Ergin Ataman, the coach of Panathinaikos, challenged the Boston Celtics by claiming that they are not world champions and that only by defeating the EuroLeague champions can they truly claim championship status:
Ergin Ataman, the head coach of the reigning EuroLeague champion Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens, had previously challenged the NBA champion Boston Celtics, but now he made it clear: “Come and play us.”
On the Off the RECourt podcast, Ataman stated: “I want to say one more time, you guys [Boston Celtics] are not world champions. Boston Celtics, you are not world champions,” “You are only NBA champions, American champions. We [Panathinaikos Athens] are the EuroLeague champions. If you want to be world champions, come and play us. This is the challenge, come to play. Beat us, and then okay, you’ll be world champions.”
Since US sprinter Noah Lyles expressed his opinions on the subject—pointing out that NBA champions are not world champions—the argument over who should be named the “world champions” has gained momentum.
Kostas Sloukas, a guard for Panathinaikos, said that if the Celtics showed up to OAKA Arena, they would have a good chance of defeating them. He said : “If the Celtics came to OAKA, we would have a chance. As the coach has also said, if they want to be called world champions, they have to come and beat us,”
2024 WORLD CHAMPIONS 🏆 pic.twitter.com/31HoRn2LOd
— Boston Celtics (@celtics) June 18, 2024
However, when asked, Celtics star Jayson Tatum dismissed the concept, indicating that he isn’t exactly in favor of it. Tatum said : “I don’t think about ‘what ifs’ or hypotheticals,”. “I don’t think it’s going to happen, and I guess it’s a super competitive format. I guess it’s fun to talk about and debate about, but I doubt it’s going to happen anytime soon.”
Since the dissolution of the McDonald’s Open 25 years ago, there hasn’t been a competition between the top teams in Europe and the NBA. Since then, EuroLeague clubs have defeated NBA teams in preseason matches; the most recent instance was a 2023 matchup between the Dallas Mavericks and Real Madrid.
