Dimitrios Papanikolaou

Dimitrios Papanikolaou, also spelled Dimitris Papanikolaou (in Greek: Δημήτρης Παπανικολάου; born February 7, 1977 in Nea Liosia, Athens, Greece) is a Greek professional basketball player. He is 2.02 m (6 ft 7 ½ in) tall. He plays at the shooting guard, small forward, and power forward positions.

Pro career

Papanikolaou began his professional career in 1992 with the Greek club Sporting Athens. He then transferred to Olympiacos Piraeus in the year 1995. With Olympiacos, he won 2 Greek Championships (1996, 1997), 2 Greek Cups (1997, 2002), the Euroleague Championship (1997), and also the Triple Crown (1997).

In 2002, he moved to Makedonikos Kozani, and then in 2003, he moved to Panathinaikos Athens. With Panathinaikos, he won 4 Greek Championships (2004, 2005, 2006, 2007), 3 Greek Cups (2005, 2006, 2007), the Euroleague Championship (2007), and also the Triple Crown (2007). In 2007, he moved to AEK Athens, in 2009 to Panionios and a year later he joined Peristeri. He announced his retirement from professional basketball on August 22nd 2011^[1].

Greek national team

With the junior Greek national team, Papanikolaou won the gold medal at both the 1993 FIBA Europe Under-18 Championship and also at the 1995 FIBA Under-19 World Championship. With the senior Greek National Basketball Team, Papanikolaou competed at the 1998 FIBA World Championship and finished in 4th place in the world with Greece.

He also competed with Greece at the following European Championships: Eurobasket 1997, Eurobasket 1999, Eurobasket 2001, and Eurobasket 2003. Papanikolaou was also a member of the Greek team at the 1996 Olympic Basketball Tournament and he was also a member of Greece's team at the 2004 Olympic Basketball Tournament. In both Olympics, Greece managed to finish 5th in the world.

Pro teams

• AO Sporting Athens (1992–95)
• Olympiacos Piraeus (1995–02)
• Makedonikos Kozani (2002–03)
• Panathinaikos Athens (2003–07)
• AEK Athens (2007–09)
• Panionios (2009–2010)
• Peristeri (2010–2011)

Honors and accomplishments

Pro career

• Won 6 Greek Championships (1996, 1997, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007)
• Won 5 Greek Cups (1997, 2002, 2005, 2006, 2007)
• Won 2 Euroleague Championships (1997, 2007)
• Won 2 Triple Crowns (1997, 2007)
• 7x Greek All Star Game (1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2006, 2009)
• Won the Greek All Star Game Slam Dunk Contest (2001)

Greek national team

• FIBA Europe Under-16 Championship: Gold Medal (1993)
• FIBA Under-19 World Championship: Gold Medal (1995)

External links

• Euroleague.net Profile
• Player Profile - AEK.com
• Basketpedya.com Profile
• Greek League Player Profile (Greek)

References