# Georgios Papagiannis (Γιώργος Παπαγιάννης)
**Georgios Papagiannis** (Γιώργος Παπαγιάννης; born 1997) is a Greek professional basketball center who plays for Anadolu Efes of the [EuroLeague](https://www.edgepedia.org/euroleague). He was selected 13th overall in the first round of the 2016 [NBA draft](https://www.edgepedia.org/nba-draft) by the [Phoenix Suns](https://www.edgepedia.org/phoenix-suns), spent two NBA seasons with the Sacramento Kings and Portland Trail Blazers, and has since built a EuroLeague career with Panathinaikos, Fenerbahçe, AS Monaco, and Efes while remaining a regular member of the Greek national team.[1](https://www.nba.com/player/1627834/georgios-papagiannis) • [2](https://www.shamsports.com/players/georgios-papagiannis) • [3](https://as.com/baloncesto/euroliga/mercado-de-fichajes-2025-euroleague-todos-los-movimientos-n/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 1997, Greece; height 7'1" (2.16 m), weight 240 lb (109 kg) per his NBA.com profile[1](https://www.nba.com/player/1627834/georgios-papagiannis) |
| NBA draft | 2016, first round, 13th overall, by the Phoenix Suns; draft rights traded to Sacramento Kings on draft night[1](https://www.nba.com/player/1627834/georgios-papagiannis) • [2](https://www.shamsports.com/players/georgios-papagiannis) |
| NBA career | Two years: Sacramento Kings 2016–2018, Portland Trail Blazers 2018; career averages 4.1 points and 3.2 rebounds per game[1](https://www.nba.com/player/1627834/georgios-papagiannis) |
| EuroLeague clubs | Panathinaikos (2014–16, 2018–23), Fenerbahçe (2023–24), AS Monaco (2024–25), Anadolu Efes (2025– )[4](https://mediacentre.euroleague.net/mediacentre/en/games/view/17710/yes) • [3](https://as.com/baloncesto/euroliga/mercado-de-fichajes-2025-euroleague-todos-los-movimientos-n/) |
| Early record | Became the youngest player, at age 14, to debut in the modern era of the Greek Basket League[5](https://www.nba.com/kings/blog/big-george-fulfills-nba-dream) |
| EuroLeague milestones | Ranked seventh all-time with 213 blocks as of 2024, and fourth all-time with 256 blocks by 2025[4](https://mediacentre.euroleague.net/mediacentre/en/games/view/17710/yes) • [6](https://debater.gr/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/round4416_compressed.pdf) |
| National team | Greece rosters at the 2019 and 2023 FIBA World Cups, EuroBasket 2022, and the 2024 Olympics; 8.4 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 11.8 efficiency at the 2023 World Cup[2](https://www.shamsports.com/players/georgios-papagiannis) • [7](https://assets.fiba.basketball/image/upload/documents-corporate-studies-and-facts-fiba-scouting-report-fiba-basketball-world-cup-2023.pdf) |
## Early career in Greece
Papagiannis grew up in a small suburb outside Athens and switched from soccer to basketball at age 11.[5](https://www.nba.com/kings/blog/big-george-fulfills-nba-dream) He began with Peristeri, appearing in the Greek Basket League in 2011-12 at age 14, which made him the youngest player to debut in the modern era of that league.[5](https://www.nba.com/kings/blog/big-george-fulfills-nba-dream) • [2](https://www.shamsports.com/players/georgios-papagiannis) He then moved to the United States, attending Westtown School in [West Chester, Pennsylvania](https://www.edgepedia.org/west-chester-pennsylvania), where he was listed at 7'1" and 280 pounds as a 2015-16 high school center.[5](https://www.nba.com/kings/blog/big-george-fulfills-nba-dream) • [8](https://future150.com/hs/basketball-profiles/georgios-papagiannis-c-2016)
In June 2014 he signed a three-year contract with Panathinaikos that included an NBA out clause, retaining his amateur status while leaving open the possibility of college basketball in the United States.[2](https://www.shamsports.com/players/georgios-papagiannis) • [9](https://www.draftexpress.com/amp/article/Georgios-Papagiannis-NBA-Draft-Scouting-Report-and-Video-Breakdown-5577/) His EuroLeague role was small: in the 2015-16 EuroLeague he averaged 1.5 points and 1.7 rebounds in 5.0 minutes over six games.[2](https://www.shamsports.com/players/georgios-papagiannis) • [10](https://as.com/us/us/2016/12/20/masdeporte/1482274366_025445.html)
## NBA years
The Phoenix Suns selected Papagiannis 13th overall in the 2016 draft, one of the most surprising picks of that event, and traded his draft rights to the [Sacramento Kings](https://www.edgepedia.org/sacramento-kings) on draft night along with the rights to Skal Labissiere and Bogdan Bogdanovic and a 2020 second-round pick, in exchange for the rights to [Marquese Chriss](https://www.edgepedia.org/marquese-chriss).[11](https://hoopscouts.blogspot.com/2016/06/nba-draft-2016-scouting-report-georgios_29.html) • [2](https://www.shamsports.com/players/georgios-papagiannis) He signed a four-year rookie scale contract worth $10,334,368 with team options for the final two seasons.[2](https://www.shamsports.com/players/georgios-papagiannis)
His NBA minutes were limited, and Sacramento assigned him repeatedly to the Reno Bighorns of the G League, where he produced his best numbers, 13.7 points and 8.1 rebounds per game in 2016-17.[2](https://www.shamsports.com/players/georgios-papagiannis) Across 22 NBA games as a rookie he averaged 5.6 points in 16.1 minutes, but his second season brought only 7.4 minutes per game, and the Kings waived him in February 2018.[2](https://www.shamsports.com/players/georgios-papagiannis) He finished with career NBA averages of 4.1 points and 3.2 rebounds per game over two years of experience.[1](https://www.nba.com/player/1627834/georgios-papagiannis) He signed a ten-day contract with the [Portland Trail Blazers](https://www.edgepedia.org/portland-trail-blazers) in March 2018, appeared in one game, and was waived that July.[2](https://www.shamsports.com/players/georgios-papagiannis) NBC Sports noted that his NBA exit came historically quickly for a lottery pick.[12](https://www.nbcsports.com/nba/news/former-kings-selection-georgios-papagiannis-leaves-nba-historically-quickly-for-lottery-pick)
## Return to Europe
In July 2018 Papagiannis signed a five-year contract with Panathinaikos, beginning a second stint that lasted through 2023.[2](https://www.shamsports.com/players/georgios-papagiannis) • [4](https://mediacentre.euroleague.net/mediacentre/en/games/view/17710/yes) His EuroLeague role grew steadily, from 4.0 points in 12.2 minutes in 2018-19 to 10.2 points and 8.2 rebounds in 28.4 minutes in 2021-22, and he won Greek national championships with the club in 2018-19 and 2020-21.[2](https://www.shamsports.com/players/georgios-papagiannis) • [13](https://admin.euroleague.net/competition/players/showplayer?pcode=005844&seasoncode=E2021)
He then moved clubs each summer. Fenerbahçe signed him in 2023, and in the 2023-24 EuroLeague he averaged 5.7 points in 16.0 minutes over 38 games while ranking ninth in the league in two-point shooting at 67.0 percent.[2](https://www.shamsports.com/players/georgios-papagiannis) • [4](https://mediacentre.euroleague.net/mediacentre/en/games/view/17710/yes) AS Monaco signed him in 2024; in the French league that season he played 32 games, averaging 5.3 points, 3.4 rebounds, and 0.6 assists in 17:50 minutes.[14](https://www.lemonde.fr/sport/article/2025/05/23/euroligue-de-basket-l-as-monaco-revancharde-repart-a-l-assaut-du-final-four_6607973_3242.html) • [15](https://www.political.gr/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/POLITICAL-T-1196-N.pdf) In July 2025 Anadolu Efes signed him from Monaco on a two-year deal with a club option for a third (2+1) season.[3](https://as.com/baloncesto/euroliga/mercado-de-fichajes-2025-euroleague-todos-los-movimientos-n/)
## National team
Papagiannis has been a fixture of Greek national teams, with rosters at the 2019 and 2023 FIBA World Cups, EuroBasket 2022, and the 2024 Paris Olympics.[2](https://www.shamsports.com/players/georgios-papagiannis) At the 2023 World Cup he averaged 8.4 points, 4.4 rebounds, 1.0 assists, and 11.8 efficiency for a Greek squad that played without the injured Konstantinos Mitoglou and [Giannis Antetokounmpo](https://www.edgepedia.org/giannis-antetokounmpo) for part of the tournament.[7](https://assets.fiba.basketball/image/upload/documents-corporate-studies-and-facts-fiba-scouting-report-fiba-basketball-world-cup-2023.pdf)
## Playing style and EuroLeague milestones
A 7-foot-plus traditional center, Papagiannis scores mostly around the basket. His EuroLeague two-point accuracy has been consistently high, 64.1 percent career as of 2024, ranking 15th all-time, and his block totals place him among the competition's career leaders: seventh with 213 blocks as of the 2023-24 season notes, and fourth all-time with 256 blocks by 2025.[4](https://mediacentre.euroleague.net/mediacentre/en/games/view/17710/yes) • [6](https://debater.gr/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/round4416_compressed.pdf) Pre-draft scouting already identified the pattern that defined his career: reliable right-handed post scoring and a strong lower body, with limited lateral quickness and perimeter defense as the main concerns.[9](https://www.draftexpress.com/amp/article/Georgios-Papagiannis-NBA-Draft-Scouting-Report-and-Video-Breakdown-5577/) • [17](https://www.shamsports.com/players/georgios-papagiannis)
## References
1. [Georgios Papagiannis, NBA.com player profile](https://www.nba.com/player/1627834/georgios-papagiannis)
2. [Georgios Papagiannis, ShamSports player database](https://www.shamsports.com/players/georgios-papagiannis)
3. [Mercado de fichajes 2025 EuroLeague: todos los movimientos, AS.com](https://as.com/baloncesto/euroliga/mercado-de-fichajes-2025-euroleague-todos-los-movimientos-n/)
4. [EuroLeague Media Center, Game 17710 notes (Panathinaikos vs Fenerbahce)](https://mediacentre.euroleague.net/mediacentre/en/games/view/17710/yes)
5. ['Big George' Fulfills NBA Dream, Sacramento Kings (NBA.com)](https://www.nba.com/kings/blog/big-george-fulfills-nba-dream)
6. [PAST MATCH-UPS & GAME NOTES, Round 4416 game notes PDF](https://debater.gr/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/round4416_compressed.pdf)
7. [FIBA Scouting Report, FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023, Greece](https://assets.fiba.basketball/image/upload/documents-corporate-studies-and-facts-fiba-scouting-report-fiba-basketball-world-cup-2023.pdf)
8. [George Papagiannis, C, Westtown, PA (2015), Future150](https://future150.com/hs/basketball-profiles/georgios-papagiannis-c-2016)
9. [Georgios Papagiannis NBA Draft Scouting Report, DraftExpress](https://www.draftexpress.com/amp/article/Georgios-Papagiannis-NBA-Draft-Scouting-Report-and-Video-Breakdown-5577/)
10. [Antes del nuevo convenio: así les va a los novatos europeos, AS.com](https://as.com/us/us/2016/12/20/masdeporte/1482274366_025445.html)
11. [NBA Draft 2016: Scouting Report, Basketball Reports](https://hoopscouts.blogspot.com/2016/06/nba-draft-2016-scouting-report-georgios_29.html)
12. [Former Kings selection Georgios Papagiannis leaves NBA historically quickly for lottery pick, NBC Sports](https://www.nbcsports.com/nba/news/former-kings-selection-georgios-papagiannis-leaves-nba-historically-quickly-for-lottery-pick)
13. [PAPAGIANNIS, GEORGIOS, EuroLeague player page](https://admin.euroleague.net/competition/players/showplayer?pcode=005844&seasoncode=E2021)
14. [Euroligue de basket : l'AS Monaco repart à l'assaut du Final Four, Le Monde](https://www.lemonde.fr/sport/article/2025/05/23/euroligue-de-basket-l-as-monaco-revancharde-repart-a-l-assaut-du-final-four_6607973_3242.html)
15. [POLITICAL T-1196-N, Greek press clipping on Papagiannis's French league season](https://www.political.gr/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/POLITICAL-T-1196-N.pdf)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Sports, games, and recreation › Other team and ball sports › Basketball and court team sports › Basketball players and coaches (biographies) › International league players › European league players and coaches*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 18, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Edited: Sep 18, 2026; Oct 12, 2026; Oct 21, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 21, 2026*
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