By John Rammas/ irammas@eurohoops.net
Under the shadow of the Athenian Acropolis, Panathinaikos presented the jersey of the 2023-24 season hoping that everything that happened in the recent past will be forgotten.
However, a member of last season’s roster remains, wearing no.40, and hopes that this time this will be different.
Marius Grigonis remains a key part of the roster and admits that he also wants to turn the page.
“I hope everything will be better than last year,” the 29-year-old Lithuanian swingman told Eurohoops, coming off a difficult first season in Athens and an offseason with a questionable future in the team.
However, he stayed and he feels like he got another chance to restore the club to past glories.
As he admits modestly: “It’s so early that all people can say this (that we will everything), but it feels a little bit more alive”
On a personal level, he added: “I am moving forward day by day. It’s the easiest thing to say that we’re going to sweep everything, but the EuroLeague is very competitive, and all the titles require effort to win them. However, we seem to have chemistry, we are slowly getting together. After all, basketball is a team sport and everyone has to play and give something. We signed big names and the expectations are high. The world understands this and more is expected on the court”.
And of course, two-time Euroleague Champion with Efes, coach Ergin Ataman is at the center of this effort.
“He is different in his own way”, admits Grigonis, “he has his own charisma.”
And that’s why the Lithuanian just wants to fit in better than last season. After averaging 11.5 ppg in six prep games, when asked in which position he would prefer to be used, he states the obvious with a smile: “Wherever the coach puts me, as long as I play”.