Zalgiris eagerly awaits return of EuroLeague match-ups 2

Zalgiris Kaunas is ready to take on its biggest challenge to date this season, as they host the EuroLeague We’re Back Preseason Tour in Zalgirio Arena, and are looking at matchups against Panathinaikos Athens and either AX Armani Exchange or ALBA Berlin.

The Greek side will be Zalgiris’ first opponent, as the two green-and-white sides tip off at 19:00, right after the 16:00 game between AX Armani Exchange Milano and ALBA Berlin. Tickets purchased allows access to both of the days’ games.

Zalgiris used the final day before the tournament fully, hosting the team presentation event in Akropolis Kaunas, but also managed to get a practice in. Zalgiris coach Martin Schiller and team captain joined Zalgiris TV after it to talk about the upcoming challenge.

Schiller sees the tournament as a place to grow, and is looking forward to finally playing in front of the Zalgiris fans.

“The expectations and goals are to keep building and getting better, especially on the defensive end. Finding ourselves, our concepts, executing them. That is our main goal. I’m looking forward to playing in front of the fans.”

Jankunas noted that despite the numerous changes on Panathinaikos’ roster, they know their opponents fairly well.

“We’re going to have a very strong tournament this weekend. I don’t know how ready we are for it, and of course it’s not the main tournament of the season. But I think we’ll already be able to see what is working, and what isn’t, what needs improvements. We’ve got information, we know their players, we know how they’re used to playing. We’ve got enough information, but it’s still the preseason and no team is showing its real capabilities so far. They’re all still in the searching of it, still working on something.”

Just over 7000 fans will be able to attend the EuroLeague We’re Back Preseason Tour in Zalgirio Arena, and there is still a chance to purchase tickets. The team’s captain also sent out an invitation to all the green-and-white loyals.

“Of course, we missed the fans, we’re definitely waiting eagerly. It’s been a while since we last played in Zalgirio Arena with fans, so I really want to invite everyone to come and see.”