These number might be well known to Greek basketball fans after this weekend. I am not sure if more Panathinaikos fans will remember these numbers out of pure joy or if Olympiakos fans remember them for this huge defeat.
The game was played at the so called “Peace and Friendship Stadium” but as we know there is a huge rivalry between those two teams.For Panathinaikos to sweep the regular season series from the Reds is like sending a heavy message that they remain the big favorites, not only to secure the regular season’s first spot, but also to win it all.
The interesting thing for me – Kennedy Winston was the go-to-guy for Panathiniakos – not Saras, not Spanoulis and not even Batiste. Up to this point, Winston has not really convinced me with his Euroleague performance so this is kind of surprising for me.
So what about Olympiakos? Where does the new coach lead them? Was is it really all Pini Gershon’s fault? We will see as soon as Wednesday, when Olympiakos will play against Real Madrid – at the sight of the Final Four 2008. Not the easiest place to win a game – but if they should be able to pull off a win from Real Madrid it is probably the best motivation they can get – of course behind a win against Panathinaikos…
Kennedy had more of a scoring job last year when he played in Panionis , I believe was it? As I sat there watching the game between Efes and PAO in Istanbul last week, I saw Obradovic’s reaction to a bad defensive scenario followed by a turnover by Winston at the offensive end.. Now, one thing to remember, Kennedy is not a veteran player, and the coach’s reaction to the recent sequence was to pull him out of the game; Total playing time: 2 minutes. Let’s rewind a couple of months back.. Same arena, different match-up.. J-Dub vs. Kennedy Winston. After a couple of flashy dunks by James White, Kennedy gains the upper hand of the rivalry and destroys Fenerbahce, and not only does he seal the game, but also wins the game’s key match up against James White.. The point of this mini story is that young talented players like Kennedy WInston must be dubbed their 20-25 minutes on the court to reward their coach by putting on a show.. Players like Kennedy have to get in ryhtym so they can be affective, but before that, they have to be given a chance.. He may end up in the NBA in a couple of years.. He’s a shooting guard, remember that!
Winston just came back after an injury when he played against Efes in Istanbul. He made some mistakes and Obradovic thought that he might not be ready yet. You could say that, considering how the rest of the team played that night, he should have gotten some extra time. But Pao seemed a little bit irritated by their own performance, so obradovic thought it was wise to let the more experienced players give a try to turn around the game. A logical decision.
Winston definitely plays his best against Olympiakos, both with Panionios and Panathinaikos. 65 points and 4-0 record in 4 games…
Winston, as all new signings of PAO needs his time to fit in, even Siskauskas was not so good in the first half of last season. Add to that his minor injuries and his 10 days trip to the US a couple of weeks ago and you get the picture. And don’t forget that he has got a new role in PAO as a SF and sometimes as a PF.
The only two things left for PAO until Greek play-offs are now the Cup final against Olympiakos and the to finish their season undefeated for the first time.