Greece EuroBasket 2011 Preliminary Squad Named

Greece head coach Ilias Zourous recently named a surprising 16-man preliminary squad for their upcoming campaign in the EuroBasket 2011 in Lithuania this August.

Veteran international campaigner and EuroLeague Final Four MVP and 2006 FIBA Europe Player of the Year Dimitris Diamantidis and Theo Papaloukas was not included in the preliminary roster, along with Panathinaikos forward Kostas Tsartsaris.

According to reports, Diamantidis considered playing for the national team again, but the Greek superstar opted to sit out and rest for the second-straight European championship.

“At my age, I need to take better care of my body, and summer rest is becoming more and more important in the recuperation process,” said Diamantidis in an interview.

Diamantidis and Papaloukas also missed the 2009 EuroBasket in Poland, but they managed the Greek squad finished with the Bronze medal.

This year, the squad, which will be bannered by veterans Antonis Fotsis, Vasilis Spanoulis, Nikos Zisis, Ioannis Bourousis, and Sofoklis Schortsanitis, are also hoping for good results in this year’s competition.

Greece was drawn in Group C where they will collide with Bosnia and Herzegovina, FYR Macedonia, Croatia, Montenegro, and a soon-to-be-determined qualifier for the upcoming EuroBasket Men’s competition.

Greece Preliminary Squad for EuroBasket Men 2011

• Antonis Fotsis
• Vasilis Spanoulis
• Nikos Zisis
• Ioannis Bourousis
• Sofoklis Schortsanitis
• Nick Calathes
• Stratos Perperoglou
• Kostas Kaimakoglou
• Kostas Koufos
• Loukas Mavrokefalidis
• Mike Bramos
• Kostas Papanikolaou
• Kostas Sloukas
• Vaggelis Mantzaris
• Kostas Vasileadis
• Ian Vougioukas

Related posts:

1. Greece Makes Final Roster Cut for EuroBasket 2011
2. Greece Preliminary Squad Released; Papaloukas Out
3. Greece’s Spanoulis, Slovenia’s Nachbar to Miss EuroBasket 2011
4. Macedonia EuroBasket 2011 Preliminary Squad Released
5. Israel EuroBasket 2011 Preliminary Squad Released