HARRISBURG -- Local basketball star Andy Panko is jumping from Spain to Greece to play for one of the most famous and successful clubs in Europe.
Panko, who attended Bishop McDevitt High School and Lebanon Valley College, has signed with Panathinaikos Athens.
Panko, 34, is coming off a career year with Lagun Aro in Spain, where he earned league MVP honors -- the oldest player ever to win the award -- with 18.9 points per game.
Although Panko, who is 6'9," has spent most of his professional career in Spain, he's no stranger to Greece, having spent the 2006 season playing for PAOK in Thessaloniki, a city in the northern part of the country.
Panathinaikos plays in the powerful Euroleague, which consists of the top teams from around the continent and is similar to soccer's UEFA Champions League. Panathinaikos has arguably been the most dominant team in Europe over the past two decades, winning six European championships since 1996. Three of those Euroleague championships have come since 2007, and they made the final four in 2012.
Panathinaikos finished as Greek League runners-up this season, snapping an incredible streak of nine straight titles.
Panko is a former NCAA Division III player of the year and remains LVC's all-time leading scorer with 2,515 points.
Information used in this story was provided by Lebanon Valley College.
