The Euroleague had to react due to the selection of the referee…
Euroleague ends, at least when it comes to the league part. The matches of the last round will be played on Thursday and Friday, and it will be known who will advance to the top 8 stage. The biggest fight will be between Žalgiris and Baskonia and chaos has arisen because of the Spanish club. Namely, the leaders of the elite competition sent the Lithuanian referee Gitis Vilius to administer justice at the match in Piraeus.
The fans of the team from Vitoria protested fiercely, they believe that it is wrong for a Lithuanian to referee a match that directly decides the passage of the Spanish team. Because of all this, an official announcement has arrived. “Referees are chosen based on one criterion, which is that they should not be of the same nationality as the clubs playing that match“, it is stated in the statement submitted to “BasketNews”.
They further explained that specific situation. “Another criterion for the selection of referees is that it be the best possible lineup of referees for each match, with the highest possible level of professionalism and judging. The integrity of the referees should not be called into question,” the text reads.
The match between Olympiakos and Baskonia will be played at 20:00 in Piraeus, and the referees are Sreten Radović (Croatia), Gitis Vilijus (Lithuania) and Sefi Šemes (Israel). As far as the calculation is concerned, Baskonia goes further if Olympiakos wins, in case of defeat, they have to hope that Zalgiris will lose to Bayern in Munich.