as well.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Obradoiro is fighting for survival in the Spanish ACB and Kostas Vasiliadis is always the player where the Galician club can put most of their hopes. The Greek shooting guard had another excellent performance yesterday, scoring 27 points and leading Obradoiro to a crucial victory against Bruesa. Vasiliadis is proving to be a top scorer, averaging 16,3 points in the most competitive European domestic league.

In Bilbao, Fotis Katsikaris is continuing to do great job for the Basque team. When the Greek coach took over, Bilbao were lying at the bottom of the table, but Katsikaris rapidly reformed Bilbao and they are now not only above the relegation zone, but they are also challenging for a play-off spot, something that seemed almost impossible a few weeks ago.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It's party time for the Greek basketball, as this weekend the 2010 All-Star Game is taking place in Crete and specifically in Heraklion, where the stars of the Greek A1 will have the chance to play for the first time in the city's new indoor hall. First Class Management is more than happy to send 8 of its players in the All-Star game. Theo Papaloukas and Giannis Bourousis from Olympiakos and Giannis Kalabokis (photo left) from Panionios will feature in the All-Star match, whereas Nikos Pappas, Vaggelis Sakellariou, Alexandros Sigkounas and Charis Giannopoulos will participate in the Youth All-Star match.

Giannopoulos will also participate in the 3-point shootout, where he will have to beat last year's winner Dimitri Karadolami, who returns to the All-Star weekend to defend his title. It looks like it's gonna be a great basketball weekend in Crete!

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

He was injured in the eye and absent for almost 3 weeks. But Weyinmi Efejuku returned to action with an amazing performance for Barons, who beat champions Ventspils in the big latvian derby after 2 overtimes, with the Providence graduate on sensational form. Efejuku destroyed Ventpsils' defence, scoring 41 points, plus 6 rebounds, 2 assists and 4 steals. Another spectacular display by the American shooting guard who is showing his quality already from his rookie season in Europe.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In Spain, Kostas Vasiliadis (photo left) tried to beat Real Madrid on his own, but the Greek shooting guard's 23 points (with 6 three-pointers) were not enough for Obradoiro, who lost 92-80 in the Spanish capital. In Greece, Nikos Pappas is maturing his game and helping Kolossos to stabilize its position at the 5th place of the Greek A1. The 20-year old guard lead the scoring board for Kolossos with 13 points (plus 3 rebounds and 2 assists in 22minutes) and the Rhodes club made a crucial victory on the road against Kavala. Giorgos Tsiakos had another good performance for Peristeri (11 points, 9 rebounds) and contributed in a miraculous come-back, but Panellinios held on to win at home.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

First Class Management is happy to announce that George Dikeoulakos is now represented by our agency. The 41-year old Greek coach is doing great things with Athinaikos, leading the Greek Women league undefeated, but also doing a great season in Eurocup, where they are one of the favorites to reach the final. Dikeoulakos had also great success last summer, where as an assistant of Kostas Missas took the gold medal in the Men's Under-20 European Championship and also lead the Women's national team in their biggest moment in history of the Greek basketball with the 5th place in the Eurobasket.

From all of us a warm welcome to George Dikeoulakos and the best wishes for the remainder of the season.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

February was a great month for Weyinmi Efejuku (photo left) and Fotis Katsikaris. The American shooting guard lead Barons into a series of win that allowed them to stay on top of the Latvian league, averaging 20,2 points per game and rightfully getting the Player of the month award for the LBL. Efejuku is temporarily sidelined with an eye injury, but is scheduled to return to action until the end of March and help Barons fight for the title.

In Spain, Fotis Katsikaris had an immediate impact after taking over Bilbao. The Greek coach lead the Basque club outside the relegation zone for the first time this season. In Eurocup, Bilbao is also impressive and is already qualified for the quarter finals of the competition, with great chances to reach the final four that is scheduled to take place in Vitoria, Spain. No wonder that the ACB announced Katsikaris as Cocach of the month for February.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Eight years was a very long period for a club like Olympiacos to be without a trophy. The drought ended on Sunday where the Reds beat Panathinaikos 68-64 in the Greek Cup final and lifted their first title since 2002. FCM would like to congratulate Theo Papaloukas, Giannis Bourousis and Panos Vasilopoulos for their success.

Theo Papaloukas was the only player present in 2002 final fo Olympiacos and after spending 6 glorious seasons in CSKA Moscow was the man to lift the Cup for the Pireaus club, as the team captain. The 32-year old point guard was exceptional in the final, with 6 assists, 5 steals and 4 rebounds, whereas Giannis Bouroussis was also great. Despite not having practiced for almost 2 weeks because of the swine flu, the Greek center gave and won many battles in the paints, allowing him to win his first domestic trophy.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

As expected the Greek A1 attracts most attention, but this season in the Greek A2 there is a small miracle taking place. On top of the table and big favorite to be promoted in A1 is Ikaros Esperos, a club that is playing for the first time in the A2 league, but nevertheless has impressed everyone with its performances so far. FCM is really happy to watch Ikaros progress and succeed, as the coach Aris Lykogiannis (photo left) and 5 key players (Alexis Falekas, Chris Petrodimopoulos, Giorgos Kerasovitis, Vaggelis Karaboulas and Kostas Tziallas) of the club are represented by our agency. Last weekend, Ikaros was hosting Iraklis, the big name of the league and favorite to go up to the A1 again. The two teams were co-leaders before the start of the match, but Ikaros totally thrashed the Salonica club by 28 points (89-61), behind Petrodimopoulos 16 points and 4 rebounds and Falekas great organization match (11 points, 3 rebounds, 4 assists and no turnovers).

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Fotis Katsikaris lead Bilbao to their biggest win of the season, as the Basque club beat Real Madrid on the road 87-80. It was a massive win for Bilbao, which allowed the Greek coach to be even more optimistic for the future of the Bilbao in their effort to avoid relegation in the Spanish ACB. With this victory, Bilbao came out of the relegation zone for the first time this season and is now preparing for the Copa del Ray this weekend, to be held in their home. In Malaga, Giorgos Printezis was again Unicaja's cornerstone in beating Cajasol 86-77 in the Andalucian derby. The Greek international scored 16 points (plus 3 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals) in 26 minutes to help Reneses's team reach even closer to a play-off spot.

In Greece. Giannis Kalabokis and Travon Bryant were enough for Panionios to return to victories against Kolossos. The Greek guard scored 14 points, but also provided with 7 assists his teammates, whereas the American center dominated both paints (17 points, 7 rebounds, 8/9 2pts) to lead Nenad Markovic's team into a win that can be crucial for their play-offs target. Theo Papaloukas was Olympiacos' top scorer against Kavala, scoring 17 points plus 3 rebounds, 3 steals and 2 assists, beginning an important week for the Reds, as they play against PAOK on Wednesday and meet Panathinaikos for the Greek Cup final on Saturday.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Weyinmi Efejuku (left) keeps scoring for Barons, leading them to the top of the table of the Latvian league. The Providence graduate is enjoying an awesome rookie season in Europe and in Baron's last match against Liepaja, the American shooting guard was on fire. 25 points, but also 8 assists and 2 rebounds were the numbers of his impressive performance.

In Euroleague's Top16, Giorgos Printezis and Unicaja Malaga celebrated their first win against Zalgiris. The Greek intenational was again one of the conerstones of Malaga's success, scoring 14 points plus 2 rebounds in just 18 minutes to keep the Spanish club's hopes for qualification alive.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Peristeri was coming from a series of bad results and they really needed the win against Kavala in order to keep their play-offs hopes alive. Giorgos Tsiakos (photo left) stepped up to lead the Athens club to an important victory (73-68), scoring a season high of 16 points, plus 8 rebounds and 1 steal in 27 minutes to secure the two points and make Peristeri be hopeful for the future.

In Rhodes, Nikos Pappas returned to his usual high standards this season. Kolossos is enjoying a great season so far (lying in the 6th place of the table) and in the match against Trikala, the 19-year old guard was sensational. 12 points in just 14 minutes (without missing a single shot, 3/3 2pts, 1/1 3pts, 3/3 FTs), plus 2 assists completed a fine performance from Pappas. In Spain, Giorgos Printezis helped Malaga to overcome the obstacle of Lagun Aro, scoring 15 points (plus 4 rebounds and 2 assists in 19 minutes).

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Silvano Poropat is less than a month in Ventspils, but the team is already showing progress. The Latvian champions made a great victory against Zalgiris Kaunas for the Baltic league, with the impressive 94-80. Poropat's team was leading the match in every quarter and with this win the Croatian coach lead Ventspils into reaching the 3rd place of the Baltic League standings, behind Euroleague's Zalgiris and Lietuvos Rytas.

Elsewhere in Latvia, Weyinmi Efejuku keeps scoring for Barons. The Providence graduate scored 34 points (plus 9 rebounds and 4 assists), continuing a very good season so far. The 24-year old shooting guard averages 16 points, 3.2 rebounds and 1.9 assists in 23 minutes average playing time in his rookie season in Europe.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Fotis Katsikaris was officially presented from Bilbao today in fornt of a large number of members of the press, who were waiting to hear what the Greek coach had to say. "I am happy to be here. Bilbao is one of the most exciting basketball projects in Europe and is a club that has been growing for many years now" were Katsikaris first words, who didn't seem to be preoccupied by the Club's difficult position in the Spanish ACB standings."I am very optimistic about the club's future. The team has very good players and since i am a young coach, i want to grow together with the club".

Katsikaris described what he wants to improve before everything else in Bilbao's game: "First of all, we have to start from the defence. It is like a bank that keeps your money safe. It gives you credibility. We don't want to destroy the game, but to start from the defence and build on that". The Greek coach is already in charge of the trainings in Bizkaia Arena and watched Bilbao win on the road yesterday against Granada, currently lying 1 win away from safety and 3 wins away from a play-off position.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

FCM announces the signing of a contract between Fotis Katsikaris and Bilbao. The Greek coach will lead the Basque team for the next 1,5 years and is already in Spain. Bilbao is facing a difficult second half of the season as the lie second to last in the spanish ACB, but they also have the Copa del Rey at their home and the next round of Eurocup, where they qualified.

Katsikaris resigned from Aris a few days ago, after leading the club into the next round of Eurocup, where the team from Salonica finished top of their group. Katsikaris is returning to Spain after a successful spell in Valencia. He will be presented to the local media on Monday.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

FCM is happy to announce that Silvano Poropat is the new headcoach of Ventspils. The Croatian coach, who lead Ludwigsburg into their biggest successes during his 5 year stay there, will arrive in Ventspils today and get in charge of the Latvian champions, who didn't have a bright start of the season.

Poropat made his name in Germany, where he took Ludwigsburg from the second division league to the German Bundesliga and in 2008 lead them to the German cup final. The Croation coach signed a 1,5 year contract with the Latvian champions and wants to give them a new start both in the domestic league and also in the Baltic league.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The new year started in style for the two FCM players in the ACB league. Kostas Vasiliadis (left) continues to be on fire this season, leading Obradoiro to another success against Badalona. The Greek shooting guard scored 22 points (plus 4 rebounds and 4 assists) in 26 minutes to lead the league's newcomers into a victory that might give them the 8th spot and a place at the Copa del Rey tournament.

In Malaga, Giorgos Printezis helped Unicaja overcome the obstacle of Granada, finishing the match with 16 points (8/11 2pts), 7 rebounds and 2 assists in 26 minutes playing time.. In the Greek A1, another solid performance for Giorgos Tsiakos and Peristeri. The 27-year old power forward was a towering figure in the paints, scoring 7 points and downing 10 rebounds in the derby against PAOK. In Rhodes, Nikos Pappas had another good match with 11 points against Euroleague club Marousi, but Kolossos lost in the overtime.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It was his night... Giannis Kalabokis took Panionios by the hand and Olympiacos suffered the first defeat this season from Panionios in the overtime (96-94). The Greek international was unstoppable, scoring 28 points with an amazing 6/7 3pts, plus the match winner basket that allowed his team to beat the league leaders.

Kalabokis, after playing for the first time in the Greek National team in last summer's Eurobasket, getting his first medal, continues to offer his valuable services for Panionios and proving to be one of the top quality players in Greece. No wonder, his performance lead HEBA to announce him as the MVP of the 8th matchday. Travon Bryant was also exceptional for Nenad Markovic's team with 12 points and 9 rebounds.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Alexandros Sigkounas is continuing to impress. In his first full season in the Greek A1 the youngster is proving valuable for Kavala. The 20-year old forward scored 13 points and grabbed 4 rebounds in 26 minutes, but his club lost in Larisa. Sigkounas keeps showing signs of his improvement match by match, gaining more playing time as the season continues.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In the NCAA world, it was no secret that Weyinmi Efejuku was a true scorer. After just a few days in Latvia, the Providence graduate is showing his qualities this side of the Atlantic as well. The 23-year old shooting guard scored 25 points with great percentages (9/10 FTs, 7/12 2pts, 1/2 3pts) in just 24 minutes, to lead Barons into winning Valmiera 81-75. But it wasn't only the points, as Efejuku grabbed 9 rebounds and offered 2 assists, in a specacular performance.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Real Madrid was flying high in the Spanish ACB, running an unbeatean run of 11 matches since the start of the season, but the honeymoon ended when they met Kostas Vasiliadis! The Greek guard lead Obradoiro to a great win (78-68) against Ettore Messina's team. Vasiliadis' 25 points proved more than enough for the league's newcomers and the 25-year old player was undoubtebly the MVP of the day in Spain.

The other FCM player who is playing in Spain, was also his team's key factor for a big win. Giorgos Printezis returned from his injury and on Sunday he scored 15 points to lead Malaga into winning on the road against Bilbao. The 24-year old international had also 2 rebounds and 2 assists in 24 minutes and is obviously improving Malaga's game with his presence.

In Greece, Nikos Pappas was very positive once more for Kolossos. The 19-year old guard scored 10 points in just 17 minutes and Kolossos won on thw road against Olympia Larisa, taking their record to 5-2 this season.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

For a long period of 1,5 month Giorgos Printezis was working on his injured shoulder, waiting for the time to return to action. It was very special for him to do it in the match against Olympiacos, the club he played for 9 years. The fans of the Greek club didn't forget Printezis time with the Reds and the 24-year old forward was applauded even when he scored against Olympiacos. Printezis finished the match with 12 points and 7 rebounds in 22 minutes, but an injury-struck Malaga lost by 21 points.

His former teammates and other FCM players welcomed him before the match, but on the court did their best for Olympiacos. Theo Papaloukas was instrumental once more, finishing with 9 points and 7 assists, whereas Giannis Bourousis scored 10 points and grabbed 6 rebounds.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The young players of FCM are starting to take the situation in their hands and show their skills every week. Nikos Pappas (left), the U-18 European Champion last summer, is becoming an integral part for high-flying Kolossos and it was Kavala's turn to feel that. Pappas scored 13 points plus 2 assists and 1 rebound in just 20 minutes for the home team, whereas Alexandros Sigkounas was fighting for Kavala. The 21-year old forward, following a great performance against PAOK, scored 12 points with excellent percenteges (4/5 2pts, 1/1 3pts) and grabbed 5 rebounds in 25 minutes.

In Spain, Kostas Vasiliadis is still going strong for Obradoiro. The Greek shooting guard scored 12 points (plus 3 rebounds and 4 assists) to help ACB's newcomers to win on the road against Lagun Aro (65-69). Vasiliadis in enjoying a sensational season so far, averaging 15.8 points and being the 7th overall scorer in Europe's most competitive league.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Weyinmi Efejuku made his debut for Latvian club Barons and the Providence graduate was an immediate impact. The 23-year old shooting guard scored 14 points in 22 minutes, hekping his team cruise against Zemgale for the Latvian league. The Jamaican-born player started the season in Spain, but due to the financial problems of his club, he had to move to Latvia.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

He is notorious in Europe for appearing when the big matches are there. And last night was no different for Theo Papaloukas, who lead Olympiacos in a big win against their arch rivals Panathinaikos. The 32-year old point guard was sensational with 20 points in 18 minutes and an amazing 4/4 3pts which allowed the reds to win with 87-76. For Olympiacos, Giannis Bourousis was also very good with 10 points and 6 rebounds.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

n other games, our two young players start to show their worth in the higher level. Nikos Pappas (photo left), scored 8 points in just 12 minutes for Kolossos against AEK, while Alexandros Sigkounas was a started in Kavalas' big home win against PAOK. Sigkounas played great defence against Kenny Gregory and also contributed 7 points and 4 rebounds in 21 minutes.

In Spain, Kostas Vasiliadis continues to score with great continuity. The 25-year old shooting guard had 23 points against Valencia, but Obradoiro didn't manage to win at home.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

FCM is happy to announce that Travon Bryant is returning to Greece, this time to wear the jersey of Panionios. The American forward-center had a great season with AEK last year, averaging 11,9 points and 7.1 rebounds in 24 matches and will now join Nenad Markovic's team who hasn't had the best start in the Greek league.

Bryant is already in Athens and trained with his new teammates. He is expected to make his debut for Panionios this weekend, when the Athens club is hosting Olympia Larisa.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Last Thursday, Efes Pilsen gave Olympiakos a hard time, but the FCM players stepped up to lead the Greek club. Giannis Bourousis (left) and Panagiotis Vassilopoulos were magnificent against the Turkish champions. Bourousis, who just returned from a knee injury, broke all records by scoring 23 points in just 12 (!) minutes, without missing a single shot! Vasilopoulos on the other hand, who was absent for the last 3 months of the season 2008-09, was again at his normal best, scoring 18 points with 4 three-pointers, plus 5 rebounds and 2 steals. Theo Papaloukas was also instrumental in organizing Olympiacos' game, finishing the match with 8 assists!

In Spain, Kostas Vasiliadis keeps scoring for Obradoiro, who stunned Euroleague's Malaga with an emphatic 83-66 win. It was the third success in a row for the league's newcomers and Vasiliadis' 21 points plus 8 rebounds were the main reason for it. The Greek shooting guard is enjoying an excellent season so far, averaging 16,4 points in ACB.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Kostas Vasiliadis is leading Obradoiro in the Spanish ACB and this week it was the team's turn to win for the first time away from home. The victim was Manresa and the Greek shooting guard had another excellent performance. 18 points with magnificent statistics (4/4 free throws, 1/1 2pts, 4/5 3pts), plus 5 rebounds in just 22 minutes.

Giorgos Printezis on the other hand came back to Athens to be examined by his doctors, following his serious shoulder injury last week. The 25-year old forward took Malaga's permission to fly to his hometown and will remain in Athens for a few days.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Obradoiro waited for more than 20 years to achieve its first victory in the Spanish ACB and Kostas Vasiliadis was there to play a vital part. The Greek shooting guard scored 19 points with 5 three-pointers to help the league's newcomers to secure the season's first success against Fuenlabrada. Vasiliadis also grabbed 5 rebounds and offered 2 assists in 26 minutes.

In Seville, bad luck had a meeting with Giorgos Printezis. The Greek international had a serious injury as he dunked in Cajasol's basket and suffered a fracture in his shoulder, which will leave him at least for a month off. Printezis was enjoying another great game for Malaga (10 points in the first 14 minutes of the match), but his injury was a major blow for Aito Reneses' team, who lost for the 5th time in a row in Spain.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The first matchday of the Greek A1 league saw Giannis Kalabokis continue where he left of last season. Scoring! The Greek international scored 19 points for Panionios with excellent percenteges (8/8 FTs, 4/6 2pts, 1/3 3pts) in 33 minutes, plus 2 rebounds and 2 assists, but it was Peristeri who took the victory in their return to the Greek A1. Giorgos Tsiakos was very good in both sides of the floor for the home team with 9 points and 9 rebounds in 22 minutes.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

George Printezis tried to win Real Madrid on his own, but Malaga lost at home from Ettore Messina's team 81-79, despite the 18 points from the Greek international. Printezis also had 5 rebounds and 1 assist in 32 minutes but Reneses' team failed to win once more.

In Greece, A2 is on its way and impressive performances from Nikos Liakopoulos (26 points for Perama), Chris Petrodimopoulos (17 points for Ikaros) and Spiros Magkounis (14 points in the away win for Rethimno) marked the 1st matchday of the league.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Fotis Katsikaris is returning to Greece, to lead Aris! The Greek coach, who spent the last few years outside the country, leading clubs like Pamesa Valencia (reached the final eight of the ULEB Cup) and Spartak St. Petersburg is the new boss of the Salonica club and will replace Andrea Mazzon. Katsikaris is already in Salonica and is expected to make his debut against Olympiacos in the first matchday of the Greek league.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

FCM would like to congratulate Giorgos Printezis, Giannis Bourousis and Giannis Kalabokis for the bronze medal in Eurobasket 2009. The three FCM players were all involved in the Greek National Team's effort to reach the podium in Poland and after a thrilling 3rd place final against Slovenia, Greece won its first bronze medal after 60 years!

Giannis Bourousis was the starting center for Greece, having a great tournament with 10.4 points and 7.3 rebounds per game, averaging 24 minutes on the floor and providing a spectacular display against Croatia (19points and 9 rebounds). Giorgos Printezis was called to cover the hole in the small forward position for Greece and despite playing there for the first time he came off the bench to provide energy and solutions. He averaged 5.4 points ans 2.4 rebounds in 16 minutes, playing a significant role in the quarter final against Turkey where he played great defence against NBA star Hedo Turkoglu and scored the crucial 3 pointer at the end of the match. Giannis Kalabokis, despite being a rookie in a big tournament, he responded great to his role and gave a quality backup for Greece's backcourt. Kalabokis scored 3.3 points (plus 1.6 rebounds and 1 assist in just 14 minutes), showing his case in the match against Israel, where he scored 12 points in 25 minutes and lead Greece to win.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Laszlo Dobos is having an impressive performance at his first European appearance with the Hungarian NT in the U-16 tournament. The 2.18 center has so far an average of 19 points, 8.7 rebounds and 2 blocks per game, with great percenteges (73% FG's, 82% FT's) and has already lead his team into two wins out of three matches, that allows them to continue to the quarter finals of the European Championship.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Nenad Markovic is returning to Panionios. FCM is happy to announce that the Bosnian coach agreed terms with the Nea Smyrni club and is coming back to Athens to lead Panionios for the second time in his career. The former Bosnia national team coach was in charge of the club for the season 2007-08, which was very successful, as Panionios finished 3rd in the Greek A1 and won its qualification for the Euroleague.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Nikos Pappas, Charis Giannopoulos (left) and Vaggelis Sakellariou added their names to the list of the European Champions last night, after Greece beat France in the U-20 final in Rhodes. In a thrilling match the Greek team managed to overcome France's comeback in the second half and take the title with the final result being 90-85.

Pappas scored 10 points, but offered also 5 assists to his teammates, despite playing with an ankle injury he carried from the semi-final against Spain. Giannopoulos, the Greek captain came from the bench to offer great solutions and finished the final with 14 points and 4/6 3pts. This is the 4th medal for Pappas (Gold in the U-18 last season, Silver in the World U-19 earlier this summer, Silver in the U-18 2 years ago), the second for Giannopoulos and the first for Sakellariou. Congratulations!

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Vaggelis Sakellariou (left) had a great day yesterday, since except the Greek U-20 NT qualifying for the semi-final of the European Championship, he also signed his new contract with Trikala. The 20-year old point guard returns to the Greek A1, after spending beginning last season with Avellino and then joining Pagkrati in the Greek A2.

Another point guard who signed is Vassilis Xanthopoulos, who after 2 successful seasons with Panionios, joins Panellinios. The 25-year old player will try to help the Olympians make the next step and fight for a Euroleague spot. Xanthopoulos signed a 2-year deal with the Athens club.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Giorgos Printezis was officialy presented in Malaga, after signing his 3-year contract. The president of the club mr. Francisco Molina was the one to introduce the Greek international to the members of the press and was full of praise for Malaga's signing: "We have been following him for years and we are very happy that we managed to sign him. Our coach and our general manager are sure that Giorgos will add to our team and our goal was to bring him in Malaga for many years. I would like to wish him the best of luck and every success both personal and for the club".

Giorgos Printezis took the jersey with number 7 and was obviously happy with his choice to sign with Malaga: "I would like to thank the president, the GM and the coach for their interest. They showed from the very beginning that they really wanted me to come here and this played a great role in my decision. I spoke with Kostas Vasiliadis and he told me the best things about the city and the club's organization". The 24-year old forward explained also: "I like Malaga's playing style and i think that i fit here well. Mr. Reneses likes to work with players of my characteristics and i hope that i will help the club. Everybody knows that the spanish league is the most competitive in Europe".

As for the NBA, Printezis replied: "Right now i have only Malaga in my mind for the next seasons. Toronto has always monitored my progress and if i work here and develop my game furthermore, maybe i will be able to make the big step someday".

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Nikos Pappas and Giorgos Georgakis won the silver medal with the Greek NT in the U-19 World Championship in New Zealand. Pappas, the captain of Greece had an excellent tournament, leading the European Champions in their quest for the gold medal, but the USA were too strong. Pappas was one of the stars of the tournament and was elected in the Best Line-Up of the World Championship alongside with Prostran and Dellas from Croatia and Taylor and Hayward from the USA.

Nikos Pappas enjoyed another fine tournament for Greece, leading the score with 15,6 average, plus 4,1 rebounds and 2,9 assists in 9 games, playing an average of 28,5 minutes per game. The Greek guard will not rest now, as he will immediately join the U-20 NT, which is preparing for the European Championship to be held in Rhodes later this month.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Nikos Pappas lead Greece into a crucial victory in the do or die match against France for the U-19 World Championship in New Zealand. The Greek guard scored 20 points and also added 8 rebounds and 4 assists to send Greece to the quarter finals after beating the French 76-72. Pappas, who is under contract with ACB club Bilbao, is enjoying a fine World Championship so far, averaging 15,8 points, 4 rebounds and 2,8 assists so far. Greece is facing Argentina in the quarter-final tomorrow.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Laszlo Dobos is considered one of the most prolific talents in Europe for his age and the Hungarian prospect is progressing every day. The 2.16 center won the U-16 league in his country, scoring 25 points in the final and of course he was elected a member of the all-star team. Dobos is expected to participate in this summer's U-16 European Championship with the Hunarian National Team, in his first european exposure.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Tyrone Brazelton in his first professional season won the league title in Poland with Prokom, after the Sopot club beat Turow 96-74 in the 5th final of the polish league. Brazelton came from the bench to score 11 points, plus 3 assists in 20 minutes to help his team win the title and qualify for the Euroleague of the next season.

The young American point-guard concluded an excellent first season in Europe after graduating from Western Kentucky, having a great first half season in Latvia with Ventspils, then moved to Prokom for the Euroleague Top16 and the polish play-offs.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Giannis Kalabokis maybe only a few days in Treviso, but the italian league is already feeling his presence. The Greek guard came from the bench to lead Bennetton in a very important victory at Bologna against Virtus (90-85 in overtime), something that allows Bennetton to have home advantage in the first round of play-offs. Kalabokis was sensational with 22 points and 7 rebounds in 29 minutes and is now prepearing for the play-off series.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

FCM is pleased to announce that Giannis Kalabokis is a player of Bennetton Treviso for the remaining of the season. The Greek guard was a free-agent after Panionios disqualification from the play-offs of the Greek league and Bennetton didn't waste any time to sign Kalabokis and add a quality player to their roster, with two match remaining for the end of the regular season in Italy and obviously the play-offs coming after that.

Kalabokis is already in Treviso, where he is going to be presented by the club to the press later today. The 30-year old guard had an average of 10 points in 22 minutes playing time this season for Panionios and is his first time to leave Greece.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Antonio Burks (left) is still doing a great job for Polish underdogs Czarni, after leading them to a surprise victory in Turow's home court in extra time. Czarni, who do not have the home advantage in this play-off series, beat Turow 99-98 and the American point guard was impressive in the extra time, where he scored 10 points and locked Tyus Edney in defence, giving Czarni the chance to lead the series 1-0.

In Greece, Theo Papaloukas seems to be in great form this month and was awarded the MVP of the 25th matchday for the Greek A1. The 32-year old international lead Olympiacos in a big victory in Panellinios' home with 88-84 and Papaloukas was sensational. 20 points, 4 rebounds, 6 assists in just 27 minutes and a leading attitude when Panellinios got a 12 point lead in the middle of the 3rd quarter.

In Spain, Nikos Pappas after returning to Madrid with the Nike Hoop Summit victory medal, gave another great performance for Real Madrid's second team. The Greek U-18 European Champion scored 26 points (plus 3 assists, 4 steals) in just 29 minutes, in his club away loss from Avila by 99-91.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Nikos Pappas was part of a historic win last Saturday in Portland's Rose Garden, as the U-19 World selection beat the U.S.A team 97-89 in the annual Nike Hoop summit match. The Greek talent was on the starting five and had an excellent game with 10 points (3/4 2pts, 1/2 3pts, 1/2 FTs, plus 2 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals in 24 minutes), controlling the game flow as the team's point guard.

The World selection started of slowly in front of 12,000 spectators and at the end of the 3rd quarted was trailing 70-61. But the european talents took the situation in their hands and with an amazing fourth quarter (36-19), shocked the home team. Pappas had for the first time as teammates some great talents that he only played as an opponent so far in the Youth national teams tournaments, such as Milan Macvan (Serbia) and Donatas Motiejunas (Lithuania) and their combined skills, lead the World selection in this exciting win.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Antonio Burks took Czarni by the hand and sent his club through to the play-off semi finals in Poland. The American point guard had an excellent performance in the fourth match against Kotwica and Czarni won 107-96 in overtime, to secure a place in the Polish league top 4 teams with 3-1 victories. Burks was instrumental with 10 points and 9 assists, organizing Czarni's game perfectly. Since his arrival in February, Czarni is a whole different team and will now try to break through the play-off finals.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Giannis Bourousis added another superb performance in his resume, leading Olympiakos in a crucial victory in Panionios' home, a win that secures the Reds' home advantage for the Greek play-offs. Bourousis was fantastic, with 27 points, 13 rebounds and 3 blocks, dominating both paints and was rightfully voted the MVP of the Greek A1 for this matchday. Theo Papaloukas helped him out a lot, as most of his 9 assists were for Bourousis.

The Greek guard had also 10 points and along with Giorgos Printezis (15 points) created the triangle that lead Olympiakos to this important success. For Panionios, Giannis Kalabokis scored 20 points and with 2/2 free throws tied the match few seconds before time, but Olympiakos made the most of the last posession and won.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Nikos Pappas (left) is already in Portland, Oregon, as he will feature in the NIKE Hoop Summit tournament which will be held this coming Saturday, April 11th. The Hoop Summit gathers the best international prospects from the world to form an All-star team and play against the best US prospects and the Greek U-18 European champion is in this exclusive list. Pappas, currently playing in Real Madrid's second team lead Greece in the European Championship last summer and he was also the MVP of the Albert Schweitzer tournament in Manheim.

In Hungary, Kristian Wittmann lifted the Cup with his team Pecs. The young point guard had an excellent performance in the final, scoring 20 points and leading his teammtes to the trophy!

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Giannis Bourousis took Olympiakos by the hand and sealed the ticket to the Euroleague final four. The 27-year old center gave an unprecedent performance in Madrid, proving a problem that Real Madrid never solved. 25 points and 6 rebounds were his final numbers, but also the other FCM players were important for the Greek team. Theo Papaloukas, Giorgos Printezis and Panos Vasilopoulos all contributed a lot and after 10 years Olympiacos will feature in Europe's big rendez-vous.

A special note for Theo Papaloukas, as this will be his 7th consecutive final four, a great record for Olympiacos' captain who will try to capture his 3rd European trophy.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ivan Lilov won the Balkan league with his team Rilski, as the Bulgarian club was the winner of the final four of the European competition. The 21-year old guard had two great games in the final four, especially in the thrilling semi-final against Mega Hypo from Serbia. Lilov scored 17 points (plus 3 rebounds, 2 assists and 3 steals in 31 minutes) to lead his club into a narrow win (83-81). In the final against Rabotnicki, Lilov scored 14 points (plus 3 rebounds and 3 assists in 33 minutes) to help Rislki lift its first ever european trophy.

Lilov concluded his European appearances this season with impressive numbers: 14.3 points, 2.8 rebounds, 3.4 assists, proving season by season that he is constantly improving.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Dimitris Karadolamis and Giannis Bouroussis (photo left) were the big stars of the Greek All-star game which was held in Xanthi, as the two FCM players won the prizes. Karadolamis won both 3-point contests, on Saturday the youth player's one and on Sunday he beat Yotam Halperin to win the Best Shooter Award for the Greek league.

The all-star match was a triumph for the Greek players against the foreigners that play in Greece. Giannis Bourousis was the MVP of the match with 23 points and 8 rebounds in just 18 minutes, closely followed by Theo Papaloukas whose 18 points, 12 rebounds and 6 assists were another example of his fine quality.

In Italy, Kostas Vasiliadis continues to impress with his performances. The 25-year old shooting guard scored 14 points for Montegranaro, but his team lost to the italian champions Siena at home. Since joining Montegranaro from PAOK, Vasiliadis has very good numbers (12.7 points, 4 rebounds, 1.2 assists, in 6 matches).

In Poland, our two American point guards had excellent performances. Tyrone Brazelton helped Prokom thrash Milano for the last match of Euroleague's Top16. The American point guard scored 10 points (plus 3 rebounds and 5 assists), in just 16 minutes and is now preparing for the polish league's play-offs. But a few days later, Brazelton watched Antonio Burks lead Czarni in a big win against his team (76-58). Burks scored 9 points, gave 6 assists and had 3 rebounds and 1 steal in 24 minutes.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Olympiacos beat Panathinaikos 77-75 in the big greek derby and 3 FCM players were the cornerstones for the Reds' success. Theo Papaloukas proved once more instrumental, leading Olympiacos' game with class and quality, also playing great defense. The former European Champion scored 9 points, adding 4 rebounds and 5 assists, in 34 minutes. Giannis Bourousis dominated both paints with impressive numbers (18 points and 8 rebounds) and Panos Vasilopoulos was the last minute hero, as his only basket in the match was the one to give Olympiacos the victory, just 3 seconds before full time.

In Italy, Kostas Vasiliadis added another impressive performance for Montegranaro (after last week's 27 points in final 8). The Greek international scored 18 points coming for the bench and playing for 27 minutes, but his team lost on the road from Biella. In Spain, Nikos Pappas had a good game for Real Madrid's second team. The U-18 European Champion scored 13 points (plus 5 rebounds, 4 assists and 1 steal in 28 minutes), but his team lost 92-91 from Oviedo.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

FCM is flad to announce Blagota Sekulic (1982-2.09) moved from Aris to Euroleague's Top16 Alba Berlin for the remainder of the season. The Montenegrian forward-center agreed terms with the hosts of this season's Final Four and is already in Berlin where he did his debut against Barcelona (4 points and 4 rebounds in 12 minutes).

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Giorgos Tsiakos returned to Greece and signed until the end of the season for Kavala. The 26-year old forward had a good season with Ventspils in Latvia but due to personal reasons he needed to return to Greece and Kavala didn't lose the opportunity. Tsiakos made his debut last Saturday against Olympiakos where he had 6 points and 2 rebounds in 11 minutes.

In Italy, Kostas Vassiliadis is adjusting to his new environment in Montegranaro. The 25-year old shooting guard scored 15 points (plus 4 rebounds) in just 21 minutes in his team's big win against Euroleague's Armani Jeans Milano.

In Egaleo, Spiros Magkounis was again exceptional in his team's important win against PAOK. Magkounis scored 13 points (plus 3 rebounds and 1 steal in 24 minutes), helping Egaleo make a crucial win to avoid relegation.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Damir Mulaomerovic and Kostas Vasiliadis (left) didn't have to wait too long after terminating their contract with PAOK. Mulaomerovic returned to his country Croatia to join KK Zagreb in a deal that can keep him there until the summer of 2010. Vasiliadis, on the other hand, is leaving Greece for the second time in his career. After his succesful spell with Unicaja Malaga, with which he won the ACB league and participated in the Euroleague Final Four in 2006, the Greek shooting guard will play in Italy for Montagranaro for the remaining of the season. Vasiliadis was having a great season for PAOK, averaging 16 points and being one of the top league scorers.

In Greece, FCM is happy to announce that Panellinios signed former Tau guard Mustafa Shakur. The 24-year old point guard played with the Spanish club in Euroleague this season and will help Panellinios in their effort to progress in the EuroCup, where they are facing Marousi, Khimky and Dynamo Moscow.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Euorleague teams are looking to reinofrce their rosters for the Top16 and polish champions Prokom signed Tyrone Brazelton from Ventspils! The 23-year old American point guard made some excellent performances in Eurochallenge, where he averaged 16,3 points, 2.5 rebounds and 2.3 assists for the latvian club and Prokom didn't waste any time to add him to their backcourt. Brazelton is expected to train tomorrow for the first time with his new teammates and will feature in Prokom's first Top16 match against Tau next week.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Olympiakos needed a win against Aris on the road to stay on the top of the Greek A1 and Giorgos Printezis was there to provide an excellent performance. The 23-year old forward played only 18 minutes, but managed to score 18 point with amazing percenteges and dominate the paint. Elsewhere, Giannis Kalabokis returned from injury and helped Panionios in the last minutes against Kavala. The 30-year old guard played only 10 minutes, but that was enough to score 11 crucial points and help Panionios escape with a 62-58 win. In Larisa, Olympia gave Panellinios a hard time, but 22 points from Brad Newley were enough for the Athens' club to win 71-64 and continue their excellent run.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Panos Vasilopoulos (photo left) returned to action for Olympiacos after 5 weeks on the sidelines, following a wrist injury and he seemed to be in fine form (11 points,6 rebounds, 3 assists in 21 minutes), helping his team overcome easily the obstacle of Egaleo. Theo Papaloukas (15 points, 5 assists), Giorgos Printezis (16 points, 2 rebounds) and Giannis Bourousis (16 points, 2 rebounds and an amazing 1.9 in tendex) were also very good. For Egaleo, Spyros Magounis was the only one with double digits (11 points, 3 rebounds, 2 steals in 30 minutes).

In Spain, Nikos Pappas had another good match for Real Madrid's second team, helping his team beat Merida 81-79. The U-18 European Champion scored 15 points and also had 2 rebounds, 1 assist and 2 steals, playing for 28 minutes).

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Antonio Burks signed a contract with polish club Czarni until the end of the season and is already in Slupsk training with his new club. The American point guard is visiting Europe for the third time after Serbia (Red Star) and Bulgaria (Lukoil) and is expected to make his debut this weekend for the polish league.Burks graduated from University of Memphis and was a second round draft pick for the Orlando Magic in the 2004 NBA draft.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Kostas Vasiliadis keeps scoring like a machine gun for PAOK. The 24-year old shooting guard lead his team into an easy victory against Kolossos, scoring 20 points (plus 3 rebounds and 3 assists in 33 minutes). Vasiliadis is currently the league's 3rd overall scorer and the first Greek one.

In Piraeus, Giorgos Printezis helped Olympiacos overcome the serious obstacle of Panellinios with an excellent performance. The 23-year old forward scored 14 points in just 17 minutes, with an amazing tendex of 0.994. For Panellinios, Ivan Radenovic had another great match (13 points, 10 rebounds in 27 minutes).

In Larisa, Olympia won the local derby against AEL and this came together with Alexandros Sigounas' best performance of the season. The 20-year old forward scored 7 points and also had 4 rebounds and 3 assists, stepping on the floor for 24 minutes.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Vaggelis Sakellariou is returning to Greece. The 19-year old point guard signed a contract with Pagkrati until the end of the season and will help the A2 club in their campaign. Sakellariou, who made impressive performances with the U-19 national team last summer, was under a 3-year contract with Avellino, but terminated it due to financial problems of the club and the case will be resolved from FIBA's Arbitral Tribunal. Sakellariou is expected to make his debut this weekend in the home match against Ermis.

Another young player of FCM is showing progress in his first actual year in Greek A1. Alexandros Sigkounas, the captain of the U-19 national team, is getting more and more playing time for Olympia Larisa. Last weekend, he played 19 minutes against Greek champions Panathinaikos, scoring 6 points and grabbing 2 rebounds.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Tyrone Brazelton continues to make impressive performances for Ventspils. Last week, the American point guard lead his club into two important victories. First of all, Ventspils beat spanish team Cajasol for FIBA Eurochallenge, scoring 17 points (plus 4 rebounds and 4 assists) in 30 minutes. Back in the Baltic league, Brazelton scored 23 points (plus 5 rebounds, 6 assists and 3 steals) to help Ventspils win on the road against Barons and remain among the league's leaders.

FIBA Europe announced the nominees for the Best European Players of 2008 and Nikos Pappas is among them, for the Young Men's award. The 20-year old European Champion with the U-18 side had an impressive year, leading Greece into winning the European Championship and also the Albert Schweitzer tournament earlier this year.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Aaron Miles had a fantastic week for Panionios, leading the Euroleague club into 2 important victories. First, he beat the buzzer to give Panionios a historic win against Real Madrid last Wednesday and kept his team's chances of qualifying for the Top 16 alive. On Saturday, the American point guard lead Panionios into an overtime victory against Panellinios, scoring 17 points (plus 5 rebounds, 2 assists) in 34 minutes, playing also exceptional defence. For Panellinios, Brad Newley had a great match, but the Australian's 15 points and 5 rebounds were not enough.

In Spain, Nikos Pappas had his best game of the season ao far, leading Real Madrid's second team to win against Molina (89-87). The U-18 European champion scored 32 points with great percenteges (3/6 2pts, 6/9 3pts), plus 2 assists and 2 steals in 37 minutes playing time.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Panellinios broke a 30-year tradition and beat Panathinaikos 84-74 in the biggest surprise of the Greek A1 so far. And they did it mostly thanks to Ivan Radenovic, who scored 21 points, grabbed 5 rebounds in 26 minutes and proved an unsolvable problem for the frontcourt of the Greek champions.

In Spain, Nikos Pappas is improving match by match. The U-18 European Champion scored 21 points with excellent statistics (5/5 2pts, 3/5 3pts, 8/10 FTs) in just 23 minutes playing time, but Real Madrid's second team lost on the road against Cantabria for the LEB Bronce league.

Back in Greece, Giannis Bouroussis had another performance full of essence, scoring 17 points (6/6 2pts) and grabbing 3 rebounds in just 15 minutes against AEK, finishing with an impressive 0.969 in the Tendex evaluation. Panionios needed another great match from Aaron Miles to beat Larisa at the end. The American point guard scored 17 points, plus 3 rebounds and 3 assists in 30 minutes and allowed the Euroleague club to avoid unpleasant surprises.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

When you return from an injury, it usually takes some time to adjust again, but Panos Vasilopoulos didn't need any of that. The 24-year old Greek international had an excellent game and lead Olympiacos to a big win against Maccabi Tel Aviv in Piraeus last night, scoring 14 points with 4/6 three pointers, grabbing 5 rebounds and playing his usual tough defence. Olympiacos had also Theo Papaloukas in good form (9 points, 4 rebounds, 6 assists in 22 minutes) and Giannis Bouroussis again proving to be essential in the paint (12 points, 9 rebounds).

Elsewhere, Giannis Kalabokis and Aaron Miles were again the cornerstones for Panionios secong win in a row for Euroleague's group D. The Greek club beat Partizan 72-67 behind Miles 18 points and Kalabokis 11 points and they are now serious contenders for a top 16 spot.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

PAOK won for the first time at home this season and it owes it to Kostas Vassiliadis, who finished the match with 24 points and an amazing 6/6 three points. The 24-year old guard also had 4 rebounds and an astonishing 1.069 tendex evaluation, leading the Salonica club in an easy win against Egaleo.

In Rhodes, Giannis Kalabokis was once more the key player for Panionios but this time his 16 points (plus 4 rebounds, 1 assist and 2 steals in 33 minutes) were not enough for Panionios, who lost against Kolossos. Elsewhere, Olympiacos had Giorgos Printezis and Giannis Bouroussis as top scorers in the match against Kavala, the former scoring 12 points in just 14 minutes and the latter dominating the paints with 11 points and 9 rebounds.

In Bulgaria, Ivan Lilov keeps scoring and leading Rilski. The 20-year old international lead his team in a big win for the Balkan league against Levski with 95-91, scoring 18 points with superb percentages (1/1 2pts, 3/3 3pts, 5/6 FT) also having 2 rebounds and 5 assists in 27 minutes.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Giannis Kalabokis is already on fire and is guiding Panionios both in Greece and Euroleague. The Greek shooting guard scored 17 points with amazing percentages (6/6 free throws, 1/2 2pts, 3/3 3pts) in just 24 minutes to create one of the biggest surprises in this week's Euroleague matchday, leading Panionios to a big win in Turkey against Efes Pilsen. Kalabokis also had 5 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal and is proving to be once again the leader of the team. Apart from Kalabokis, Panionios had also Aaron Miles in excellent shape. The American point guard finished the match with 15 points, 3 rebounds, 5 assists and 3 steals.

In Zagreb, Olympiakos lost for the first time this season, despite the efforts from Giannis Bourousis and Giorgos Printezis. Bourousis was again in great shape (14 points and 9 rebounds in 22 minutes), dominating the paint, while Printezis had 3/3 3pts and totally 11 points, plus 3 rebounds.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Damir Mulaomerovic is returning to PAOK! After 3,5 years the Croatian point guard agreed terms with the Salonica club and will join PAOK for the remainder of the season. The 34-year old player was a member of PAOK for 2 seasons (2003-2005) with big success and was an idol for the fans of the team. Mulaomerovic is already in Greece and will watch the Cup match against Larisa today. He is expected to make his debut this Sunday when PAOK takes on Egaleo in Salonica.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Amazing Giannis Kalabokis tried to beat Panathinaikos on his own, but at the end his 21 points were not enough for Panionios against the Greek champions. The 30-year old shooting guard continued an excellent tradition he has created over the last years against Zelico Obradovic' team, proving an unsolvable problem for Panathinaikos defence, but didn't get much help from his teammates.

In Spain, Nikos Pappas is getting used to his new environment and improves game by game. The 18-year old European Champion lead Real Madrid's second team to a big win away from home against Oviedo, scoring 15 points, plus 5 rebounds, 6 assists and 2 steals in 29 minutes playing time. In Latvia, Giorgos Tsiakos is missing for Ventspils, but Tyrone Brazelton stepped up to make a great match for his team, scoring 15 points (plus 4 rebounds, 2 steals) to lead Ventspils to win against Nevezis for the Baltic league.

In Bulgaria, Ivan Lilov is keeping on the same performances as last season. The 20-year old shooting guard made 25 points and completed an excellent match (4 rebounds, 5 assists, 4 steals in 32 minutes) to lead Rilski in a crucial win with 93-81 against CSKA Sofia.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Olympiacos has made a perfect start of the season and wanted to continue his winning streak in its first home game for the Euroleague. Malaga is always a dangerous opponent, but Giannis Bouroussis and Giorgos Printezis were not in a mood to allow anyone to spoil their party. The two Greek internationals were exceptional against the spanish team, Bouroussis was amazing, scoring 20 points and grabbing 13 rebounds in just 19 minutes (!), being undefeatable in both paints.

Giorgos Printezis was also crucial for Olympiakos, as he scored 12 points without missing a single shot (6/6 2pts), playing only for 10 minutes due to foul trouble, but always giving the extra energy that Olympiacos needed. The two young players were guided but the usual suspect Theo Papaloukas who made his debut in front of his home crowd, coming from the bench to provide 6 assists and great organization.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Giorgos Tsiakos made an excellent start of the season in Latvia, averaging double figures in points and rebounds for Ventspils, but luck was not on his side. The 26-year old power forward injured his knee on the 4th minute of the away match against Valmiera and will have to stay off the courts for at least 4 weeks. Fortunately, there will be no need for a surgery and all of us wish Giorgos a quick recovery.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

He scored the equalizer that lead the game to overtime, he scored the match winner, no wonder Giannis Kalabokis was the MVP of the 3rd matchday of the Greek A1. Panionios' shooting guard scored 25 points to lead the Eutoleague club in a big win away from home against AEK. Kalabokis made 2/2 free throws to equalize for the visitors at the end of the regular time and made a spectacular coast to coast to beat the buzzer in the extra 5 minutes. This way Panionios kept the perfect start of the season, counting already two wins away from home.

Spiros Magkounis continued his excellente performances, although Egaleo lost this time against Aris in Salonica. The 23-year old forward scored 17 points in just 18 minutes, adding 2 rebounds and 2 steals and touching perfection in the Tendex evaluation system (0,902).

In Salonica, Brad Newley was the man of the match for Panellinios' big away win against PAOK. The Australian international scored 20 points, grabbed 10 (!) rebounds and lead his team to the victory.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Spyros Magkounis (photo left) had an essential role in this week's biggest surprise in the Greek A1. Egaleo beat Maroussi away from home with the 23-year old forward to keep his team alive in the first part of the match when Maroussi was in the lead. Magkounis finished the match with 10 points, 7 rebounds and 2 steails in 16 minutes, plus great defence against his opponent's stars.

Kostas Vassiliadis was great once again and lead PAOK to win on the road against Trikala. The 24-year old shooting guard scored 14 points and grabbed 4 rebounds in 31 minutes, allowing PAOK to get its first victory of the season. In Piraeus, Giorgos Printezis continued his excellent start of the season. The 23-year old forward scored 13 points in just 18 minutes to contribute to Olympiacos easy win against Aris and is now preparing for the Euroleague season that starts this week. In Latvia, Giorgos Tsiakos did everything for Ventspils against Euroleague's Zalgiris, but when he was fouled out his team let go a 14-point lead and finally lost the match in overtime. The Greek power forward scored 12 points and grabbed 8 rebounds in 28 minutes, against a very strong front court and continued his excellent performances so far.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Giorgos Tsiakos (photo left) lead Ventspils in an essential win against ASK Riga with 73-68 in the bid derby of the Latvian league, scoring 18 points and grabbing 14 rebounds, totally dominating the paint and earning him the first FCM Player of the Week for the 2008-2009 season. The 26-year old forward is helping his club create a 6-win streak with impressive number (averages 10,8 points and 10 rebounds) so far.

In Spain, Nikos Pappas is getting customed to his new environment with Real Madrid second team and helped his club win their first match this season. The 18-year old European champion scored 11 points, grabbed 3 rebounds and had 1 assist in 23 minutes, coming from the bench to help Real beat Alcazar 81-63.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Greek A1 begun last weekend and the FCM players are already having an impact. Giorgos Printezis and Giannis Bouroussis were great for Olympiakos, scoring 14 and 11 points respectively to help the Reds cruise past Egaleo. In this match, Theo Papaloukas made his official return for Olympiakos after 6 years with CSKA and although he is not ready yet, the 7 assists he offered in just 18 minutes are evident for his quality.

Elsewhere, Blagota Sekulic had a great match for Aris with 13 points and 3 rebounds, helping the Salonica club get a hard win against Panellinios, who had Australian guard Brad Newley with 15 points. A night to remember also for Dimitris Verginis, who made his official debut for Panathinaikos, after his summer transfer. The 21-year old guard played for 8 minutes against Maroussi, where Panathinaikos showed their strength (82-54).

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Tyrone Brazelton showed right from the beggining what he is made of and lead Ventspils into two straigth wins for the Latvian league. The American point guard scored 22 and 12 points respectively against Keizarmezs and Buki, but also proved that he can contribute in other parts of the game as well (6 rebounds and 7 assists in the first match, 5 revounds, 4 assists and 6 steals in the second one).

Giorgos Tsiakos made also a positive beginning in his new club, helping mostly defensively and averaging 6,5 rebounds (plus 5,5 points in 18 minutes average) in those two matches.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Tyrone Brazelton (left) signed his first professional contract in Europe and will play for Ventspils for the season 2008-09. The young American point guard spent a month in Latvia and persuaded the administration and the coach that he is able to lead Ventspils both in the Baltic League and in EuroCup challenge. The Western Kentucky graduate will meet another FCM player, Giorgos Tsiakos, who is alredy in Ventspils.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Thodoris Papaloukas and Panos Vasilopoulos are officially the new captains of Olympiacos for 2008-09 season. The two FCM players got the honour from Olympiacos' coach Panagiotis Giannakis as the Greek internationals (Papaloukas, Vasilopoulos, Bourousis, Printezis) joined the club's preparation, after their short holidays following the Olympic Games. Papaloukas returned this summer to Olympiacos after spending 6 very successful seasons with CSKA Moscow and Vasilopoulos is already on his 4th season with Olympiacos despite he is only 24 years old.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Elsewhere, Panathinaikos announced the signing of Dimitris Verginis (photo left with Obradovic assistant Dimitris Itoudis). The 21-year old guard had an excellent season with PAOK and is now joining the Greek champions. Verginis is already with Panathinaikos is Zlatibor, where under coach Obradovic the preparation has already begun. Verginis signed a 4-year deal with Panathinaikos and is completing a powerful backcourt next to Diamantidis, Spanoulis, Nicholas and Jasickevicius.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Kostas Vasiliadis is returning to PAOK, to lead the club's effort to reach the top again. The former captain of the Salonica club, after spending 2 years with Malaga and Olympiacos, is going back to PAOK and is hoping to help the club get in the road of success again, after spending some difficult years. The 24-year old shooting guard agreed terms for the next 2 years and is already starting preparation with his new teammates.

In Athens, Ivan Lilov arrived for AEK. The young Bulgarian international will participate in the preparation of the club and if everything goes well, he will sign a contract. Lilov had a great season with Balkan, averaging almost 18 points in the Bulgarian A1 (3rd scorer overall) and also had impressive performances with the U-20 national team in the European Championship in Latvia last month.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Charis Giannopoulos signed a 5-year deal with Euroleague club Olympiacos. The talented 19-year old forward who has been a regular member of all the youth national teams of Greece and won the silver medal in the U-18 EC last summer, joins Olympiacos after spending many years in Salonica for PAOK. Giannopoulos will start preparation for the upcoming season with the rest of the team on Monday, August 25th, becoming the 5th FCM player (Papaloukas, Vasilopoulos, Bourousis, Printezis) that is under contract with Olympiacos.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Giorgos Tsiakos (photo left) and Tyrone Brazelton moved to Latvia for Ventspils. Tsiakos enjoyed a fine season with PAOK and helped the troubled club to avoid relegation from Greek A1. He is leaving Greece for the second time in his career, after a short spell in Spain with Mallorca. The 26-year old forward-center is already in Ventspils where the started preparation for the new season, as Ventspils participates in the EuroCup challenge with high expectations.

Tsiakos will have young American point guard Tyrone Brazelton as a teammate. The 22-year old graduated from Western Kentucky averaging 14.7 points, 2.8 rebounds and 3,7 assists and is making his first professional contract in Europe.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It is now official, Nikos Pappas joins Bilbao until 2013! The Greek U-18 European champion signed his 5-year deal with the Spanish club, after Bilbao payed his buy-out clause to Panellinios. Pappas, who was recently selected as part of the best line-up in the U-18 European Championship, where Greece won the gold medal, is scheduled to travel to Bilbao on August 17th, to start preparation with the men's team under coach Txus Vidoretta. Obviously the talented Greek guard was thrilled with his new challenge: "I am very happy to join Bilbao, it is a very well organised club with big ambitions. ACB is definitely the most competitive league in Europe and i am looking forward to starting preparation with my new club. The administration of Bilbao showed great faith in my skills and i will do my best to prove them right".

Pappas kicked off his career in local club Atalanti, before joining Panellinios. During the recent years he had impressive performances with the youth national teams of Greece, winning the silver medal with the U-16 last summer in Spain, the gold medal in the prestigious Albert Swchweitzer tournament last spring in Manheim (where he was also elected as the MVP) and recently winning the gold medal in the U-18 EC in Amaliada.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Nikos Pappas lifted the trophy of the U-18 European Champions last night, as Greece beat Lithuania 57-50 in a thrilling final. Lithuania started off more brightly, but Greece gradually covered the distance, thanks to Pappas 10 points in the first half, when the Greeks were struggling to score. In the second half, Pappas and his teammates played great defence and won the only gold medal that was missing from the youth national teams in Greece.

Pappas was of course elected in the best line-up of the tournament, finishing the matches with 13.4 points, 3.1 rebounds, 2 steals and 1.6 assists. It has been an exceptional season for the promising 18-year old guard, after winning the prestigious Albert Schweitzer tournament in spring, where he was elected also as the MVP and leading Greece to the gold medal now. Another FCM player also celebrated yesterday with Pappas, as Giorgos Georgakis was also a member of the Greek national team, although a year younger (born in 1991) and with a big future ahead of him.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Vaggelis Sakellariou (photo left) and Alexandros Sigkounas had great matches yesterday for the U-20 EC, but Greece lost from Lithuania 90-77, failing to reach the last 12 of the tournament. Sakellariou, who finished this season with Italian Euroleague club Air Avellino, scored 16 points, grabbed 4 rebounds, gave 3 assists and made 3 steals in just 21 minutes, whereas Sigkounas (recently signed for Olympia Larisa in Greek A1) had 17 points, 7 rebounds and 2 block shots in 31 minutes. Bulgarian guard Ivan Lilov was exceptional against Spain, scoring 31 points (plus 4 rebounds, 5 assists). The 20-year old player is having a great tournament, currently being the 9th scorer overall, averaging 19 points per game. This follows an amazing season in Bulgaria, where he was the 3rd overall scorer in the league and earned his first senior NT call from Pini Gerson.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Nikos Pappas had a slow start for Greece at the U-18 European Championship in Pyrgos and Amaliada, but the MVP of the Albert Schweitzer tournament "exploded" in the last two crucial matches against Serbia and Lithuania. The 18-year old guard scored 23 and 22 points respectively, leading the home side to an unbeaten run so far in the tournament. Pappas was especially exceptional against Lithuania, where apart from his scoring he also contributed 6 rebounds, 4 assists and 5 steals for his team. Greece is now playing tomorrow against Croatia in the semi-final, where Lithuania will meet France in the other semi-final.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Brad Newley will continue to play in the Greek A1, but the Australian international is changing neighborhood. The 24-year old guard agreed terms with Panellinios and will help the team he eliminated from the Euroleague in last season's play-off. Newley, who is currently preparing for the Olympic Games in Beijing, had an excellent season with Panionios, breaking the 3pts record after scoring 8/8 three-pointers in one night.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Giannis Kalabokis will stay with Panionios for one more year. After leading his team to the Euroleague and getting his first national team invitation this summer, the 30-year old shooting guard examined a series of offers both from Greece and other European clubs, but decided to stay with Panionios and participate in the new challenge: "I am really happy to stay at Panionios, the club seems to be moving to the right direction and Euroleague is a big challenge for us" were Kalabokis first words after signing his new contract.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Alexandros Sigkounas signed a 2-year deal with Olympia Larisa. The 20-year old U-20 Greek international will continue his career to Olympia, after growing up at Panionios and playing with the junior national teams of Greece at every level. The 20-year old forward, who is currently on preparation with the U-20 national team that is getting ready for the European championship in Riga at the beginning of August, signed this afternoon his contract with Olympia Larisa and is looking forward to helping his new club both in Greece and in Eurocup Challenge competition.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Blagota Sekulic returns to Greece! The Montenegro international after spending 2 seasons with Real Madrid signed a contract for Aris and is returning to Thessaloniki, since he has played also for PAOK. Sekulic will play for the 4th time in his career to a Greek club (except PAOK he has also played for AEK and Maroussi) and will be a big reinforcement for Andrea Mazzon's team in its effort to return to the Euroleague.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

FCM is proud to announce its collaboration with Theo Papaloukas, starting with the signing of the Greek international for three years in Olympiacos. Papaloukas, who was European Player of the year in 2006, is returning to Greece after spending 6 successful seasons with CSKA Moscow, where he won 2 Euroleague titles, plus 6 Russian championships and 3 Russian Cups. Theo Papaloukas will play again for the club of his heart for the second time, after spending one season with the Reds back in 2001, before moving to Moscow.

"I am very happy to return to Olympiacos. Α great cycle of my career is closing and a new one is beginning and i hope that it will be as successful. Olympiacos is building a great team, the moves are on the right direction and i will do everything to help my new club". Papaloukas is currently on preparation with the Greek NT, which is getting ready for the Pre-Olympic tournament next month.

A great season was highly rewarded today for Giannis Kalabokis (left), Vassilis Xanthopoulos and Giorgos Printezis (right), who got their first call the Men's national team of Greece, that will start its preparation for the Pre-Olympic tournament and hopefully the Beijing Olympic games. Kalabokis and Xanthopoulos were both essential members of Panionios, that qualified for the Euroleague next season and their performances could not be bypassed by national team coach Panagiotis Giannakis.

Kalabokis averaged almost 13,7 points in thw ULEB Cup this season and was also one of the best defenders. Xanthopoulos is promoted to the Men's team for the first time, as he was the starting point guard of Greece's U-21 team that won the silver medal in the World Championship in Argentina. Printezis (left) returned to Olympiacos after a loan spell and was immediately a key member of the team, with great performances both in Euroleague (17 points against CSKA) and Greece (21 points against Panathinaikos in the finals), allowing him to get his first senior call.

Kalabokis, Xanthopoulos (left) and Printezis were not the only FCM players to get the nod, as Panos Vasilopoulos and Giannis Bouroussis were also included in the squad. The two Olympiacos players have been regular members of the Greek national team for the last 3 years and are expected to play again a significant part.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Giorgos Printezis is once again a player of FCM. The talented 23-year old power forward signed yesterday his representation agreement, returning to FCM, where he was for the first 6 years of his career. Printezis, who had a very good season with Olympiacos both in Greece and in Euroleague (including 17pts against CSKA and 21 points against Panathinaikos in the play-off finals), was drafted last year from NBA's Toronto Raptors. The 23-year old forward is widely expected to get his first call for the Men's national team of Greece this summer, after proving himself at the highest level this season.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It was a great night for many FCM players yesterday, as Andrija Zizic was the Greek league with Panathinaikos and Giannis Kalabokis (left) and Vassilis Xanthopoulos lead Panionios to the 3rd spot and the Euroleague competition for the following season.

Zizic celebrated the double this season, after Panathinaikos beat his former club Olympiacos 90-74 in the 5th final and won the series by 3-2 wins. At the same time, Kalabokis was sensational against Maroussi, scored 16 points (4/5 3pts), although he was carrying a knee injury from game 4 of the series and many people though that he wouldn't even play. Not only he showed up, but he lead Panionios in an epic upset, since they were losing 2-0 wins and they managed to beat Marousi three times in a row to seal their Euroleague participation. Xanthopoulos was very good in this series as well, organizing the game and yesterday he had 6 assists, 3 steals and 6 points, plus excellent defensive work.

On the other hand, Giannis Bouroussis and Panos Vasilopoulos were on the losing side of the Greek finals, as Olympiacos came close but for one more season didn't manage to win the championship.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Kaspars Berzins (left) finished the season in style, as Barons after winning the FIBA EuroCup, beat ASK Riga in the latvian league finals and won the first Latvian championship in its history! Barons beat in a thrilling final Riga 79-78, completing a 4-1 victory and celebrating a great year, which saw them win trophies both home and in Europe.

Berzins was an important figure in Baron's success this year, the 23-year old big man averaged 10,1 points, 5.2 rebounds, 1.3 assists, 1.1 blocks in Latvia this season. On the losing side, Gatis Jahovics did his best for ASK Riga, producing great performances (13.6 points, 5.6 rebounds, 3.2 assists, 1.3 steals during the play-offs), but the championship went rightfully to Barons.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

A great season for Ivan Lilov concluded with a series of awards for the talented 20-year old guard. Lilov was elected in the Best Team of the Bulgarian league, but also won the Best Defender and Most Improved Player awards, after leading his team Balkan Botevgrad to the play-offs finals after decades.

The Bulgarian U-20 international averaged impressive numbers (17.5 points, 4.5 rebounds and 3.4 assists in 47 games) and is a certain nomination for the Bulgarian men's national team under coach Pini Gerson.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Panos Vasilopoulos signed today a new contract with Olympiacos, a deal that will keep him in Piraeus until the end of 2012! The 24-year old forward was a free-agent this summer, but Olympiacos was not to lose one of his most valuable assets, offering Vasilopoulos one of the biggest contracts in the european market. Vasilopoulos has already been in Olympiacos the last 3 years, showing progress every season and has been a valuable member of the Greek NT since 2005.

The Greek international was obviously excited with this development: "I am really happy that i will stay with Olympiacos. The club has helped me become who i am and i am looking forward to giving everything, so we can win titles". Vasilopoulos currently has a minor injury, but will probably play today against Maroussi, in the last match of the best-of-five semi-final series of the Greek play-offs.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ivan Lilov completed his miracle for Balkan, leading his team into the Bulgarian play-off finals after 19 years! The 20-year old guard was sensational in the series against Levski, where Balkan won by 3-0, winning two times on the road! Lilov finished the series with impressive figures (18.7 points, 4.6 rebounds, 2.3 assists, 2.3 steals in 38,2 minutes) and was rewarded for his presence, since in the last play-off match the new Bulgaria NT coach Pini Gerson was present to watch him.

Balkan will now play against eternal champions Lukoil, but their season in more than successful, nevertheless Lilov's talent will have one more chance to display his talent at the highest level.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Giannis Kalabokis has been on fire all year long and now that the play-offs have started, he is absolutely sensational. The 29-year old shooting guard lead Panionios to a comfortable sweep against Panellinios, after yesterday's away win (80-95). Kalabokis not only scored 20 points (8/8 FT, 3/7 2pts, 2/4 3pts, plus 5 rebounds, 1 block in 32 minutes), but also played amazing defence against Greek league's top scorer Anthony Grundy, limiting his impact to kust 16 points. Panionios is now going to face champions Panathinaikos, without home advantage.

Another sweep took place in OAKA, where Olympiacos suffered but won at the end against AEK (68-70), behind Panos Vasilopoulos 14 points. The Greek international along with Greer were the only players with double figures in points and Vasilopoulos showed his consistency since he scored 15 points in the first match of the series, one that Olympiacos won easily. Giannis Bourousis had a season high of 14 rebounds in just 27 minutes, dominating the paint for the Euroleague club.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The play-offs in Latvia are well under way and the semi-final game 1 was held yesterday. Gatis Jahovics (left) continued a good season with ASK Riga, leading the capital club to an away win against Ventspils (77-91). The 24-year old forward scored 18 points, grabbed 9 rebounds, gave 6 assists in 27 minutes and lead his teammates to an easy win.

In the other semi-final, Kaspars Berzins and Barons were the convincing winners against VEF Riga (92-70). The 23-year old center was again positive, scoring 11 points, downing 5 rebounds and making 1 block shot in just 19 minutes play time.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In Greece, due to the Easter holidays there was no sporting activity, but in other countries this was not the case. The Baltic League final four was held last weekend and Kaspars Berzins played exceptionally, just one week after winning the FIBA Eurocup trophy with Barons. Berzins scored 16 points and grabbed 4 rebounds against Lietuvos Rytas, but this time Barons didn't make it to the final. Nevertheless Kaspars Berzins is rightfully Player of the Week, so click HERE to read more...

It was an amazing night for Giorgos Tsiakos, who scored a career high 23 points against Aris, for the last regular season match of the Greek A1. The 26-year old power forward was again in great shape (7/8 2pts, 1/2 3pts), adding 8 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 block and 8 fouls won in 36 minutes, against one of the best players in Europe inside the paint, Aris' star Jeremiah Massey and in a no-tomorrow match for PAOK. Eventually the home side lost, but the other results kept PAOK in the Greek A1, much of it because of Tsiakos performances in the last month.

Elsewhere, Giannis Kalabokis and Panionios celebrated their success to finish inside the top 4 teams, despite their loss in Larisa. Kalabokis had another good match with 13 points, 2 assists, 2 steals in 31 minutes and they are now preparing for a tough play offs series against Panellinios, where they will have the home advantage. Spiros Magkounis also finished the season in style, although Egaleo didn't manage to enter the play-offs. The 23-year old forward scored 11 points in just 20 minutes against Olympiada, in a match where Egaleo won easily.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Before the start of the match against Marousi, Giannis Kalabokis was an injury doubt for Panionios coach. But the Greek shooting guard showed that when the going gets tough, he is always present. A few days after leading Panionios against Olympiacos, Kalabokis scored 23 points to sink Marousi and keep Panionios' hopes for a top 4 finish in the regular season alive. The 29-year old player had also 3 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 steals in 33 minutes and was elected 2nd MVP of the matchday for the Greek league. In the same game, Vassilis Xanthopoulos had a season-high of 7 assists, organizing the game for Panionios and making his teammates happy.

Elsewhere, Panagiotis Vasilopoulos showed one more time his consistency and versatility as a player, contributing in every part of the game for Olympiacos. The reds had to play overtime to win against Panellinios and much of it they owe to the 24-year old forward. Vasilopoulos scored 11 points, grabbed 11 rebounds (season high), and also had 2 assists, 2 steals and 4(!) blocks, plus great defence against Panellinios' top scorer. Giannis Bourousis was also positive (11 points, 8 rebounds in 28 minutes).

It was a great weekend for Kaspars Berzins, since he won the FIBA Eurocup trophy in Cyprus with Barons. It was the first European cup after decades for a latvian club and Barons were the worthy winners, beating Tartu Rock from Estonia in the semi-final (88-82) and favorites Dexia Mons-Hainult from Belgium in a thrilling final (63-62).

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It was the most crucial game of the season for PAOK, since only a victory would keep them to the A1 league. And it was Giorgos Tsiakos (left) who stepped up at this delicate point to lead his team to a vital win against high-flying Panellinios (62-58). The 26-year old power forward scored 14 points (plus 3 rebounds, 2 assist, 1 steal, 1 block) in just 20 minutes, scoring half of them in the last period and leading PAOK to safety.

Panos Vasilopoulos had also an excellent match yesterday. The Greek international scored 14 points (plus 7 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals in 27 minutes), leading the scoreboard for Olympiacos' easy victory against Larisa. Giannis Bouroussis was also positive (11 points, 7 rebounds, 1 block), dominating the paint on both sides.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It was a festive weekend for the Greek basketball, as the annual All-Star game was held in Amaliada and of course FCM was well represented. 6 of our players featured in both the junior and the men's games and Alexandros Sigkounas was the one to stand out. The 20-year old forward was the real MVP (and FCM's Player of the Week) of the Junior's game, scoring 20 points in 25 minutes and leading his team to a bog win (93-69), nevertheless the award went to a player from the losing side... In this match there were also good performances by Nikos Pappas (14 points, 4 rebounds, 2 steals in 19 minutes), Giannis Vassiliou (7 points, 3 assists, 1 steal in 25 mins) and Carolos Galazoulas (4 points and 4 assists in 15 mins).

In the men's match, Giannis Bouroussis and Panos Vasilopoulos did their best to lead the Greeks, but the Foreigners won 111-101. Bourousis scored 18 points in 18 minutes (plus 5 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 steals) and Vasilopoulos contributed 10 points, 3 assists and 1 steal in 15 minutes. Congratulations to everybody for the great show!

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Panos Vasilopoulos great performance in Moscow was not enough to send Olympiacos to the Euroleague Final Four in Madrid. The Greek club lost the 3rd play-off match against CSKA and it couldn't be otherwise as only Vasilopoulos tried to keep Olympiacos in the match. The 24-year old forward scored 17 points with excellent percentages (3/5 3pts), also adding 3 rebounds, 1 assists and 1 steal in 27 minutes, but he was the only one with double digit in points, as Olympiacos struggled with CSKA's tough defence.

The final four dream ended for Olympiacos, nevertheless Vasilopoulos finished the play-off series against CSKA with 11.3 points, 2.3 rebounds, 0.7 assists in just 23.2 minutes average playtime, leaving promised for an even better future.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Giannis Kalabokis punished his old club Olympiacos, leading Panionios to a big win against the Euroleague club with 84-72 yesterday. The Greek shooting guard scored 19 points with excellent percentages (4/6 2pts, 2/2 3pts, 5/5/ FT), also contributing 3 rebounds and 1 assist in 28 minutes. But it wasn't only the points he offered, but also the great defence he played against Lynn Greer. Kalabokis practically ended Olympiacos hopes in the beginning of the 3rd period, after scoring 10 consecutive points and opening the difference between the two teams more than 20 points.

In Bulgaria, the regular season ended and Ivan Lilov found himself at the 3rd place of the best scorers, although he is only 19 years old! The young shooting guard averages 18,1 points per game (plus 4.7 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 2.4 steals in 35.7 minutes), leading Balkan to a very good season, finishing in 3rd place.

In Greek A2, Pantelis Kakavas and Christoforos Choumas scored 20 points each to lead Sporting in a big win (89-70) against Apollon Patras. Especially Kakavas was amazing, he didn't miss a single shot (5/5 2pts, 2/2 3pts, 4/4 FT), plus he had 7 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 steals in 35 minutes. Choumas also grabbed 7 rebounds (plus 1 assist and 1 steal) in 36 minutes.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Vaggelis Sakellariou is moving to Italy and for the next 3 years he will play for Air Avellino! The talented 19-year old point guard signed today a three-year closed contract with the 2008 winners of the Italian Cup, after spending a week on trial there and impressing coach Matteo Boniciolli, who said on the Lega basket website: "He is not known, but he has all the characteristics we are looking for. He can definitely help us by doing things for the team".

Sakellariou, who surprisingly didn't find any playing time in Egaleo, will stay in Italy (he has been there since March 26th) and help Avellino immediately. The team is enjoying an excellent season, they won the Italian Cup at the end of February and currently lie 3rd on the italian league table, having obviously high ambitions for the italian play-offs.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Draftexpress.net is one of the most prolific websites when it comes to youth basketball all over the world and yesterday dedicated an article for Nikos Pappas, the MVP of the Albert Schweitzer tournament, predicting a great future for the Greek guard. Read below the story:

"Nikos Pappas in particular was unstoppable for many stretches. The well-deserved MVP, he showed a ridiculous ability to score at will. Playing combo-guard, he would throw his strong 6-4 body at any rival and make room for a relatively easy basket. Although his strange frame -which looks pretty thick for a guard, not particularly attractive in terms of basketball potential- and body language might result misleading, he doesn’t enjoy anything more than decent athleticism to work with, and particularly he’s not very quick. But he’s incredibly smart and poised, showing an uncommon maturity that helps him to overcome his athletic shortcomings.

Showing very solid ball-handling skills, a decent first step and great footwork, Pappas could attack both ways, being especially prolific from the left side, while his rivals rarely figured out how to stop him. Primarily looking for the basket, he loves to create contact with his opponents and hang in the air until he enjoys enough room to release a layup or a short-range shot (a la Papaloukas). If he didn’t find the scoring option, he would never panic, and instead would look for his teammates. Pappas showed nice court vision to feed his mates, not only off the drive, but also from the perimeter. He also punished the defense with his long-range shot whenever his match-up –or the pair defending the pick and roll- didn’t stay honest, showcasing a nice touch, still accurate off the dribble.

But it wasn’t everything a matter of ball domination. Pappas often stayed away from the ball, letting his teammates take over the offense, almost as if he didn’t care, but would unexpectedly appear in the right moment with a cut, or offensive rebound, showing a terrific sense of timing moving without the ball. He showed a bit of the same stuff on defense, where he sometimes showed some apathy (his limited lateral quickness also backs this impression) but could come up with some steals".

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Nikos Pappas was crowned Most Valuable Player of the Albert Schweitzer tournament in Germany, after leading Greece to the title. The 18-year old point guard produced an amazing tournament for Greece and apart from being named as MVP he was part of the best line-up, averaging 21.3 points per game, but also having great contribution in the other aspects of the game (6.7 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 2.3 steals in 27.1 minutes playing time). Click on PLAYER OF THE WEEK and PLAYER OF THE MONTH to read more...

In Greece, Giannis Kalabokis continued his excellent season, leading Panionios to a big away win against PAOK in Salonica. The 29-year old guard scored 16 points, but also grabbed 9(!) rebounds (career high), to allow his club to win and maintain their hopes to reach the 4th place on the table.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Nikos Pappas took Greece by the hand and lead the U-18 NT to the final of the Albert Schweitzer Tournament in Germany. The 18-year old point guard scored 39 points with excellent percentages (11/15 2pts, 3/6 3pts, 8/11 FT, plus 10 rebounds, 2 steals, 1 assist, in 35 minutes), allowing the Greek team to beat Australia 84-79 in overtime and book a place in today's final.

Pappas has been exceptional throughout the tournament. He is currently 2nd scorer overall, averaging 22 pts/game, but also has significant contribution in other categories (6.3 rebounds, 2 assists, 2.3 steals), proving again that he is among the top European players of his age.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Nikos Pappas took Greece by the hand and lead the U-18 National Team in a historic victory against U.S.A. in the famous "Albert Schweitzer" tournament that is held in Germany. In front of various NBA scouts, the 18-year old point guard scored 27 points and grabbed 11 (!) rebounds allowing Greece to overcome the U.S. team by 91-79. Pappas played for 38 minutes, contributing also 2 assists and 3 steals.

Greece is undefeated after 3 matches in the tournament and Pappas lies 3rd on the scorers table, averaging 19.3 points per game (plus 5.6 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 2.6 steals).

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Panos Vasilopoulos sent Olympiacos to the Euroleague play-offs, with an impressive performance against Real Madrid last Thursday, scoring 16 points and leading his teammates to a great upset. Click on PLAYER OF THE WEEK to read more...

Vasilopoulos wasn't the only one to do great. His teammate in Olympiacos and Greece NT Giannis Bourousis (left) had a great match against Olympiada, scoring 18pts (plus 5 rebounds, 2 blocks in 24 minutes).

Elsewhere, Spiros Maggounis was a big problem for Panathinaikos. The 24-year old forward scored 13 points, grabbed 7 rebounds and made 2 steals in just 22 minutes, putting the reigning European champions in a difficult place, before beating Egaleo 85-76.

In Greek A2, great performance from Takis Ifantis. The talented power forward scored 25 points (plus 10 rebounds) in 30 minutes, leading Erithrea to an easy win against Halkida (79-70). Elsewhere, Pantelis Kakavas proved again that he is a point guard who does everything on court. The 20-year old player scored 16 points and grabbed 8 (!) rebounds, also contributing 4 assists and 1 steal in 30 minutes time, although Sporting didn't make it against Pagkrati.

Also, Vaggelis Sakellariou terminated his agreement with Egaleo and flew today to Italy for a try-out with Italian Cup winners Air Avellino.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

FCM begins two new columns in our website, the Player of the Week and Player of the month (as of April 1st), where you can find summarized the achievements of our players. For this week, Giannis Kalabokis stands out (just click on the PLAYER OF THE WEEK banner), but not only him. Dimitris Verginis lead PAOK in a crucial victory against Olympiada, scoring 16 points, but also contributing 7 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 steals in 32 minutes. In Piraeus, Kostas Vassiliadis (left) had a great game for Olympiakos, scoring 13 points and grabbing 7 rebounds in just 23 minutes against Egaleo. Tre Kelly had his first home game for Panellinios and the former Cibona player did great, scoring 12 points (plus 5 rebounds and 1 assist), in just 19 minutes.

In Greek A2, Nikos Liakopoulos continues to offer excellent performances. Although he just came back from injury, the 25-year old point guard had 16 points, 9 rebounds and 3 assists, helping Pagkrati win at home. Elsewhere, Giorgos Sourlis scored 5 three pointers and a total of 20 points for Dafni, who also had center Chris Petrodimopoulos doing another great game (19 points, 5rebs in 27 minutes).

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

FCM announces that Tre Kelly is now a player of Panellinios! The 23-year old American point guard had a good season so far for Cibona in Euroleague and Adriatic league, averaging 11,1 points and 2,5 assists and will help the "Olympians" for the remaining of the season. Kelly graduated from South Carolina State last summer and once he got released from the Croatian champions, Panellinios signed him immediately.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

NBA veteran Anthony Goldwire returns for the 4th time in Greece. The 36-year old point guard agreed terms with Egaleo and will replace Ibrahim Jaaber who left for Euroleague's Lottomatica Roma last week. Goldwire has also played for Olympiacos, Aris and Panellinios in Greece and he is already in Athens, meaning that he will be available for his debut this weekend against Larissa.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Nikos Liakopoulos continues to have an amazing season for the Greek A2, last weekend he scored a season-high 30 points (12/15 FTs, 9/16 2pts) against ICBS but his team didn't manage to win away from home. Nevertheless, Pagkrati is currently in the middle of the table in his first season in the league as a newcomer and much of it owes it to Liakopoulos. After 16 matches, the25-year old point guard is 2nd scorer of the league, 3rd in assists, 1st in fouls won and 6th in steals, proving his quality that will allow him to return to A1 next season.

Elsewhere, Pantelis Kakavas played a miracle match for Sporting, beating league high-flyers Peristeri by 74-72 and giving his club hope of staying up. The 20-year old point guard had 11 points, 6 assists and 2 steals.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It has been an excellent season for the majority of FCM players so far, proving their skills both in national and european level. Let's take a look at their performances:

GUARDS: Giannis Kalabokis (left) is one of the hottest players in ULEB Cup, averaging 15,8 points per game for Panionios. The 29-year old shooting guard has made some excellent matches (26 and 20 points against ASVEL, 22 points at Ludwigsburg, 20 point at Slask) leading a young side to qualification, with two matches left to play. Last weekend he scored 22 points against Panathinaikos, bringing the European Champions in a very difficult situation. It was the fourth time in the last 3 seasons that Kalabokis scored over 20 points against Panathinaikos, no surprise he was the top Greek scorer last season (and 7th overall).

Dimitris Verginis is among the best newcomers in the Greek league. The young captain of PAOK is having a great season, averaging 12 points, 1.5 assists in 25 minutes, putting his name as a candidate for the national team. He was also voted as Player of the Month for December in the Greek A1. His appearances follow an excellent tournament for the Greek U-20 team in European Championship last summer, where Verginis averaged 15,7 poinys, 2.3 rebounds and 1.2 assists.

Vassilis Xanthopoulos finally finds playing time for Panionios and although he is the back-up of the American point guard, the 23-year old player averages 4,4 asists in ULEB Cup in just 23 minutes per game. He is also doing great in the Greek league, currently being 4th in the assists table. An excellent PG, who plays for the team and is also a top defender.

Kostas Vassiliadis (left) is also finding his place in Olympiacos and despite a minor injury he had, he is averaging 8,1 points in Euroleague, shooting with 50% from the 3 point line. He recently scored 21 points against Olimpia Ljubliana in Euroleague in just 19 minutes with 4/5 3pts.

Brad Newley also impresses in his rookie year in Greek A1. The Australian guard averages 13.5 points, 3.4 rebounds and 1.2 assists for Panionios and he recently broke the all-time record in Greece, by scoring an unbelievable 8/8 3pts.

Panionios is also seeing a good season from Ivan Zoroski, who is averaging 9,3 points and 2,3 assists in 21 minutes play per game. Zoroski is getting more play time lately and is doing a great job under new coach Nenad Markovic.

In Hungary, Kristian Wittmann is doing a great year for Pecs. The 23-year old point guard is averaging 11.5 points, 2.1 rebounds and 2.5 assists, getting almost 29 minutes per match and proving he ready to play at higher level.

Ivan Lilov continues to amaze everyone in Bulgaria, leading Balkan to a great season. The 19-year old shooting guard is the 3rd scorer of the league, averaging 19,3 points per game (plus 3.2 assists, 2.5 steals, in 14 games) and is the main reason behind Balkan's third place in the league. Lilov was also voted among the best 12 players in the bulgarian A1, despite his young age. Last summer, Lilov lead the Bulgarian U-20 NT in the European Championships in Slovenia, where he averaged 16,1 points and 4,9 rebounds per game against the elite of the european youth basketball.

Krists Piternieks returned to action recently after an injury that kept him out until now and is performing well for Bumerangs in Latvia. The 2.02 point guard is close to full fitness and will soon be able to compete at the highest level.

In Greek A2, Nikos Liakopoulos is by far the best point guard in the league. Liakopoulos averages 14,2 pts, 3.3 rebounds and 4.6 assists in 30 minutes, shooting with 62%. He leads Pagkrati in their effort to return to A1, having excellent games as against Panorama (31 points, 8 rebounds, 5 assists) and Iraklis (27 points, 5 rebs, 4 ass, 2 stl). Giorgos Sourlis is also having a great season for Dafni, averaging 9 points, 2.9 rebounds and 2.2 assists in 14 games so far.

FORWARDS: Panagiotis Vassilopoulos (left) has had a few injury problems so far, but he is still essential for Olympiacos. The Greek international averages 11.4 points in just 19 minutes, shooting with 47% from the 3-point line and he is always among the best defenders in Europe.

Giorgos Tsiakos is enjoying another solid season with PAOK, adding quality to the paint. The 25-year old power forward averages 8.5 points and 7 rebounds per game in 22 minutes, helping his side both in Greek A1 and in Fiba EuroCup.

Gatis Jahovics returned to Latvia, after spending 3 years in Poland for Anwil and is a key player for ASK Riga, who are doing great in Baltic league and in ULEB Cup.The 24-year old forward is always a defensive weapon for coach Butautas and also contributes 5,7 points and 4 rebounds in 19 minutes of average play.

CENTER: Andrija Zizic (left) joined Panathinaikos last summer and he is already a valuable asset for the European champions. The Croatian averages 10,1 points and 2.2 rebounds, shooting with the impressive 77%. He recently had two exeptional games for the Euroleague on the road (26 points at Roanne, 14 points at Fenerbahce), helping his side qualify for the Top16 with 4 matches left to play.

Giannis Bouroussis is a solid power for Olympiacos. The Greek international averages 8.8 points and 8.7 rebounds in just 21.7 minutes in the Greek A1, sharing the time at a very crowded front line.

Mamadou N'Diaye continues to be among the top centres in the Greek league, helping Panellinios challenge for a top four spot. The Nigerian center averages 10 points, 6 rebounds and 1.4 blocks in 23 minutes per game, providing a towering figure for Elias Zouro's team.

Kaspars Berzins is a key player for Latvian clubBarons, helping them survive in the tough Baltic league. The 2.12 center averages 8.7 points and 6.3 rebounds and he recently had an impressive double-double against Euroleague's Zalgiris (14 points and 13 rebounds).

In A2, Chris Petrodimopoulos (left) is among the top centers of the league, averaging 10.5 points and 8.1 rebounds for Dafni, recently having exceptional games (20pts-9reb against Iraklis, 15pts-10 reb against Panorama). Fragkiskos Amato is also very good for Peristeri, averaging 9.3 points and 3.8 rebounds with great performances (20pts-3 reb against Trikala, 16pts-5 reb against Panorama). Hrvoje Heniak is helping Panorama stay on top on their first season in A2, the Croatian center averages 10 points and 3.2 rebounds.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Giannis Kalabokis and Giorgos Tsiakos (photo left) impressed with their performances in this week's European matches. Kalabokis scored 26 points, but Panionios didn't avoid a home loss against Villeurbane for the Uleb Cup. On the other hand, Tsiakos scored 15 points and grabbed 10 rebounds for PAOK, leading his team to victory against Mobitelco for FIBA EuroCup. It was the second double-double in a row for the 25-year old power forward, who has done an excellent start this season as well.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Brad Newley was the MVP of the 4th matchday in Greek A1, as the Australian guard scored an amazing 8/8 3pts and 32 points in total to lead Panionios in an easy win against AEK. Newley now holds the record for the Greek league, but he wasn't the only Panionios player to shine. Vassilis Xanthopoulos helped him out, as he distributed 9 assists to his teammates in just 26 minutes, controlling the game in an excellent way.

Elsewhere, Olympiakos had Panos Vasilopoulos and Kostas Vasiliadis in great shape, scoring 16 and 10 points respectively in the victory against Marousi. Giorgos Tsiakos was also crucial for PAOK, since he scored 14 points, grabbed 5 rebounds and offered 3 assists, helping his team get a late win against Olympia (79-77) in Thessaloniki.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Greek A1 started off this weekend and the FCM players already showed their quality. Giannis Kalabokis lead Panionios to an away win in Rhodes, scoring 22 points, but also having 6 rebounds and 4 assists. In Piraeus, Giannis Bouroussis (left) was a towering figure for Olympiakos. The Greek international scored 12 points, grabbed 15 rebounds and made 6 blocks against PAOK, proving to be an unsolvable problem for his opponents. Despite the fact that Giorgos Tsiakos had another good game for the Salonica club, finishing with 12 points and 4 rebounds in just 20 minutes.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Many congratulations to the four FCM players that won the silver medal in the U-18 European Championship in Madrid, Spain. Nikos Pappas (photo left), Haris Giannopoulos, Simos Ioakeimidis and Dimitris Arapis reached to top of Europe, but lost the gold medal in a thrilling final against Serbia. Pappas (although a year younger than the rest) and Giannopoulos were key players for the Greek squad throughout the tournament, the former averaging 13,4 points, 3,5 rebounds, 1,1 assists and and the latter contributing 11,5 points, 6,4 rebounds and a great 39% in 3pts.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

After an exceptional season with Olympiakos, Andrija Zizic signed a 3-year contract with Euroleague champion Panathinaikos. The Croatian center will reinforce the front court of the Greek club, that allowed Robertas Javtokas to move to Dynamo Moscow to make space for the 25-year old player. Zizic enjoyed a fine season with Panathinaikos rivals, scoring 12,2 points and grabbing 5,2 rebounds in 22 Euroleague matches, shooting with 58%, before Olympiakos set him free and gave Panathinaikos tha chance to sign him.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Giannis Kalabokis, one of the hottest names in the transfer market this summer, signed for Panionios. The Athens club beat at the end offers from Germany, Italy, Spain and other Greek teams to sign the 29-year old guard, who was among the top scorers of the League last season. Kalabokis, who got married last week, was convinced by the administration of Panionios for their desire to do something important this season and agreed terms. "I am very happy that i will play to such a historic club like Panionios. Last year the Club missed the Euroleague in the last play off match, this season we are looking to have good results both in Greece and the Uleb Cup" said Kalabokis, who is about to leave for his honeymoon before starting preparation with his new club.

Blagota Sekulic, also agreed with Spanish champions Real Madrid and will remain in the spanish capital for another season. The 25-year old center joined the Uleb Cup winners in the middle of the season and helped them win both titles and of course conquer a Euroleague place for the upcoming season. Sekulic started the season with PAOK, before moving to Real.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The jersey of Olympiakos will wear for the next three years Kostas Vasiliadis. The 23-year old guard signed with the Euroleague club and after Olympiakos agreed terms with Unicaja Malaga there was no other obstacle to prevent the highly rated player to join Pini Gerson's team. Vasiliadis spent one year in Malaga, where he won the championship in 2006 and participated in this season's Final Four in Athens, finishing at the 3rd place.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Vaggelis Karaboulas signed a 2-year contract with Panellinios. The 26-year old guard will add score to the backcourt of the "Olympians" and after a great season in A2 with MENT (14,3 points per game, 2nd league scorer), he returns to the top level. Elsewhere, A2 newcomers Pagrati signed 3 players in their quest to reinforce their club. Nikos Liakopoulos, Kostas Tziallas and Giorgos Koukas will try to help the Athens club to return to the A1 league after many years.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

FCM is pleased to announce that Giorgos Apostolidis signed a 3-year contract with Olympiakos. The 23-year old point guard agreed terms with the Euroleague club and will join forces again with Panos Vasilopoulos with whom they played together for the youth NT's. Apostolidis played this season for the surprise club of the Greek league, Olympia Larisa and his performances earned him the chance to play for one of the top clubs in Europe.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Nikos Pappas, the Greek U-16 international is the youngest player that is invited to the famous Reebok EuroCamp that is held this weekend in Italy. The 3rd scorer of the last Juniors European Championship was invited by the organizing commitee to participate in the Europe's most prolific summer camp, as a result of his excellent performances, both with Greece's National Team and his school (Pappas lead them to win the World School Tournament, scoring 40 points in the final). The 17-year old combo guard will join Panellinios senior team for preparation in August.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

FCM is pleased to announce that Mamadou N'Diaye will continue to play for Panellinios for the next season. The Senegal born center joined the Greek club in the middle of the previous season and despite an injury he proved to be a key feature for them, helping Panellinios to finish 5th in the regular season. N'Diaye will return to Athens in August, when the preparation of Panellinios for the new season in scheduled to begin.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Giannis Kalabokis proved once more that he is one of the best scorers in Greece, scoring 26 points and leading PAOK to a crucial victory over Olympiakos by 84-80, a win that balanced the play-off series to 1-1. The 28-year old guard was unstopable, with excellent statistics (12/12 FT, 4/5 2pts, 2/5 3pts, 5 rebounds) in 36 minutes and lead the series to a third and final match in Piraeus. PAOK had also young forward Sotiris Manolopoulos in a great day, with 11 points without missing a single shot in just 13 minutes. For Olympiakos, Greek international Giannis Bouroussis scored 12 points, grabbed 6 rebounds and made 3 steals but Pini Gerson's team will have to play a third game to proceed to the semi-finals.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hector Romero signed for Spanish club Polaris Murcia for the rest of the season. The Venezueala born power forward had a great spell in Larissa for the Greek A1, playing for 12 games there and offering them a great help in staying in top flight. The 27-year old player averaged 13,8 points and 7,2 rebounds in his short time in the Greek league and will know try to help Murcia in Lega ACB. Romero's teammate until recently, Giorgos Tsiakos joined First Class Management and will be represented from our agency from now on.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Another FCM player is celebrating a European Cup this season. Blagota Sekulic won the Uleb Cup with Real Madrid, after the Spanish giants beat Lietuvos Rytas in Charleroi 87-75. The Madrid club not only won the European cup, but also gained the right to play in the next edition of the Euroleague, returning to the european basketball elite. Sekulic played 24 minutes in the final, contributing 7 points, 2 rebounds, 1 steal and his usual defensive skills to help Real win the trophy.

It is the first European trophy in club level for the 25-year old center, who started the season with PAOK Salonica, before moving to Madrid. Sekulic ended his Uleb Cup adventure this year with fine statistics (11,2 points, 6,5 rebounds), playing in the competition with both clubs. Congratulations Blagota!

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Andrija Zizic will remain an Olympiakos player until 2010. The Croatian international signed a new 3-year deal with the Greek club, which will keep him in Pireaus for a total of 5 years, since this is his second season in red and white. The 25-year old center enjoys a fine season both in Greece and the Euroleague and Olympiakos moved fast to avoid other clubs bidding for Zizic, who was out of contract this summer. "I am really happy to sign for another 3 years with Olympiakos. This has been my home for the last two seasons, i am very satisfied with the conditions and i am looking forward to win many trophies with my teammates" commented Zizic, who is facing a big challenge next week, when Olympiakos faces Tau for the Euroleague play-offs.

Elsewhere, it was Giorgos Diamantopoulos who was the decisive factor for Samara in FIBA Eurocup Challenge final. The Greek guard scored 22 points in just 20 minutes with excellent statistics (4/7 2pts, 4/5 3pts, 6 rebounds, 4 assists) and led his club to win the trophy against Keravnos by 101-81. Diamantopoulos, who arrived mid-season in Russia, helped Samara to win its first European title after losing only by one point in the first lef in Cyprus and thrashing them at home.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Once more Giannis Kalabokis was the star of the Greek A1. PAOK's shooting guard was again the MVP of the 20th matchday in Greece, after leading his club into victory against Marousi by 61-60. Kalabokis not only scored 18 points (plus 4 rebounds and 2 asists), but also was present when the ball has "hot" and scored the winning 3point shot that gave PAOK the win. The 28-year old player is the league's 9th scorer overall this season, leading them to the top four.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Kaspars Berzins had a great night at the Baltic Basketball League, in an overtime thriller. Barons lost 80-76 to ASK Riga, despite the Latvian's center amazing performance. The 2.12 forward-center scored 15 points, grabbed 14 rebounds and also had 5 blocked shots, continuing a great season so far. In Hungary, Zoltan Bence dominated the paint, but Albacomp lost the derby from ZTE by 82-76. The 25-year old center had 16 points and 9 rebounds, nevertheless his club is still in the top four of the League.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The same day that Mamadou N'Diaye was elected Player of the Month for the Greek A1, he got a serious knee injury and he will be out for about one month! The Senegal center was the key figure for Panellinios' unbeaten run in February, but luck seems to have run out on him and now the Athens club will have to live without him for the upcoming games. In the MVP of the month elextion the second place belongs also to another FCM player. Giannis Bourousis is there, after improving his performances for Olympiakos and leading them to win the away derby against Panathinaikos.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Giannis Bouroussis' amazing performance in the classic derby between Panathinaikos-Olympiakos which allowed Pini Gerson's team to win away from home with 89-84 gave him the well-worth MVP of the matchday for the Greek A1. The 24-year old center was a towering figure in the paint with 14 points, 11 rebounds, 2 steals and 3 blocks and of course made the difference between the two teams. Andrija Zizic was also great with 18 points and 5 rebounds, whereas Panos Vasilopoulos scored 7 points, 4 rebounds, 4 steals and great defence against Diamantidis.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

FCM announces the signing of Mamadou N'Diaye for Panellinios. The 32-year old center will help the Athens club until the end of the season. The 2.12 center was playing with Los Angeles Lakers until last November and is know to the Greek fans from his previous career in PAOK. N'Diaye will probably make his debut for Panellinios this weekend against Egaleo.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Thursday was a great night for all FCM players playing in the Euroleague, as their clubs managed to go to the Top16 and stayed on course for the Final Four of Athens the following May. Lottomatica Roma grabbed the last minute spot by thrashing Cibona 81-58 in the Eternal City. Loukas Mavrokefalidis came from the bench to contribute 11 points and 6 rebounds in 18 minutes and celebrated with his teammates the qualification to the next round.

From the same group Unicaja Malaga beat Partizan in Belgrade 94-90 in overtime and we will have the chance to see Kostas Vasiliadis (sidelined by a minor injury yesterday) playing in Top16 as well. In Piraeus, Olympiacos didn't win as easy as he expected Cologne (77-73), but Giannis Bouroussis with 12 points and 11 rebounds added another great performance for him this year. Together with Panos Vasilopoulos (photo left) they will try to help the Greek club to reach the final four for the first time in 8 years.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Greek basketball is celebrating this weekend, as the annual All-Star Game is being held in Lamia.And FirstClass Management is celebrating as well, since 15 (!) of its players will be present there, featuring in both senior and the youth all-star teams. 1/3 of the Greek selection is composed by FCM players as Fragkiskos Alvertis (PANATHINAIKOS), Panos Vasilopoulos (OLYMPIAKOS), Giannis Bouroussis (OLYMPIAKOS) and Giannis Kalabokis (PAOK) will be there, after the fans voted them among the 12 favorite players playing the Greek league.

In the Youth all-star game, FCM is heavily represented as 11 players in both teams will feature on Saturday afternoon. Dimitris Lolas (Marousi), Marios Sakelarakis (AEK), Antonis Mihaloglou (AEK), Alexandros Sigkounas (Panionios) and Vaggelis Sakellariou (Panellinios) will be there for the South team and Dimitris Verginis (PAOK), Harris Giannopoulos (PAOK), Marios Matalon (ARIS), Giannis Vasileiou (PAOK), Stelios Goulas (Larisa) and Sotiris Manolopoulos (PAOK) will play for the North. Manolopoulos is also a candidate for the 3point contest.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

FCM announces the signing of Blagota Sekulic to Real Madrid. The 27-year old center will play for the Spanish giants until the end of the season after Real agreed with PAOK Salonica for the transfer of the player. Sekulic enjoyed a great season with PAOK so far, both in Greece and ULEB Cup, where he helped his former club to reach the knock-out stage.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The best way to end 2006 for Giannis Kalabokis was his announcement as Players of the Month for the Greek League. The captain of PAOK had an impressive December and lead the Salonica club to consecutive wins both in Greece and Europe. "I am really happy for this award, not only for myself but also for my club. We had a very good month and it would mean nothing to be Player of the Month, if my team didn't win games. We are getting better and we are looking forward for the second half of the season".

Kalabokis will get his award in the next home match against AEK next Saturday (6/1), but he has already his mind focused in PAOK's obligations: "We are in a good position both in the Greek League and we advanced in ULEB Cup. But it is still January, so we have a lot of important matches ahead and we have to remain with our heads down and work a lot". The 28-year old guard gave his best wishes for 2007: "I would like to wish everybody a very happy new year, i hope 2007 will treat everyone well and of course health is the most important thing"

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

For the second game in a row Loukas Mavrokefalidis was the key figure for Lottomatica Roma. The 22-year old center scored 16 points and grabbed 10 rebounds to lead the Euroleague club to an easy win against Cantu with 71-53. It was the first win after 3 defeats for Roma, who are fighting for a play-off position in the Italian League.

In Greece, Giannis Kalabokis continued his excellent season. The captain on PAOK scored 15 points with excellent percenteges (5/6 FT, 5/5 2pts, 4 rebounds, 2 assists, 3 steals) and his club won in the road against Olympiada by 4 points (67-63), remaining in the first 5 teams of the league. Elsewhere, Anthony Goldwire had another great game for Panellinios (19 points, 3 assists, 3 steals), but it wasn't enough for them to defeat Olympia Larissa away from home.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Giannis Kalabokis was the unquestionable MVP of the Greek A1, since he provided a stunning performance at Larissa. The captain of PAOK scored 28 points without missing a single shot (5/5 FT, 4/4 2pts, 5/5 3pts) and led his team to an overtime victory 98-95 against Olympia. The 27-year old guard was exceptional and continued his great performances this year, currently being the 6th best scorer in the League.

But Kalabokis wasn't the only FCM player to shine this weekend. Giannis Bouroussis stepped up for Olympiakos and helped the Euroleague club to avoid unpleasant surprises in Patras. The European Champion scored 20 points, grabbed 7 rebounds and gave 2 assists in just 21 minutes, allowing Pini Gherson's team to escape with a crucial vistory (75-68). Anthony Goldwire was also great for another matchday, but the 19 points, 2 rebounds and 6 assists of the American point guard were not enough for Panellinios to avoid defeat at Maroussi.

A few days ago, Loukas Mavrokefalidis had his best game in Italy so far. The 22-year old center scored 19 points for Lottomatica Roma, but his club lost from Unicaja Malaja in the Eternal City for the 6th matchday of Euroleague, meaning that they have a tough work ahead in order to qualify to the Top 16.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

He is only 2 weeks in Greece, but his qualities are already visible. Anthony Goldwire received the MVP award for the 7th matchday in Greek A1, leading Panellinios to an important away win against Apollon in Patras. The 35-year old point guard scored 23 points (5/8 FT, 3/5 2pts, 4/5 3pts), adding 4 rebounds, 5 asists and 2 steals in 30 minutes. Another candidate for the MVP award was Panos Vasilopoulos, who had a great performance for Olympiacos in Larisa. The 22-year old forward not only scored 17 points in 30 minutes, but also added 9 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 steals and 2 blocks, helping the Euroleague club to win 84-76 against Olympia. In Italy, Loukas Mavrokefalidis had a good game for Lottomatica Roma, scoring 11 points in just 17 minutes last Sunday, allowing the Euroleague club to beat Capo d'Orlando 90-78 at home.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Anthony Goldwire returns to Greece once more! The American point guard signed until the end of the season with Panellinios and this will be his 3rd Club after Olympiacos and Aris. The 35-year old player has had an impressive career in the NBA (Phoenix Suns, Charlotte Hornets, Minesotta Timberwolves, New Jersey Nets, Detroit Pistons, Milwaukee Bucks, Los Angeles Clippers) and also in Europe (Barcelona, Valencia). If everything goes well, he will be available on Saturday for Panellinios home game against Panionios.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Aleksandrs Melniks signed a 4-year contract with Maroussi! The 2.16 center joined Lefteris Kakiousis' team, since he knows him from last year in AEK and Greece's assistant coach believes that the Latvian player has a lot of potential. "I am very happy to join Maroussi. They are a very organised club and the player has to think only about basketball. I will do my best to help my new team and prove to them that they were not wrong to trust me. I am looking forward to working and improving my game" were the first words of the 19-year old center.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Damir Mulaomerovic signed for one year with Olympiakos! The 32-year old point guard is the final transfer of the Euroleague club and last season's top socrer in Greece. The Croatian guard will start training immediately with Pini Gerson's side and maybe he will be available for Wednesday's derby against his old club Panathinaikos for the Greek Cup. "I am happy to return at a club that plays in the highest level. I know my qualities and i am sure i can help them out with my experience. I think i had a good year last season and i am looking forward for this one" were Mulaomerovic first words as on Olympiacos player.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The longest transfer story for this summer came to an end, as Loukas Mavrokefalidis signed a 3-year contract with Lottomatica Roma. The 22-year old center was the main target for the Euroleague club and following the competition draw last week in Athens, the administration of Roma flew to Thessaloniki and sealed the deal. Mavrokefalidis is already in the Italian capital and will start immediately training under Jasmin Repeca.

Obviously Loukas was very happy and in his first words as a Roma player he said: "It is a great honor for me to play for Roma. I realized the magnitude of this club and i was impressed that the General Manager came up to my front door. It showed how much they wanted me to join their club and i am happy that i will play for them. Euroleague is a big challenge and i am looking forward to it".

The Greek international spoke of his presence in PAOK: "I have had a difficult time deciding what to do, PAOK has been my home for the last 5 years. But the situation was not ideal and the offer from Roma was too good to refuse. Their interest was genuine and this is the main reason i signed".

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Greece won the silver medal in the World Championship in Japan, after having an excellent tournament. The European Champions had an impressive 8 straight win record, beating USA in the semi-final, only to lose by Spain in the final game. FirstClass Management would like to congratulate all the players and the coaching staff of our National Team and especially our player, Panos Vassilopoulos who won his third medal in two summers (Gold in Men's Eurobasket 2005 and Silver in U-21 World Championship).

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It was another great summer for the young players of FirstClass Management, who represented their countries in FIBA's European Championships. In Izmir, the Greek U-20 team featured Dimitris Verginis (left) and Dimitris Lolas. Verginis (although born in 1987) had a great tournament, finishing with 13 points per game, (plus 2,3 rebounds, 1,5 assists and 2,1 steals). Another FCM player was present at the tournament, but couldn't play due to an injury. Krists Piternieks was one of Latvia's big hopes for this Championship, but he couldn't help his country.

In the U-16 European Championship Nikos Pappas (left), Dimitris Arapis and Giorgos Georgakis were the FCM players that featured in the Greek team. Pappas was one of stars of the tournament, being the 3rd scorer overall with 18,4 points per game (plus 6 rebounds, 1,3 assists and 3,1 steals) and is currently rated among the best players in Europe in his age.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Krists Piternieks arrived in Greece and began preparation with Panellinios for the upcoming season. The Latvian U-20 international was very excited for this step of his career and can't wait to start working with his new club. "I am very happy to be in Athens and especially Panellinios. I was here for a few months back and everything convinced me that it is a big club, with high expectations. I am ready to give 100% of my strength to improve and help my team". Piternieks left Athens today with the rest of his teammates to go to Karpenisi, where Panellinios will realize the basic part of its preparation.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

FCM announces that Stelios Goulas, the U-18 Greek international, signed a contract with AE Larissa.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Loukas Mavrokefalidis was picked by Minnesota Timberwolves in number 57 of the NBA Draft that was held last night in New York. The 22-year old Greek center was present at the Draft selection procedure and was obviously thrilled: "I am very happy that Minnesota picked me, they have been coming all year to monitor my progress and it is a special honour for me that mr. Kevin McHale personally came to Greece to see me play and talk to me. The people have always had an interest in me and i am really happy i was selected by them".

Mavrokefalidis will travel today from New York to Minnesota, in order to get to know the city, the Timberwolves arena and the people of the organization. He will stay there for about 3-4 days and he is due to return to Greece next week, since he starts preparation with the Greek National Team, for the World Championship."I am now focusing in the National Team, it is a great honour for me to be called up for the first time in the senior squad and i want to give my 100%. I have to keep working hard and not lose my concentration" said Mavrokefalidis.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

FirstClass Management announces the signing of Giannis Bouroussis to Olympiacos! The European Champion put ink to his new contract with the Euroleague club and will be an Olympiacos player for the next 4 years (3+1). Bouroussis had another reason to be happy today, since his name features in the list of players that will prepare for Greece's World Cup squad.

Except Bouroussis, Panos Vassilopoulos was also invited from Panayiotis Giannakis, while Loukas Mavrokefalidis got his first senior call after an impressive season with PAOK. Mavrokefalidis flew to USA today and will be present tomorrow at the NBA draft.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

FirstClass Management is delighted to announce the collaboration with 2 new players. Dimitris Lolas from Maroussi (1986-201) and Giannis Psathas (1983-203) from ICBS (A2) are the newest members of our clientele.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

FirstClass Management announces the signing of Giannis Bourousis to Barcelona, for the remaining of the season. The 23-year old European Champion is a free agent this summer and agreed terms with the Spanish giants to help them in the play-offs. Bourousis is going to meet his captain in the national team, Mihalis Kakiouzis and is expected to fly to Barcelona immediately to complete the medical exams and sign his contract.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The final day of the regular season in Greece was just the top of the pile for Loukas Mavrokefalidis. The 22-year old center was declared the MVP of the day and without any doubts. 36 points, 13 rebounds against Larissa, a club who in this match fought for survival. These numbers came to verify what everyone can see. Mavrokefalidis is one of the hottest players in Europe for his age and his impressive season ended with him being the first Greek scorer in the league (3rd overall) and the first Greek rebounder (2nd overall), ahead of all the big names.

Loukas was not the only FCM client who shone. Giannis Kalabokis was the key figure in AEK's win over high flying Panellinios. The 28-year old guard scored 15 points (4 rebs, 1 assist, 1 steal) coming from the bench in just 20 minutes and thrashed the visitor's dreams for a win that would allow them to finish in the top 4.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Loukas Mavrokefalidis continues to amaze everybody in the League with his improvement. The 22 year old center had another great night against Iraklis, scoring 29 points, grabing 9 rebounds and leading his club to a crucial victory with 91-88. Mavrokefalidis is now the 1st Greek scorer in A1 (3rd overall), 3rd rebounder, has scored the most 2pts field goals with the 3rd best percentage (59%). His teammate Kostas Vassiliadis was also great, scoring 19 points (3 assist, 3 steals).

Elsewhere, Damir Mulaomerovic was on fire again, but his 24 points were not enough for Panellinios to overcome the obstacle of struggling Larissa. Still, Mula is by far the League's leading scorer and his club is almost certain for a top 4 finish!

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From everybody in FirstClass Management, many congratulations and the best wishes to Damir Mulaomerovic and his family for the birth of his second daughter!

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Loukas Mavrokefalidis (right) is the most in-form center on the League right now and it shows in every match. The 22-year old player socred 20 points and downed 9 rebounds in PAOK latest win against Apollon (88-79). Mavrokefalidis is currently 5th scorer and 4th rebounder of the League, proving his consistency throughout the season. Costas Vassiliadis was also essential in that game, not only by scoring 19 points, but with his total contribution (6 rebs, 3 assists, 4 steals).

Elsewhere, Giannis Bourousis was the towering figure in AEK's win against Marousi (80-77). The European Champion playing against his coach in the Greek NT Panayiotis Giannakis was excellent with 19 points and 13 rebounds, in just 27 minutes.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Loukas Mavrokefalidis continued his excellent season, with another convincing performance against Olympia. The 22-year old center scored 20 points and downed 8 rebounds in 31 minutes to lead PAOK to another victory. Mavrokefalidis is now 5th scorer and 5th rebounder in the League, showing his massive improvement. Vassilis Xanthopoulos also proved himself as the catalyte of the game, scoring 6 crucial points and giving 5 assist in just 8 minutes.

Andrija Zizic was also excellent, helping Olympiacos overcome the obstacle of AEK away from home. The Croatian international had another double double (14 points, 10 rebounds) and now he is getting ready for the Euroleague play-offs.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Another weekday, another MVP award for an FCM player. Giannis Gagaloudis took the honor this time (the 5th this season for our players) and it couldn't be anyone else, after his 3-point shot that allowed PAOK to escape with a vital win against Panionios (78-76). The 28-year old point guard didn't score much this time (8 points), but he contributed 5 rebounds and 4 assists apart from the winning shot.

Giannis Bouroussis was also the towering figure in AEK's win against Kolossos with 78-63. The European Champion scored 16 points (plus 8 rebounds) and led his club to an easy victory.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The following weekend the Greek basketball celebrates its own All-Star Game in Larissa and FCM will be more than well represented! Eight of our players will feature in the Men's game and competitions. Half of the Greek All-Stars team is compiled by FCM clients (Frangkiskos Alvertis, Panos Vassilopoulos, Giannis Bourousis, Kostas Vassiliadis, Loukas Mavrokefalidis and Giannis Gagaloudis). For the foreigners All-Star selection, Damir Mulaomerovic and Andrija Zizic will also be there, with "Mula" also trying his chances in the 3point shoot-out.

Also, in the Youth All-Star Game FCM will be represented in large numbers. Six of our players will feature in both teams (Vassilis Xanthopoulos, Alexandros Sigkounas, Vaggelis Sakelariou, Sotiris Manolopoulos, Dimitris Verginis, Kostas Bellos), whereas Manolopoulos and Verginis will also participate in the Youth 3point contest.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Another MVP (the 4th this season) for an FCM player in the Greek A1! This matchday it was the star of Kostas Vassiliadis which shone, since the 22-year old guard scored 27 points to lead PAOK in a dramatic win (98-96 in overtime) against league leaders Panathinaikos. But Vassiliadis wasn't alone. Loukas Mavrokefalidis continued his excellent appearances with another double-double (17 points, 11 rebounds), whereas Giannis Gagaloudis (18 points, 8 asists) was the one that kept his cool in overtime and locked the victory against his former club.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

PAOK is one of the hottest teams in Greek A1 right now, running a 4 win streak, beating the high-flying Panellinios 74-71. Giannis Gagaloudis and Loukas Mavrokefalidis were again the main figures for PAOK. Gagaloudis had a great game against his former teammate and League's best scorer and passer Damir Mulaomerovic, finishing the game with 14 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists and 4 steals, one of which didn't allow Panellinios to use his last possesion of the match. Mavrokefalidis was crucial in offense in the final minutes and his 15 points, 6 rebounds and 2 assists made the difference at the end.

Giannis Kalabokis had another great game against Panathinaikos, but his club AEK finally lost the battle between the two Euroleague teams. The 28-year old guard had 16 points, 2 rebs, 3 assist and 2 steals against Europe's strongest backcourt.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Panos Vasilopoulos returned from an injury to prove his usefulness for Olympiacos. The 21-year old European Champion played great defence against the League's high scorer Damir Mulaomerovic of Panelliniow and added 8 points, all in 13 minutes.

Elsewhre, Stanislav Makshantsev was the key figure for the biggest upset of the matchday, leading PAOK in an away win against AEK by 19 points (60-79). The 28-year old forward scored 26 points and with the help of Vassiliadis (18 points, 6 rebounds, 2 steals), Mavrokefalidis (15 points, 6 rebounds) and the excellent organization from Xanthopoulos (4 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 steals) allowed his club to escape Athens with a vital victory.

In A2 division, the league leaders Egaleo lost for the first time this year at home from Halkida, despite Fragkiskos Amato's 27 points, 8 rebounds and 5 assists. One of the reasons for their defeat was Manos Halkiadakis, who had another solid game (15 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists) and controlled the paint for Halkida at both ends of the court.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Loukas Mavrokefalidis showed again why he is considered to be among the top young centers in Europe. The 21-year old player was the tower of PAOK for the crucial away win in Larissa by a two point margin (83-85), scoring 21 points and grabbing 15 rebouns (10 offensive!). The 2,08 center is highly tipped to be among the new faces of the European Champions Greece for the World Cup in Japan this summer, after winning the silver medal with the U-21 team in Argentina last summer.

Damir Mulaomerovic had another typical game, leading Panellinios in a derby win against AEK with 82-74. "Mula" scored 22 points and this win made them 8 in a row for the Blues, who are now looking a strong contender for a top four finish!

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

PAOK signed Stanislav Makshantsev for the remaining of the season. The 28-year old forward (2,03) from Kazakhstan was a player of Euroleague's Unicaja Malaga in Spain until now, but opted to come to Salonica due to lack of playing time. Makshantsev will probably make his debut for PAOK in Larissa this weekend.

Also, FCM announces the agreement of Croatian center Josko Poljak (28, 2.13) with league strugglers Kolossos Rhodes. Poljak started the season with Euroleague club Olimpia Ljubliana and has won two league titles in two different countries in his career (2003 Olimpia, 2004 Cibona) and he has also played in the National Team of Croatia.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

For the second time in 3 matchdays, Damir Mulaomerovic is again the MVP of the Greek A1. The in-form Croatian point guard was again the driving force for Panellinios' 7th straight win, the "victim" this time being Olimpia Larissa. "Mula" had 21 points, 5 rebs and 5 assists and helped his club reach the 3rd place in the league.

Giannis Gagaloudis and Loukas Mavrokefalidis were the main reasons that PAOK downed Makedonikos at home and took a deep breath in the relegation battle. Both of them, were also voted in the MVP selection.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It took him a few games, but after recovering from a minor injury, Giannis Kalabokis was once more the key figure in AEK's away victory against Makedonikos. The 27-year old guard scored 16 points and made 4 steals in just 23 minutes and was the major factor allowing the Euroleague club to face no major problems against last year's ULEB Cup finalist.

Overall, this weekend the big men made the difference, especially in A2 division. Fragkiskos Amato had a stunning game for Egaleo and led the A2 leaders in an away derby win against Peristeri with 80-71. "Frank" was lethal with 26 points (10/12 2p), plus 10 rebs, 2 assists and 2 steals. Moreover, Kostas Tziallas and Manos Halkiadakis were the basis for Sporting and Halkida wins respectively. Tziallas had a party away from home against Dafni, scoring 20 points (7/8 2p), plus 8 rebs and 3 blocks. Halkidakis, had another mature game, allowing Halkida to overcome easily the resistance of ICBS (86-74), with 19 points, 8 rebs, 2 steals and 2 blocks.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Many congratulations to Damir Mulaomerovic for winning the MVP of the week award in Greek A1. The Croatian point guard had another amazing game, scoring 31 points (with 7 three-points) to lead Panellinios to his 5th straight win against Kolossos in Rhodes. Mula is the second player of FCM in a row that wins the MVP award.

The first one was Panos Vasilopoulos, who was the key figure in Olympiacos' victory in the derby against Panathinaikos just before Christmas. The European Champion gave one of the performances that he is known for, contributing in scoring, passing, rebounds and of course defence.