Theódoros Papaloukas
From Hoopedia
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| No. 4 - Olympiacos | ||
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| Shooting guard/Point guard | ||
| Personal information | ||
| Date of birth | May 8, 1977 | |
| Place of birth | Athens, Greece | |
| Nationality |  Greek
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| Listed height | 6 ft 6 | |
| Listed weight | 215 lbs | |
| Career information | ||
| Pro career | 1995-present | |
| League | A1 Ethniki
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| Career history | ||
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| Career highlights and awards | ||
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Theódoros "Theo" Papaloukas (in Greek: Θεόδωρος "Θοδωρής" Παπαλουκάς; born May 8, 1977, in Athens, Greece) is a Greek basketball player, who is currently playing for the A1 Ethniki's Olympiacos. He led the Greek national team in scoring in the 2005 European Championship game. At 6'7", he plays the point guard and small forward positions. He is currently with the Greek League and Euroleague club Olympiacos. A perennial All-Euroleague selection and competition icon, Papaloukas symbolizes the rise of European basketball in the new millennium.
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Player Profile
Papaloukas is a 6'7" (2.00 m) in height player that can play as either a point guard, shooting guard or point forward on both the offensive and defensive ends of the court. He is a pass first play maker, or "pure point guard" with a distinctive style of play. His play making ability and pass first or "pure" point guard skills at his height, combined with his versatility to play multiple positions on the basketball court on both ends of the floor make him an extraordinary player. He is also the Euroleague's all time record holder in both career steals and assists. Papaloukas was selected to the Euroleague's 50th anniversary Euroleague's 35 Greatest All-Time Players list in 2008. He has been given the nickname "The Thread" because of his unique ability to complete passes through opposing defenses.
Professional career
Greece
A native of Athens, Greece, Papaloukas began his career at the small local Athens junior team Ethnikos Ellinoroson. He then played for another small, but at the time rising club called Ampelokipoi, with whom he began his pro career with in 1995. He then transferred to Dafni Athens of the Greek A2 League in the year 1997 and then he next transferred to Panionios, a traditional basketball club of the Greek A1 League in the year 1999. Papaloukas finally moved to Olympiacos, a long-time Greek League power as well as one of the long-time powers of the Euroleague in the year 2001.
With Dafni BC, Papaloukas won the Greek A2 League Championship and league MVP award in the 1998-1999 season. With Olympiacos, he led the Greek A1 League in assists in the 2000-2001 season. After what was an embarrassing 2001-2002 season both for him and for Olympiacos, he moved to another Euroleague powerhouse, the Russian Super League club CSKA Moscow in 2002.
On June 20th, 2008, Papaloukas was released from his contract by CSKA Moscow and he signed a 3 year contract with Olympiacos BC, making a return to Greece and his former team. Papaloukas signed through the 2010-2011 season, with an annual salary of €3.5 million euros net income. He has a Nike shoe contract.
CSKA Moscow
With 19 points in the Euroleague 2005-06 semifinal against FC Barcelona, and another 18 points at the final against back-to-back European Champion Maccabi Tel Aviv, Papaloukas was awarded the Euroleague 2005-06 Final Four MVP, having also been named the best point guard of the Euroleague for 2005-2006. Alongside him on the first team were the best shooting guard Juan Carlos Navarro of Barça, best small forward Anthony Parker of Maccabi (the Euroleague 2005-06 MVP), best power forward Luis Scola of TAU Cerámica, and best center Nikola Vujčić of Maccabi.
In 2007, Papaloukas was voted the MVP of the Euroleague 2006-07 for the regular season. CSKA advanced to the final against Panathinaikos held on the Greens' home court of Athens Olympic Indoor Hall (which had been chosen as the site more than a year in advance). Panathinaikos won the game by a score of 93-91 in a very exciting game. Papaloukas scored 23 points and dished out 8 assists, but a number of sportswriters intimated that he did not receive adequate support from his CSKA teammates and thus his team lost the final. Papaloukas was also a key member of CSKA's Euroleague 2007-08 championship team.
Papaloukas has been pursued by the Los Angeles Lakers, Milwaukee Bucks, and the Miami Heat to fill their point guard spot. On July 7, 2007, Greek newspapers reported that Papaloukas agreed to a newly-structured 3-year contract with CSKA, worth €10.5 million euros net income. He had the option to leave his contract with no buyout at any time, and he did so just one year later, when he signed with Olympiacos.
Euroleague statistics
| SEASON | LEAGUE | TEAM | GP | MPG | PPG | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001-02 | Euroleague | Olympiacos | 19 | 27.0 | 8.4 | 2.9 | 4.0 | 2.0 | 0.2 |
| 2002-03 | Euroleague | CSKA Moscow | 21 | 16.5 | 4.7 | 2.0 | 3.4 | 1.1 | 0.0 |
| 2003-04 | Euroleague | CSKA Moscow | 21 | 17.4 | 6.3 | 1.7 | 2.7 | 1.5 | 0.1 |
| 2004-05 | Euroleague | CSKA Moscow | 23 | 18.5 | 7.6 | 2.3 | 3.8 | 1.3 | 0.1 |
| 2005-06 | Euroleague | CSKA Moscow | 24 | 22.8 | 9.3 | 3.1 | 4.0 | 1.8 | 0.3 |
| 2006-07 | Euroleague | CSKA Moscow | 25 | 24.4 | 9.8 | 3.2 | 5.4 | 1.7 | 0.2 |
| 2007-08 | Euroleague | CSKA Moscow | 23 | 21.8 | 7.7 | 2.7 | 4.6 | 1.2 | 0.0 |
| 2008-09 | Euroleague | Olympiacos | 22 | 25.0 | 8.0 | 2.7 | 5.2 | 1.1 | 0.0 |
