Born in Athens, he played professionally in the Greek Basket League and represented Greece at senior level.
Bakatsias started his pro career with Pagrati.
In 1997, while with Olympiacos, Bakatsias won the EuroLeague's Final Four title, as well as both Greek League and the Greek Cup titles, making him a winner of the Triple Crown.
Bakatsias was a member of the senior Greek national basketball team.
With Greece's senior team, he played at the 1988 European Olympic Qualifying Tournament, the 1993 EuroBasket, the 1994 FIBA World Championship, and the 1995 EuroBasket.