The former Rockets Nuggets forward ability has dropped sharply. Is the Greek team really out of the blue?

In the previous 4th round of the Group C group stage of the Men's Basketball European Championship, Bosnia and Herzegovina unexpectedly defeated Giannis Antetokounmpo, which lacked Giannis Antetokounmpo, 80-77. After this game, although the Greek team's record dropped to 3 wins and 1 loss, they have already achieved qualifying early; while the Bosnia and Herzegovina's record dropped to 2 wins and 2 losses, and whether they can qualify smoothly is still a question mark.

In this game, the performance of Greek veteran Kostas Papanikolaou is still relatively average. Papanicoulau played 28 minutes and 48 seconds in the whole game, made 4 of 8 shots, 1 of 3 from outside the three-point line, and 2 of 4 free throws, and scored 11 points, 7 rebounds, 2 steals and 1 block. It also included 3 frontcourt rebounds, 3 turnovers and 4 fouls, with a plus-negative value of -6. Papanicoulau's performance on the offensive end was sloppy, and he got some points, providing some support to the team. However, Papanicou's performance on the defensive end was not ideal, and his personal defensive ability had already declined significantly. His steps and consciousness were no longer able to keep up with the pace, and his effect on the defensive end was also very average. Overall, as a veteran with rich experience, who has appeared in the NBA and has a very comprehensive ability, Papanicou's performance in this game is still a bit disappointing.

Since the start of the European Championship, Papanicoulau has averaged 22.6 minutes in the first four games, with averaging 6 points, 5 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 0.8 steals and 0.5 blocks, and 1.3 turnovers and 1.5 fouls. His shooting percentage is 47.1%, a three-point shooting percentage of 40%, and a free throw shooting percentage of 66.7%, and a plus-negative value per game is +11. Papanicoulau's presence in these games is really low. His scoring ability has not been fully utilized. His contribution to the defensive end is relatively limited. His performance has always been a tepid feeling. In this game, due to Giannis' absence, Papanicoulau did get more playing time and performance opportunities, but he still did not show stronger competitiveness.

Papanikolau was born in July 1990. He is 35 years old, 203cm tall and weighs 102kg. He is the 48th pick in the second round of the New York Knicks in the 2012 NBA Draft. In the NBA, Papanicoulaou played for the Houston Rockets and the Denver Nuggets. After returning to the European arena, he was able to show quite good personal abilities at one point. But after all, time is no longer forgiving, and now Papanicou is indeed much worse than before in terms of its state. It can only be said that the Greek team is really no successor. Papanicou's performance is not ideal, but he can still get so much playing time. When Giannis' form declines, the Greek team's record looks like it will have to decline further?