Zalgiris Kaunas basketball players gathered for their first joint training session.
Nigel Williams-Goss, Moses Wright, Ignas Brazdeikis, Dustin Sleva, Dovydas Buika, Arnas Butkevicius, Edgaras Ulanovas, Dovydas Giedraitis, who is continuing his rehabilitation, and eight youth team players gathered in the Zalgiris locker room for the first meeting.
“There wasn’t much rest during the summer because we had a lot of pleasant work to do, so I’m happy, and the rest we did get was definitely enough. I thought about everything - how we want to play, defend, attack, these are simple things, but I managed to put together a plan in my head,” said Zalgiris head coach Tomas Masiulis, delighted with his new role.
When asked about the European Championship coinciding with preparations for the new season, Masiulis emphasized the opportunity for young players.
“Quite a few young players have joined the team - we will test them. The situation is such that we cannot change anything, we have as many key players as we have, so this will be an opportunity for the young Zalgiris players to show themselves, and we certainly have no complaints,” Masiulis commented on the situation.
Meanwhile, Dustin Sleva commented on his impressions of the first practice.
“It’s like the first day of school - we’re all getting to know each other and preparing for the new season. After practice, I stayed behind and can say that I’ve never had three coaches passing me the ball before, so I was pleasantly surprised and will try to use this for my personal development,” said Sleva about his first training session.
We invite you to watch the video on the Zalgiris YouTube channel and hear more of Masiulis' thoughts on his relationship with the Zalgiris coaching staff and the intense EuroLeague schedule.
