By Johnny Askounis/ info@eurohoops.net
Offered the option to stay as team manager, Fragiskos Alvertis announced he will instead leave Panathinaikos OPAP mentioning pride, honor, and love for the team, and citing personal reasons leading to his departure on Wednesday.
Head coach Dimitris Priftis, GM Dimitris Diamantidis, and technical director Nikos Pappas were fired, while team manager and president Panagiotis Triantopoulos resigned, as announced Tuesday evening.
Alvertis, 47, was appointed co-GM alongside Diamantidis taking over the management of the storied Greek club in June 2020 with owner Dimitris Giannakopoulos looking to step down from his position. Two years forward and in the process of the front office overhaul, he had the option to stay as the team manager but decided to leave the Greens as well.
The relationship between fan-favorite Frankie and Panathinaikos stretches back several decades, From 1990 to 2009, he captured five Turkish Airlines EuroLeague championships and 11 Greek League championships as a player. After the conclusion of his legendary career, he shifted to the head coaching role in 2014 and served as a GM since 2016.
Vovoras is set to be named head coach
Former Panathinaikos boss Argyris Pedoulakis has been hired as the new technical director in charge to handle day-to-day team operations and selecting the new head coach, as described in Tuesday’s press release. Giorgos Vovoras and Ilias Papatheodorou were among the tacticians already linked to the head coaching position.
Vovoras, 45, will ink a contract for the remainder of the season and return for a second stint as head coach, according to Eurohoops sources. The initial run lasting about seven months ended after a string of poor results midway through the 2020-21 season.
After completing the latest Turkish Airlines EuroLeague campaign, the Greens are set to wrap up the 2021-22 season in Greece’s Stoiximan Basket League. Carrying a 17-2 record, they are one game behind leading Olympiacos with five matchups left on the schedule of the Regular Season.