Lefteris Mantzoukas
No. 72 – Panathinaikos
PositionPower forward / Small forward
LeagueGreek Basket League
EuroLeague
Personal information
Born (2003-07-08) July 8, 2003
Ioannina, Greece
NationalityGreek
Listed height6 ft 9.5 in (2.07 m)
Listed weight220 lb (100 kg)
Career information
Playing career2017–present
Career history
2017–2021Promitheas Patras
2021–presentPanathinaikos
Career highlights and awards
Medals
Men's basketball
Representing  Greece
European U-20 Championship
Bronze medal – third place2023 GreeceUnder-20

Eleftherios "Lefteris" Mantzoukas (alternate spelling: Madzoukas) (Greek: Ελευθέριος "Λευτέρης" Μαντζούκας; born July 8, 2003) is a Greek professional basketball player for Panathinaikos of the Greek Basket League and the EuroLeague. He is a 2.07 m (6'9 1⁄2") tall power forward.

Professional career

On 14 February 2018, at the age of 14, Mantzoukas began his pro career with Promitheas Patras, in the Greek Basket League, during the 2017–18 season.[1] He made his Greek League debut in a game versus Panionios, in which he scored 2 points, in 1 minute of playing time.[2] Mantzoukas thus became the second youngest player to ever debut in the top-tier level Greek League, since it became fully professional in 1992. Georgios Papagiannis is the only other player to have previously debuted in the same competition, at a younger age.

Three months later, on 24 May 2017, while still at the age of 13, Mantzoukas became the youngest player to ever start a game in the top-tier level Greek League, since it became fully professional in 1992.[3] He accomplished that when he started a Greek League game against Olympiacos, in which he scored 12 points, in 31 minutes of playing time.[4] During the 2017–18 Greek League season, he averaged 2.9 points, 1.3 rebounds, and 0.6 assists per game, in 7 games played.[5]

On 10 October 2018, at the age of 15, Mantzoukas debuted in one of the two European-wide secondary level competitions, the FIBA Champions League, during the 2018–19 season. He made his FIBA Champions League debut in a game versus the Belgian League club Oostende, in which he went scoreless, in 1 minute of playing time.[6] During the 2018–19 FIBA Champions League season, he averaged 3.5 points and 0.5 rebounds per game, in 2 games played.[7] He also averaged 1.5 points, 1.0 rebounds, and 0.8 assists per game, in 4 games played, during the 2018–19 Greek League season.[8]

On 2 October 2019, at the age of 16, Mantzoukas debuted in the other European-wide secondary level competition, the EuroCup, during the 2019–20 season. He made his EuroCup debut in a game versus the Israeli Super League club Maccabi Rishon LeZion, in which he scored 2 points.[9]

On 18 December 2020, Promitheas announced that Mantzoukas would be moving to EuroLeague mainstays Panathinaikos on a five-year contract.

During the 2022–2023 campaign, in 21 EuroLeague games, Mantzoukas averaged 3.1 points and 1.7 rebounds (shooting with 42% from the 3-point line) in 13 minutes per contest. Additionally, in 29 domestic league matches, he averaged 5.5 points and 2.4 rebounds (shooting with 41% from the 3-point line) in 18 minutes per contest.

National team career

Mantzoukas has been a member of the junior national teams of Greece. He played at the 2018 FIBA Under-16 European Championship, where he averaged 9.3 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 1.4 assists per game.[10] He also played at the 2019 FIBA Under-16 European Championship, where he averaged 15.0 points, 9.1 rebounds, and 2.7 assists per game.[11]

References

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.