ATHENS — Panathinaikos host Villeurbanne tonight at the OAKA (21:15, Novasports Prime) aiming to make it 2-0 to start the EuroLeague season, with both clubs entering the contest undefeated after opening-night victories.
The Greens will again be without four players who have missed all official and friendly games so far — Kendrick Nunn, Nigel Hayes-Davis, Kostas Sloukas and Moustapha Fall — due to injuries. Juancho Hernangomez has now joined that list and will miss Panathinaikos' obligations for the next 10 days, leaving the hosts with five absences for the matchup.
Zeljko Obradovic said in his pre-game comments he did not want to use the absences as any excuse for performance or result and stressed his respect for Villeurbanne. The French club opened with an impressive win over Maccabi Tel Aviv in Lyon, a result that carries added context as Maccabi will be Panathinaikos' next opponent at the OAKA on Friday (2/10).
Villeurbanne, the club led by Tony Parker, started the season with that victory behind veterans Patty Mills and Jae Crowder, who bring a combined 1,947 NBA games of experience to the roster.