Ataman may leave Panathinaikos after missing the major titles he promised to win

Panathinaikos lost 89:85 to Olympiacos on Saturday in the decisive fifth game of the Greek championship series, ending a disappointing season with only the Greek Cup to show for it while their archrivals completed a prized double.

After the loss, Panathinaikos coach Ergin Ataman lashed out at the league and at what he called an unacceptable incident. “I don’t understand what is happening in the Greek league, it is simply not fair,” he said. “Tyrique Jones came after the ejection into our locker room and hit Kendrick Nunn, he is injured now. A player cannot go into the opponent’s locker room, that is not proper in basketball.”

Greek reports say Ataman could leave Panathinaikos this summer. He has not managed to win either of the two major trophies the club targeted over the past two years, the Greek league title or the EuroLeague, and is seen as falling short of management’s expectations.

In January, Ataman had publicly pledged, “Without a title, I will leave the team at the end of the season.” He did win the cup, but it was not the championship-level success the club wanted, and the partnership may now end.