Panagiotis "Panos" Kalaitzakis (Greek: Παναγιώτης "Πάνος" Καλαϊτζάκης; born January 2, 1999) is a Greek professional basketball player for Panathinaikos of the Greek Basketball League (GBL) and the EuroLeague. He is a 2.00 m (6'6 3⁄4") tall[1] and he plays at the shooting guard and small forward positions.[2]
 Kalaitzakis with Lietkabelis during the 2022 LKL Finals | |
| No. 0 – Panathinaikos | |
|---|---|
| Position | Shooting guard / Small forward |
| League | GBL EuroLeague |
| Personal information | |
| Born | January 2, 1999 Heraklion, Crete, Greece |
| Listed height | 6 ft 6.75 in (2.00 m) |
| Listed weight | 202 lb (92 kg) |
| Career information | |
| NBA draft | 2021: undrafted |
| Playing career | 2016–present |
| Career history | |
| 2016–2018 | Aris Thessaloniki |
| 2018–2019 | Holargos |
| 2019–2021 | Nevėžis |
| 2021–2022 | Lietkabelis |
| 2022–present | Panathinaikos |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
Professional career
editAris Thessaloniki (2016–2019)
editAfter playing with the junior youth clubs of Aris Thessaloniki, Kalaitzakis began his professional career in the 2016–17 season, in the Greek Basket League, with the senior men's team of Aris. He was released by Aris on July 15, 2018, and he later joined the newly promoted to the first-tier Greek League team of Holargos.
Nevėžis (2019–2021)
editOn August 28, 2019, he signed with Nevėžis Kėdainiai of the Lithuanian Basketball League.[3]
Lietkabelis (2021–2022)
editOn March 16, 2021, Kalaitzakis signed with Lietkabelis Panevėžys of the Lithuanian Basketball League.[4] During the 2021–2022 campaign, Kalaitzakis averaged 10.5 points, 4.2 rebounds, 2.9 assists and 1.6 steals in domestic competition, as well as 13 points, 2.8 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.6 steals in the EuroCup.
Panathinaikos (2022–present)
editOn July 2, 2022, Kalaitzakis signed a three-year (2+1) deal with Panathinaikos of the Greek Basket League and the EuroLeague.[5]
In his first season with Panathinaikos, he averaged 2.4 points and 1.2 rebounds in 8 minutes per contest in 25 EuroLeague games. Additionally, in 33 domestic league matches, he averaged 5.4 points, 2.4 rebounds and 1.1 assists in 16 minutes per contest.
On January 25, 2024, Kalaitzakis recorded his highest-scoring EuroLeague game, scoring 17 points against Maccabi Tel Aviv.
National team career
editGreek junior national team
editKalaitzakis was a member of the junior national teams of Greece. With Greece's junior national teams, he played at the 2017 FIBA Europe Under-18 Championship, the 2018 FIBA Europe Under-20 Championship, and the 2019 FIBA Europe Under-20 Championship.
Greek senior national team
editKalaitzakis played with the senior Greek national team at the 2023 FIBA World Cup qualifiers.
Career statistics
edit| GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game |
| FG% | Field-goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field-goal percentage | FT% | Free-throw percentage |
| RPG | Rebounds per game | APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game |
| BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game | PIR | Performance Index Rating |
| Bold | Career high |
EuroLeague
edit| † | Denotes seasons in which Kalaitzakis won the EuroLeague |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG | PIR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022–23 | Panathinaikos | 25 | 7 | 8.3 | .488 | .455 | .625 | 1.2 | .3 | .4 | .1 | 2.4 | 2.3 |
| 2023–24† | 30 | 0 | 5.9 | .510 | .250 | 1.000 | .9 | .2 | .2 | .0 | 2.1 | 2.1 | |
| Career | 55 | 7 | 6.7 | .500 | .357 | .750 | 1.0 | .3 | .3 | .1 | 2.2 | 2.2 | |
EuroCup
edit| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG | PIR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021–22 | Lietkabelis | 19 | 17 | 27.6 | .460 | .372 | .747 | 2.8 | 2.8 | 1.3 | .2 | 13.0 | 12.5 |
| Career | 19 | 17 | 27.6 | .460 | .372 | .747 | 2.8 | 2.8 | 1.3 | .2 | 13.0 | 12.5 | |
Basketball Champions League
edit| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017–18 | Aris Thessaloniki | 5 | 0 | 1.6 | .500 | — | — | .4 | — | — | — | 0.4 |
| Career | 5 | 0 | 1.6 | .500 | — | — | .4 | — | — | — | 0.4 | |
Domestic leagues
edit| Year | Team | League | GP | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016–17 |  Aris Thessaloniki |
HEBA A1 | 2 | 3.1 | .500 | — | — | 1.0 | — | — | — | 1.0 |
| 2017–18 | Aris Thessaloniki |
HEBA A1 | 4 | 4.1 | .400 | — | — | .2 | — | — | — | 1.0 |
| 2018–19 | Holargos |
HEBA A1 | 19 | 6.9 | .423 | .000 | .533 | 1.2 | .2 | .0 | — | 1.6 |
| 2019–20 |  Nevėžis |
LKL | 24 | 25.3 | .380 | .307 | .814 | 3.2 | 1.6 | 1.1 | .2 | 9.6 |
| 2020–21 | Nevėžis |
LKL | 22 | 29.5 | .416 | .285 | .822 | 4.5 | 2.0 | 1.3 | .2 | 13.7 |
| Lietkabelis |
LKL | 22 | 20.0 | .449 | .333 | .821 | 4.1 | 1.0 | 1.1 | .1 | 7.5 | |
| 2021–22 | Lietkabelis |
LKL | 40 | 25.8 | .415 | .337 | .738 | 4.1 | 2.8 | 1.5 | .1 | 10.5 |
| 2022–23 | Panathinaikos |
HEBA A1 | 31 | 16.4 | .377 | .177 | .710 | 2.5 | 1.1 | .8 | .1 | 5.7 |
| 2023–24 | Panathinaikos |
HEBA A1 | 34 | 13.8 | .486 | .258 | .647 | 1.5 | .8 | .9 | .2 | 5.6 |
Personal life
editHis twin brother, Georgios, as well as their younger sibling Alexandros (born 2003), are professional basketball players. Panagiotis and Georgios have been teammates in both Nevėžis Kėdainiai and Panathinaikos.[6]
References
edit- ^ ΚΑΛΑΪΤΖΑΚΗΣ Παναγιώτης | ΥΨΟΣ 2,00 (in Greek).
- ^ Panagiotis Kalaitzakis GF.
- ^ "Prie komandos jungiasi talentingieji broliai Kalaitzakiai" (in Lithuanian). BC Nevėžis Official Website. August 28, 2019. Retrieved August 28, 2019.
- ^ Skerletic, Dario (March 16, 2021). "BC Lietkabelis ink Panagiotis Kalaitzakis". Sportando. Retrieved March 16, 2021.
- ^ "Στον Παναθηναϊκό ΟΠΑΠ ο Καλαϊτζάκης". Panathinaikos BC (in Greek). 2 July 2022. Retrieved 2022-07-02.
- ^ "Nevezis signs Georgios and Panagiotis Kalaitzakis". Sportando. August 28, 2019. Retrieved August 28, 2019.