Ionikos Nikaias B.C.

Logos

Ionikos N.F. B.C. Logo.gif | (A.O. Ionikos Nikaias' official 1965 club logo.) Ionikos Nikaias BC Logo.png | (Ionikos Nikaias B.C.'s official logo –2018.) Ionikos BC.jpg | (Ionikos Nikaias B.C.'s official logo 2018–2020.)

History

Early years

Ionikos Nikaias' men's basketball club was founded in 1965, and it played its first game in 1966, during the 1966–67 season. Over the years, the club has featured Greek players such as: Panagiotis Giannakis, Fotis Katsikaris, Nikos Oikonomou, Vangelis Margaritis, Vassilis Kavvadas, and Marios Batis. Ionikos Nikaias played in the Greek 2nd Division for the first time, in the 1972–73 season. The club won the Greek 2nd Division first group in the 1974–75 season, and was thus promoted to the top-tier level Greek League, for the first time, for the 1975–76 season.

The club made 12 consecutive season appearances in the top-tier level Greek Basket League, during the 1970s and 1980s period, from the 1975–76 season, to the 1986–87 season. The club also competed in the 3rd-tier level European-wide competition, the FIBA Korać Cup, in both the 1979–80 and 1984–85 seasons.

On January 24, 1981, Ionikos Nikaias, led by a then 22-year-old Giannakis, played against Aris Thessaloniki, which was led at the time by Nikos Galis. Aris won in a tight game, by a score of 114–113. The game is memorable in the history of Greek pro club basketball, because in the game, Giannakis scored 73 points, and Galis scored 62 points, achieving the 2nd and 4th most points scored in a single game of the Greek League basketball championship.

On August 3, 1984, Ionikos Nikaias transferred its club star Panagiotis Giannakis, to the Greek club Aris Thessaloniki. Aris paid Ionikos Nikaias a transfer fee for his player rights, in the amount of 42 million Greek Drachmas, which was considered a huge amount of money for a transfer at that time. In order to complete the transfer, Giannakis also personally received a BMW car, a sporting goods store, and 8 million drachmas from Aris.

Recent years

Ionikos Nikaias won the Greek 3rd Division south conference in the 2017–18 season, and thus earned a league promotion to the Greek 2nd Division, for the 2018–19 season. That marked the first time the club had played in the Greek 2nd Division, since the 2003–04 season. In the 2018–19 season, Ionikos won the Greek 2nd Division (A2) championship, and was promoted up to the first tier level Greek Basket League, for the 2019–20 season. That marked the first time the club had played in Greece's first division, since the 1986–87 season.

Ionikos Nikaias B.C. in international competitions

Main article: Ionikos Nikaias B.C. in international competitions

Arenas

Ionikos' long-time home arena (1970–2018, 2020–present) is the Nikaias Platonas Indoor Hall (Greek: Κλειστό Γυμναστήριο Πλάτων Νικαίας), which is an indoor arena that is located in Nikaia, Piraeus, Athens, and has a seating capacity of 1,200 people. Platonas Gymnasium was renovated in 2020. For the Greek Basket League 2019–20 season, while the arena was being renovated, Ionikos moved into the Sofia Befon Indoor Hall, which is located in Palaio Faliro, Piraeus, Athens, and has a seating capacity of 1,204 people.

Honors and titles

Domestic competitions

• Greek 2nd Division (B) / Greek 2nd Division (A2) Champion: (2) (1974–75 B), (2018–19 A2)
• Greek 3rd Division Champion: (1) (2017–18)
• Greek C Basket League Group 3 Champion: (1) (2024-25)

European competitions

• Participant in FIBA Korać Cup (3rd-tier): (2) (1979–80, 1984–85)

Roster

• GRE Foivos Kostis
• GRE Apostolos Koutroulias

Notable players

Greece:

• Greece Kostas Alexandridis
• Greece Nikos Arsenopoulos
• Greece Giannis Athinaiou
• Greece Marios Batis
• Greece Dimitris Bogdanos
• Greece Vassilis Charalampopoulos
• Greece Nikos Chougkaz
• Greece Ioannis Dimakos
• Greece Panagiotis Giannakis
• Greece Costis Gontikas
• Greece Georgios Kalafatakis
• Greece Andreas Kanonidis
• Greece Vangelis Karampoulas
• Greece Fotis Katsikaris
• Greece Sotiris Katoufas
• Greece Vassilis Kavvadas
• Greece Iosif Koloveros
• Greece Dimitris Kompodietas
• Greece Nikos Liakopoulos
• Greece Dimitris Lolas
• Greece Vangelis Mantzaris
• Greece Vangelis Margaritis
• Greece Loukas Mavrokefalidis
• Greece Iakovos Milentigievits
• Greece Nikos Oikonomou
• Greece Andreas Papadopoulos
• Greece Michael Paragyios
• Greece Christos Petrodimopoulos
• Greece Andreas Petropoulos
• Greece Ioannis Sachpatzidis
• Greece Vangelis Sakellariou
• Greece Sofoklis Schortsanitis
• Greece Vassilis Toliopoulos
• Greece Fotis Vasilopoulos

Europe:

• France/Greece Angelo Tsagarakis
• Bosnia/Canada Diego Kapelan
• Netherlands Roeland Schaftenaar
• Turkey Muhaymin Mustafa

United States:

• United States/Ukraine Steve Burtt Jr.
• United States Jordan Callahan
• United States Toarlyn Fitzpatrick
• United States Eugene German
• United States Daniel Hamilton
• United States Jeremy Hollowell
• United States Jamal Jones
• United States DaVonté Lacy
• United States Lucky Jones
• United States Eugene Lawrence
• United States Josh Owens
• United States Terell Parks
• United States Sayeed Pridgett
• United States Adam Smith
• United States B. J. Stith
• United States Nick Zeisloft

Head coaches

Season by season

References

References

1. [http://www.euroleague.net/news/i/11052/180/athens-basketball-devotion-through-the-decades Euroleague.net My name is Giannakis. Panayotis Giannakis.]
2. [http://www.sport24.gr/Basket/ElladaBasket/EthnikiBasket/seismos-sthn-thessalonikh-o-giannakhs-ston-arh.4791726.html "Σεισμός στην Θεσσαλονίκη, ο Γιαννάκης στον Άρη" {{in lang. el.]
3. (27 May 2019). "Ιωνικός Νικαίας : Στην Basket League με Κουφό!". Sportime.gr.
4. [https://www.thetoc.gr/athlitika/article/sto-sofia-mpefon-o-iwnikos-nikaias Στο «Σοφία Μπεφόν» ο Ιωνικός Νικαίας {{in lang. el.]
5. "Ιωνικός Νικαίας: Προς το "Σοφία Μπεφόν" για τη νέα σεζόν .".
6. [http://adiakritos.gr/afto-ine-neo-klisto-gipedo-tou-paleou-falirou-fotovinteo/ Αυτό είναι το νέο Κλειστό Γήπεδο του Παλαιού Φαλήρου {{in lang. el.]
7. "Greek C Basket League Basketball, News, Teams, Scores, Stats, Standings, Awards - eurobasket".