Mike Batiste honored by Panathinaikos
In the world of professional sports, it’s not every day that a player spends a number of years with a team, then moves on, only to be given a hero’s welcome when they come back to suit up in the opposing team colors. Friday evening, when Fenerbahce made the journey to Athens for a Euroleague Week 9 contest, the management of Panathinaikos set up a halftime celebration for recently departed Mike Batiste, who had played for the Greens over the last nine seasons. Added to the emotions of the event was the fact that 24 hours prior, Batiste had been taken into custody at the Athens airport on charges that he owed EUR 200,000 in back taxes. As they should have done in a timely fashion, Panathinaikos paid Batiste’s taxes, got him released, and in the fallout of the situation, Dimitris Giannakopoulos, club president, resigned.
Regardless of the financial situation, the reality was that the Panathinaikos fans certainly appreciated the time Batiste gave their club and they did their best to show him during the event.
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