The years 1999–2002 were marked by an obvious decline of Greece. The beginning of this era was the shocking 16th and last place of the team in the final standings of the EuroBasket 1999, having suffered three defeats in the preliminary round. Consequently, Greece was absent from the 2000 Summer Olympic Games. At the next European championship in 2001, the Greek team was placed 9th, thus failed to qualify for the 2002 FIBA World Cup.