Lessort wasn't sure if Ataman could see the future and joked that Sloukas stole his MVP trophy but ultimately praised the star guard by saying that he shut every doubter's mouth with his performance.
Mathias Lessort was dominant throughout the entire season. His dominance continued in the EuroLeague Final Four as well, as Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens won their 7th EuroLeague title.
| Player of the Game | |
|
EFF
31
|
| Kostas Sloukas | |
| Points | 24 |
| Accuracy | 6-6 |
| Rebounds | 2 |
| Assists | 3 |
Lessort teared up after the final whistle. He was very emotional in the mixed zone after the game as well.
"I don't even know. It's crazy," he answered when asked to describe how people would remember this Panathinaikos season.
"We started the year, and everybody was like, 'Nah, they ain't gonna make it. They don't have the talent, they don't have this, they don't have that.' We started the year bad, and nobody believed. I was the only who believed in us, I was the only one who said, 'No, we got this. Just take it one game at a time and practice, and get better every game.' And that's what we did. We finished the season in the best way that we could've," the French center from Martinique said.
Lessort recorded a double-double in the semifinal, scoring 17 points and grabbing 10 rebounds for 20 PIR. In the final, Lessort scored 17 points again and added 6 rebounds and 10 drawn fouls for 22 PIR.
If you look at the averages, Lessort's are the best. However, the Final Four MVP trophy went to Kostas Sloukas, who led Panathinaikos in scoring in the final and collected an impressive 31 PIR.
"Kostas... he carried us tonight. He stole the MVP from me, unfortunately," Lessort laughed. "Nah, I'm joking. I'm really happy for him, he deserved this. He worked hard for that."
"He made a big decision that shook up Europe last summer, and a lot of people didn't believe he could do what he was doing, a lot of people said that he was too old, that he couldn't carry a team. Tonight, he shut their mouths and proved that he's Kostas Sloukas, one of the greatest points guards in Europe I've ever seen," the PAO center proudly said.
Panathinaikos finished the 2022-23 EuroLeague season in 17th place. Now, they became the EuroLeague champions just one year later. Everything started when the organization changed the head coach and hired Ergin Ataman.
Ataman was adamant from the very beginning that his goal was to win the EuroLeague quickly. Lessort joked the coach might have some mystical powers.
"He's the opposite of me. I take it one game at a time, and he, from the first day, was, 'I want to win the EuroLeague.' He's the opposite, he's just Ergin. He just is who he is. He believed in himself, he believed in us. And he was right," Lessort said.
"He was the first one to say before even signing any players, 'I want to win the EuroLeague.' And he hadn't signed nobody yet. So that was crazy. He stuck to his word. I don't know if he can read the future or if he's just so confident," the center laughed.
