Olympiacos and Fenerbahce Open SuperCup with Clash Between Last Two EuroLeague Champions

European basketball debuts a new competition with the most logical matchup possible: the two most recent EuroLeague champions face off. Olympiacos, the defending champion, and Fenerbahce, 2025 champions, open the inaugural SuperCup at the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi. Both teams arrive with very different approaches to their summer preparations.

Piraeus: Tweaking Without Breaking

Georgios Bartzokas remains on the bench and that continuity shapes the approach. The club has renewed much of the roster following the departures of several veterans, but without touching the core that lifted the trophy in Athens.

The new additions are Jean Montero, Codi Miller-McIntyre, and Mbaye Ndiaye, in the most expensive summer in the club's recent history. Montero is the name that generates the most interest from this region: he arrives after four seasons at Valencia Basket and comes off signing 30 points with the Dominican Republic in the August window, his highest scoring output with the national team.

Add to that Bryant Dunston, the 40-year-old veteran whom the club keeps on monthly contracts during the preseason.

Istanbul: Nine Signings to Fix the Offense

Fenerbahce's diagnosis was clear and the numbers back it up. They finished fourth in the regular season with only a +53 point differential, posted the sixth-worst scoring output in the competition—3,114 points in 38 games—yet boasted the league's best defense, allowing just 3,061 points.

In other words: they defended like the best and scored like the worst. That's why the summer was aimed at correcting that imbalance without dismantling what worked.

Baldwin IV, Horton-Tucker, and Melli remain as cornerstones. Nine new names arrive, several from the ACB: Braxton Key from Valencia, Will Clyburn from Barcelona, and Trent Forrest from Baskonia. They're joined by Shane Larkin, who leaves Anadolu Efes after years as the club's reference point, Shavon Shields, and two EuroLeague debutants, Johnny Juzang and Marcus Bingham.

The Precedent

They've already faced off this summer. Olympiacos won the Crete International Tournament by beating Fenerbahce 82-77, so they arrive with that recent endorsement.

What's at Stake

The winner will face the victor of the second semifinal between Dubai and Real Madrid on Saturday in the tournament's first-ever final. The loser will play for third place.

It's a new title without historical weight yet, but it's the first competition of the European season and features four of the continent's most powerful teams.