Nasos Bazinas is PAOK’s first signing for the new season. The 22-year-old guard has already had his first taste of PAOK and his new environment. He arrived in Thessaloniki late on Friday night and had a full weekend schedule. He underwent medical and ergometric tests, completed several procedures related to his permanent move to Thessaloniki, and met Coach Andrea Trinchieri for the first time — the coach under whom he will play for PAOK in the coming years.
He listened carefully to the Italian coach and described it as a great honour to have been chosen for PAOK:
“We had a very positive conversation with the coach. I’m very happy to be part of the team that Mr. Trinchieri is building. It is an honour for me that he selected me for this PAOK team, which has such high expectations for the future. It is very special for me to be here. I want to justify this choice and repay that trust with my presence and effort from day one.”
Nasos Bazinas also wore the black-and-white jersey with the number “77” for the first time — the number he chose.
“It felt amazing to wear the PAOK jersey for the first time. Everything that is happening right now is something completely new for me. I want to reach the top and have a great career, and I’m very happy that I will have the opportunity to be part of this new beginning for PAOK. There are high expectations and major goals for the team, and from my side I will do everything possible for us to succeed. PAOK’s vision is what brought me here. It was an easy decision. It was also the best decision. Now we have to work in order to achieve all the team’s goals, and I want to contribute in the best possible way to this effort.”
In his new environment at PAOK, Nasos Bazinas also found a familiar face. When he was member of Apollon Patras’ youth academy at the age of 14, he also trained with the senior team, where he first met Giorgos Tsiaras.
“It is very important for me to have someone I already know by my side,” he said, before explaining further:
“I was very young at the time and Giorgos Tsiaras always looked after me. Later, we also met again in the national team. We have an excellent relationship, it’s a pleasure for me to work with him, and it will be a great pleasure for everyone in the team to work alongside him.”
The summer is expected to be busy, with little time for rest. National team duties, individual workouts, and from August, PAOK’s preseason preparation.
Those are the moments he is eagerly waiting for — along with his first experience playing in front of the PAOK fans:
“I’ve heard the very best things about PAOK’s fans. Of course, I’ve seen them too, but until now only as an opponent. I can’t wait to step onto the court and play in front of them. It’s the atmosphere they create in PAOK’s arena, but also in every arena they travel to in order to support the team, and that is very important. We have to give them joy. We have to give everything we have on the court.”