G.S. Iraklis Thessaloniki (Greek: Γ.Σ. Ηρακλής Θεσσαλονίκης, Greek pronunciation: [iɾa'klis]) is a Greek professional basketball team that is located in Thessaloniki. It serves as the senior men's basketball section of the multi-sport club of G.S. Iraklis. Iraklis currently plays in the second-tier level Greek A2 Basket League.

The team's colors are blue and white. Iraklis won the Greek National Championship in 1928 and 1935, and has also reached the Greek Cup final three times. Some of the greatest players in Greek, European and worldwide basketball have played for Iraklis over the years including: Lefteris Kakiousis, Jure Zdovc, James Donaldson, Walter Berry, Xavier McDaniel, Roy Tarpley, Nikos Chatzivrettas, Vasily Karasev, Lazaros Papadopoulos, Dimitris Diamantidis and Sofoklis Schortsanitis.

History

The Iraklis parent athletic club was founded in 1908, and initially featured football. The club was named after Heracles (or Hercules), the mythical Greek demigod. The basketball team of Iraklis was established in 1921.

Iraklis won the inaugural Greek League championship in 1928. To win the championship, Iraklis had to eliminate AEK Athens and Near East, before beating VAO in the championship game. The team won its second Greek championship in 1935. Also in the team's history, three times Iraklis finished in second place in the Greek Championship (1936, 1962, and 1964), three times Iraklis has been a Greek Cup Finalist (1981, 1994, and 1996), and two times Iraklis made it to the semifinals of the European 2nd-tier level league Cup Winners' Cup.

Iraklis reached the semifinals of the 1994–95 FIBA European Cup, where they competed against Taugrés. Iraklis won the first game 79–78, but lost the next two games, to be eliminated 2–1 in a best of three series. In 1996, an Iraklis team led by former NBA players Xavier McDaniel and Roy Tarpley, reached the Greek Cup Final Four. By beating Apollon Patras in the semifinal, Iraklis reached the final, where it then lost 85–74 to Panathinaikos. Iraklis has also twice competed in the top European continental competitions. The club played in the European top-tier level European Champions' Cup in the 1995–96 season, and also competed in the FIBA SuproLeague during the 2000–01 season.

Recent history (2005-present)

In 2006, Iraklis was relegated to the Greek A2 Basket League, after finishing 13th in the first-tier Greek League. In 2010, after four seasons in the second-tier level Greek League, the team was promoted back up to the top-tier Greek Basket League. After one season in the Greek top-tier level, Iraklis was again relegated down to the A2, with two matches left in the season. At the end of the season, Iraklis chose to play in the third-tier level of Greek basketball, the Greek B Basket League, in order to clear its debts. The club was promoted to the Greek A2 Basket League in 2013, after finishing 2nd in its group, and after Peristeri failed to receive financial clearance to participate in the league.

In the 2018–19 season, Iraklis won the promotion playoffs of the Greek A2 League, and was promoted up to the top level Greek Basket League, for the first time in 8 years. During the 2019–20 season, Iraklis is taking part in the Greek Basket League organized by the Hellenic Basketball Federation. The season started in October 2019 and was scheduled to end in June 2020. However, due to the coronavirus pandemic, the championship was terminated earlier. Iraklis took the 7th place with 29 points, having 9 wins and 11 losses in a total of 20 games. In the 2020–21 season, Iraklis returned to European competitions, taking part in the qualifying round of the Basketball Champions League and later on in the 2020–21 FIBA Europe Cup where the club reached the Top16 round having 3 wins and 1 loss. In the 2020–21 season Iraklis took the 10th place with 29 points, having 7 wins and 15 losses in a total of 22 games.

In European-wide competitions

이라클리스 BC(그리스어: Ηρακλής Κ.Α.Ε.)는 그리스 테살로니키에 위치한 프로 농구 팀이다. 1924년에 설립되었으며, 그리스 농구 리그 1부에 속해 있다. 이라클리스 BC는 그리스 농구 리그에서 8번의 우승을 차지했고, 그리스 농구컵에서도 5번의 우승을 차지했다. 이라클리스 BC는 유로리그에도 여러 차례 참가했고, 2006년에는 유로리그 파이널 포에 진출하기도 했다. 이라클리스 BC는 그리스 농구에서 가장 성공적인 팀 중 하나로 손꼽히며, 많은 팬을 보유하고 있다.

이라클리스 BC의 홈 경기장은 테살로니키 인도어 아레나이다. 이 경기장은 5,000명의 관중을 수용할 수 있으며, 2000년에 개장했다. 이라클리스 BC는 홈 경기장에서 강력한 팀으로 알려져 있으며, 많은 상대 팀들이 이곳에서 패배했다.

이라클리스 BC는 그리스 농구 리그에서 가장 인기 있는 팀 중 하나이다. 이 팀은 많은 팬을 보유하고 있으며, 홈 경기장에 항상 많은 관중이 모인다. 이라클리스 BC는 그리스 농구에서 가장 성공적인 팀 중 하나로 손꼽히며, 많은 팬들이 이 팀을 응원한다.