Dimitris Diamantidis

Dimitrios 'Dimitris' Diamantidis (Δημήτριος Διαμαντίδης ; born 6 May 1980) is a retired Greek professional basketball player, who spent the last twelve seasons of his EuroLeague career with Panathinaikos.

Widely regarded as one of the greatest European players ever to grace the game, he marked his era by being the most versatile player in the EuroLeague, serving as an inspiration to a whole generation of young European stars.

Diamantidis was born in Kastoria, Greece, on 6 May 1980.

He began playing the sport of basketball with the youth teams of the local club AS Kastoria.

The club would later go on to name its home arena, Dimitris Diamantidis Indoor Hall, after him in his honor.

He is the EuroLeague's all-time leader in steals since the stat was first officially recognized starting with the 1991–92 season.

In the summer of 1999, at the age of 19, Diamantidis began his professional career, when he signed with the Greek Basket League club Iraklis Thessaloniki.

In his first pro season, in the 1999–00 Greek League season, he averaged 1.5 points, 1.6 rebounds, 0.8 assists, 0.8 steals, and 0.3 blocks per game.

In his first season with the club, Diamantidis also played in the European-wide secondary league, the FIBA Saporta Cup.

Diamantidis averaged 1.8 points, 1.2 rebounds, 0.4 assists, and 1.2 steals per game, during the Saporta Cup 1999–00 season.

Diamantidis is the only Greek player who is a member of both the EuroLeague 2000–10 All-Decade Team and the EuroLeague 2010–20 All-Decade Team.

At the age of fourteen, Diamantidis started his basketball career with the youth clubs of his hometown team, AS Kastoria.

In his second season with the club, in the 2000–01 Greek League season, he upped his averages to 3.4 points, 2.8 rebounds, 1.7 assists, 0.8 steals, and 0.3 blocks per game.

Diamantidis also played in what was one of the two premier European-wide club competitions at that time, the FIBA SuproLeague.

He averaged 2.2 points, 1.8 rebounds, 1.2 assists, 1.4 steals, and 0.6 blocks per game, during the SuproLeague's 2000–01 season.

In his third season with Iraklis, he continued to up his numbers in the Greek League, as he averaged 6.2 points, 4.7 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 1.5 steals, and 0.4 blocks per game, during the 2001–02 Greek League season.

He was selected to the Greek League's All-Star Game, for the first time that season.

Diamantidis also once again played in the Pan-European secondary league, in which he averaged 7.1 points, 5.2 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 1.7 steals, and 0.8 blocks per game, during the Saporta Cup's 2001–02 season.

In his fourth season with Iraklis, Diamantidis only played in the national domestic Greek Basket League.

He continued to improve his individual numbers and performances, as he averaged 11.5 points, 5.6 rebounds, 5.0 assists, a league-leading 2.5 steals, and 0.9 blocks per game, during the 2002–03 Greek League season.

He was also once again voted to the Greek League's All-Star Game.

In his fifth and final season with Iraklis, Diamantidis had his best year with the club.

A year later, he made his professional debut with Iraklis Thessaloniki, and by 2003, he had emerged as an all-around star in the Greek League.

He averaged 14.8 points, 6.3 rebounds, 4.2 assists, a league-leading 2.5 steals, and 0.7 blocks per game, during the 2003–04 Greek League season.

Due to his play, he was again voted to the Greek League's All-Star Game, and at the end of the season, he was also named the Greek League's MVP for the season.

He became a member of Panathinaikos Athens in the summer of 2004, with whom he won three EuroLeague titles, in 2007, 2009, and 2011, with the last two coming as the team's captain.

Diamantidis' numerous accolades in the premier European club competition include a EuroLeague MVP Award, two EuroLeague Final Four MVP Awards, four All-EuroLeague First Team selections, as well as a record six EuroLeague Best Defender Awards.

Diamantidis was also a two-time Olympian, as he donned the Greek colours in 2004 and 2008, and on both occasions earned the fifth place of the tournament, which is tied for the all-time best finish for Greece.

As a member of the Greece men's national basketball team, Diamantidis won a EuroBasket gold medal in 2005; while anchoring a defense that allowed just 59.7 points per game.

He also scored the three-pointer that sealed the fate of the semifinal game against France, just seconds before the game's final buzzer.

He also led that tournament in assists, and was a part of the All-EuroBasket Team.

In 2006, he played a pivotal role in a FIBA World Cup silver medal campaign, with Greece stunning Team USA in the semifinals, and Diamantidis finishing as the competition's steals leader.

On the basis of his myriad achievements, he was named the Mister Europa Player of the Year by Italian sports magazine Superbasket in 2007.

He was also named the Greek Male Athlete of the Year in 2007.

He was inducted into the Greek Basket League Hall of Fame in 2022.

On 1 April 2016 he was honored with a EuroLeague Basketball Legend Award.

Amidst a long series of "derbies of the eternal enemies", opposing Panathinaikos and Olympiacos Piraeus, Diamantidis thrived, as he faced Olympiacos every year for twelve consecutive seasons, including in eleven Greek League Finals, six Greek Cup Finals, and a EuroLeague semifinal.

He won nine Greek League and ten Greek Cup titles, alongside four Greek League Finals MVP and a record six Greek League MVP awards, as well as two Greek Cup MVP awards.

Diamantidis' personal friendship and rivalry with Olympiacos star Vassilis Spanoulis, was at the center of attention throughout six Greek League Finals and three Greek Cup Finals encounters.

Diamantidis' self-effacing psyche helped relieve tension between the two powerhouses, when he retired in 2016.