European Prospects

With the Nike International Junior Tournament starting on Thursday, we asked a few players participating their opinion about the upcoming games. The first one in this series is the Latvian PG Kaspars Vecvagars from Zalgiris Kaunas.

What is the goal for Zalgiris in this tournament? Do you think you are strong enough to win?

The goal is to win the tournament and bring the trophy to Kaunas. Our team has very good players in all positions and I think that only our own bad game can beat us. If we play like we should play and we can play, we will come out big.

You missed Ignas Ramasauskas during the Qualification event in l’Hospitalet. How important is his presence in Barcelona as you do not have the tallest team?

Ignas was the guy that we needed (in l’Hospitalet). I like the energy he brings on the court with fighting for rebounds and blocking shots. He will be a big presence inside for everyone. I haven’t seen the other team’s rosters, but I know for sure that our team won’t be the shortest one this time.

You lost a bit unluckily in the semis in l’Hospitalet. Do you think you were good enough to win the tournament back in January after your domination in the group phase?

L’Hospitalet was a very unlucky tournament for us and I know that our team should have won it. The Semi-final game against Real Madrid was the worst game for our team in the tournament and for myself as well. With me struggling as a Point Guard, the whole team was following me and it ended badly. Last five months we worked very hard and I think that we have all chances to dominate not just in group phase in Barcelona.