By Lukas Kucinskas
New basketball season is getting closer to the beginning so let‘s take a quick look at the best Lithuanian prospects who will be playing in Lithuanian Basketball League (LKL).
Without any doubt the best young player is Arturas Gudaitis (‘93). The big man used last season to get into Zalgiris Kaunas‘ rotation and now he can expect as big if not bigger role in team‘s schemes. In the summer Gudaitis was invited to the training camp of Lithuanian national team where he started off successfuly and showed how fast he is progressing. Last couple of years have been tough for him mainly because of injuries he suffered. Besides that, he changed 5 teams in 4 years.
The center of Zalgiris is a hustler on the court who tries to use his body to get rebounds for which he has good nose. 208 cm tall player is not the tallest player but he has quickness and other physical abilities to succeed in high level team. His pick‘n‘roll play is the main weapon, even though he is raw offensively (except finishing after pick‘n‘roll, the most of his points come from 2nd chance points). The main problem in his game right now is defense. He does not contain his position in near the basket and spends too much time looking at his man. Gudaitis seems to be perfect option for current Zalgiris team – he is cheap and has experienced big men around him (Robertas Javtokas, Darius Songaila). Basically, he is 2nd option at center position.
This season Zalgiris will use two other prospects for their rotation – Tomas Dimsa (‘94) and Vaidas Kariniauskas (‘93). Dimsa spent whole last season in the team. He got enough playing time to prove himself but he was unable to do that. He was considered to be a disappointment since he does not improve as fast as others anticipated. He will probably get another chance this season but athletic abilities are not enough to succeed at Euroleague level, he has to show some consistency in shooting and playing with ball in his hands. Right now his biggest strength is game in an open floor where he can run, jump and finish with or without contact.
On other hand his playing time might be reduced a little because Kaspars Vecvagars has recovered from injury and Kariniauskas can play few positions. Left-handed guard is tall for point guard position but he has proven himself to be able to play as playmaker. He also had injury last season so it is hard to predict in what shape he is coming back. His size and quickness make him a very interesting prospect. Kariniauskas together with Vecvagars might both be used as combo guards since Zalgiris have only one point guard of higher level.
Another prospect – Tauras Jogėla (‘93) – is predicted to have a good season. He should be a core player in very young Pieno Zvaigzdes Pasvalys team. Statisticly he had monstrous season in Nevezis Kedainiai but there are few points to consider (f.e. he had a huge role in player lacking team which had financial difficulties). The forward had absolute offensive freedom in Nevezis so he used it to his advantage but problems are clear. Those problems were already clear few years ago – Jogela does not have size to play power forward and his shooting is too poor to play small forward position.
This problem is very important these days when teams prefer forwards who can stretch the floor with their shooting. The most of Jogela‘s points come from his ability to play one on one and take the ball to the basket. His playing time should be reduced in Pieno Zvaigzdes but he still should be an important piece in the team. So far Pieno Zvaigzdes have only 8 players so the final picture is not clear yet.
Other interesting LKL prospects in short:
Gediminas Zalalis (’95, Lietkabelis Panevezys) – played some good games in Lithuanian and Baltic leagues last season and was invited to U20 NT. He is not strong enough to fight men in the paint but can shoot. Lietkabelis still need to add some power under the basket but Zalalis still should see increased minutes, especially if team decides to play small ball with players who can shoot.
Edvinas Seskus (’95, Lietuvos Rytas Vilnius) – did not play the most of last season because of an injury and depth in his position. This season Lietuvos Rytas will be coached by Edvinas‘ father Virginijus Seskus. The coach is known for trusting young players so he might give his son some chances to step onto the court in easier competition. The main goal for Seskus should be to get into the rhythm.
Osvaldas Olisevicius (’93, Pieno Zvaigzdes) – most improved player of last Lithuania‘s National Basketball League (NKL) season. Finally made step forward. The forward can expect some minutes in young Pieno Zvaigzdes team, especially because of his shooting. That is the thing his new coach likes the most.
Ignas Ramasauskas (’93, Siauliai) – once was considered to be a good prospect, played for various youth teams but could not keep up with the tempo of professionals. This summer he added 10 kilos of muscles and now his weight is 112 kilos but as coaches of Siauliai say, he needs to do some work to improve his movements.
Augustinas Jankaitis (’94, Pieno Zvaigzdes) – differently than most players of his age Jankaitis was used to get his way through physical power. However, it does not work so well among real men, not kids. Another thing he is good at – pick’n’roll. He should become more consistent while shooting because this year he will have more chances to prove himself.
Martynas Paliukenas (’93, Dzukija Alytus) – already had one successful season in Dzukija and he is ready for one more. This time Dzukija’s depth is going to be much bigger, team added some veteran players to its roster so guard’s minutes might drop but he still should get most out of his minutes. He is do-it-all type guard who plays with IQ and has fast hands. These attributes are always welcome in any team.
Rytis Juknevicius (’93, Dzukija Alytus) – one more player from 1993 generation. This guard improved quickly in the last season. Before 2013/2014 season he had successful summer with U20 national team where he played under Tomas Pacesas’ coaching. Pacesas is very closely related to Dzukija so his signing makes sense.
Ignas Vaitkus (’93, Mazeikiai) – NKL champions Mazeikiai will be back in LKL after a long time. Apparently, the team kept the major part of its roster. In last season Vaitkus was an important piece. The guard is strong offensively – he can both penetrate and shoot from distance, his ball handling is decent. Defensively things might be little harder but it would not be a surprise if he played a really good season. Right now it seems possible but we do not know final roster of the team yet.
Note: we only included players who officially have rcontract with any LKL team.
Photo: 15min.lt
Twitter of the author: @Lukas_Kuc
