Panionios and ratiopharm Ulm add to their respective rosters, heading to the 2025-26 installment of the BKT EuroCup
By Johnny Askounis/ [email protected]
After being crowned scoring champion of the 2024-25 edition of Italy’s LBA UnipolSai with Openjobmetis Varese, Jaylen Hands is entering the BKT EuroCup with Panionios. He penned a one-year contract, the team announced on Monday.
The 26-year-old combo guard carries experience from the Basketball Champions League with fellow Greek clubs, PAOK mateco and Peristeri bwin, and the FIBA Europe Cup with Telenet Giants Antwerp, moving his scoring talents to the second tier of Euroleague Basketball. Rocky Kreuser, Matt Lewis, Michalis Lountzis, Sotiris Oikonomopoulos, George Papas, and Marker Starks were already welcomed by Panionios during the offseason.
Coming out of UCLA in 2019, Hands was selected with the 56th overall pick of the NBA draft by the Los Angeles Clippers, but his draft rights were renounced in 2021, following involvement in trades to the New York Knicks and Detroit Pistons. Therefore, he has yet to play in the league.
Elsewhere in EuroCup rookies officially confirmed on Monday, 25-year-old Mark Smith inked a deal with ratiopharm Ulm. Returning to Germany’s easyCredit BBL after starting his professional career with BG Gottingen in 2022, he joined Mohamed Diakite, Diego Garavaglia, Lee Schoormann, and Chris Sengfelder on the list of earlier summer signings for the Sparrows.
Panionios and Ulm were both drawn into Group B of the 2025-26 Regular Season. The new campaign starts on September 30, launching an 18-game double-legged round-robin schedule across both groups, lasting until February and deciding which sides will advance to the Quarterfinals and the Eighthfinals.
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