page_title: Nikos Galis
section_title: Aris Thessaloniki
hierarchical_section_title: Nikos Galis / Professional career / Aris Thessaloniki
caption_attribution_description: Nikos Galis (zespół Aris Saloniki, w wyskoku) i Keith Williams (PCS Śląsk Wrocław)
context_page_description: Nikolaos Galis, commonly known as either Nikos Galis, or Nick Galis, is a retired Greek professional basketball player. He was named one of FIBA's 50 Greatest Players in 1991, is an inaugural member of the FIBA Hall of Fame and was chosen as one of the 50 Greatest EuroLeague Contributors in 2008.
  Galis is widely regarded as one of Europe's greatest scorers to ever play the game, as well as one of the all-time greatest players in FIBA international basketball history. In 2017, he was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
  Galis played the point guard position during his college basketball years at Seton Hall University, but turned into a shooting guard as a professional. He spent most of his career in Aris, before having a late stint with Panathinaikos. He is the EuroLeague's all-time leader in points per game, leading the competition in scoring eight times. In the premier European club scene, he reached the EuroLeague Final Four on four occasions, three consecutive times with Aris, and another one with Panathinaikos.
context_section_description: After suffering an ankle injury in the Boston Celtics 1979–80 preseason training camp, which prevented him from receiving a contract with the Celtics, Galis made the move across the Atlantic, and signed to play with Aris of Thessaloniki, Greece, in 1979. Panathinaikos and Olympiacos had also shown some interest in signing the newcomer, but it was Aris' interest that was the most persuasive. His move to the country would eventually help Greek club basketball to reach a level of popularity that had never been previously imagined.
  Averaging more than 30 points per game every season, Galis was the indisputable leader of Aris. While playing alongside other great players at Aris such as Panagiotis Giannakis and Slobodan Subotić (who was known in Greece as Lefteris Soumpotits), Galis won 8 Greek League championships (7 of them consecutively, and 3 undefeated, in the years 1983, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, and 1991), 6 Greek Cups (4 of them consecutively, in the years 1985, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, and 1992), and led Aris to 3 consecutive appearances at the FIBA European Champions' Cup (now called EuroLeague) Final Four ('88, '89, and '90). In the one disappointment of an otherwise glittering career with Aris, all three of the FIBA European Champions' Cup Final Four appearances ended in defeat in the semifinals, thus depriving Galis of the opportunity to shine all the way on Europe's biggest club stage, at the FIBA European Champions' Cup Finals. The team's performances and general standard of play, however, won the hearts of most basketball fans in Greece. Indeed, cinemas and theaters in Greece would often reduce their admission prices on Thursday evenings, when Aris was playing games, as large segments of the country settled down to watch them on television.
  After a disappointing season in 1991–92, Galis was forced to leave Aris. The new management of the team, and the fact that the club was in decline, were the main causes for his departure. Galis, who adored the city of Thessaloniki, had originally insisted on remaining in the club and playing for the team, as he believed that he still had a lot to offer the club. In one of his final European Champions' Cup games for Aris, in early-1992, Galis rolled back the years, at the age of 35, to score 46 points (15/18, 8/14, 5/6) in a narrow defeat to Phillips Milan. Also that season, in a Greek league match against Panionios, Galis scored 48 points on 12/13, 15/18, 2/3.
caption: Galis (on the right), and Keith Williams (on the left), during a EuroLeague 1991–92 season game.
exif: {}