"The case of my transfer was handled by my lawyers, but I had told them that, if the team could meet the same financial conditions, I would prefer to go to Aris. And that's because I had learned that Aris has a history in basketball and a tradition, that they have friendly and decent people. Certainly, I also valued the opinion of my father and mother who told me who upon seeing Mr. Tsilingaridis, that in his face, they saw a good man to whom they could entrust my fate.”

And yet the first number that Nikos Galis wore to Aris was number 7 ! It was December 2, 1979, when Nikos Galis entered the Alexandreio to play his first game on Greek soil against Iraklis with a score of 79-78.

"Although thirty years have passed since then, I remember that particular game like it was yesterday. There were so many people in the stands and I was kind of nervous, since it was my first game in Greece. I scored thirty points, but I didn't play well. The ball was going in and out of the basket and that made me anxious. I remember that the game had been decided on the last shot when I cut Sakellariou and we won by 79-78."

In the harsh criticism that Nikos Galis received from Greek journalists for the late Anestis Petalidis replied:

"Write whatever you want. But be careful, because one day you will be kissing on the person you are now criticizing. One day Galis will prove that one can beat five."

He finally swapped the number 7 jersey for a 6 when Michalis Giannouzakos joined Aris the following year.

Nikos Galis loved and served Aris, playing a total of 480 games, scoring a total of 17,005 points and winning a total of 15 titles.

He was MVP of the league 5 times and its top scorer 11 times.