Hit by a Pitch

The original “Lithuanian NBA Players” post is here.

So, what have my peeps been up to since I wrote that post in 2008?

Zydrunas Ilgauskas, from Kaunas
#11–Center–Miami Heat
7’3″/ 260
Drafted in 1996, Ilgauskas currently averages 6.5 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 0.3 assists per game.

Linas Kleiza, from Kaunas
#11–Small Forward–Toronto Raptors
6’8″/ 245
In 2005, after completing his sophomore year at the University of Missouri, Kleiza was drafted by the Portland Trailblazers and immediately traded to Denver. In 2009, he was with Olympiacos Piraeus in Greece and in 2010, he signed with the Toronto Raptors. He’s a regular on the Lithuanian national team, which won bronze in the 2010 FIBA World Championship. In early 2011, he had microfracture surgery on his right knee (this is the same thing Kenyon Martin has had twice and it’s a big deal). He hopes to be ready to play by the start of the 2011-12 season.

Darius Songaila, from Marijampole (My dad is from there!)
#25–Power Forward–Washington Wizards
6’9″/ 248
Drafted in 2002 by the Boston Celtics, Songaila also has played for Sacramento and Chicago. He currently averages 1.8 points, 1.0 rebounds, and 0.2 assists per game.

Andris Biedrins, from Riga, Latvia
#15–Center–Golden State Warriors
7′/ 240
Biedrins was drafted in 2004 by Golden State. He currently averages 5.0 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 1.0 assists per game. He’s the second Latvian player in NBA history.
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There should be more Lithuanians (and another Latvian) in the NBA after the 2011 draft. Here are the prospects:

Jonas Valanciunas, from Utena
Power Forward
6’10″/230
b. 5/6/92
Predicted: #4 to Washington Wizards (ESPN); #3 to Toronto Raptors (DraftExpress.com, profile here); he gets a favorable write-up on NBADraft.net but I don’t see a projection for him there

Mindaugas Kuzminskas, from Vilnius
Small Forward
6’8″/218
b. 10/19/89
Projected: second round/undrafted (ESPN)

Donatas Motiejunas, from Kaunas
Power Forward
7′/220
b. 9/20/90
Projected: late lottery (ESPN); #3 to Charlotte Bobcats (DraftExpress.net, profile here) #4 to Washington Wizards (NBADraft.net, profile here)

David Betrans, from Valmiera, Latvia
Small Forward
6’10″/210
b. 11/12/92
Projected: first round bubble (ESPN); #27 to New Jersey Nets from Los Angeles Lakers (DraftExpress.com, profile here) #39 to Charlotte Bobcats (NBADraft.net)

(No music today! I’m watching what I hope is not the last Nuggets game of the season.)

Who knew that losing Carmelo Anthony would be one of the best things to happen to the Denver Nuggets in a long time? Nuggets games now are more fun to watch than they’ve been in years.

This is a picture I took the last time I went to a Nuggets game, which was December 1. This was right before Melo was ejected from the game for arguing with a ref (it was a crappy call).

We had some good times together, Melo, but the truth is I don’t even miss you. I hope you, your talents, and your ability to play defense (LOL) are happy in New York.

This isn’t the best quality video, but here’s Chris Andersen hitting a shot from half court as time expired in the third quarter last night. I love this guy!

Basketball hasn’t exactly been the first thing on my mind these days. I watched Lithuania get dismantled by Argentina (WTF hair?) in the Olympic bronze medal game and then drank myself unconscious to forget the misery I just witnessed. That was awful, even considering how much I love yelling all the Lithuanian names until B gets annoyed and falls asleep on the couch. Other than that, though, I haven’t thought much about basketball lately.

But! I had the best idea ever — an idea that can solve at least 2/3 of the problems that will plague the Nuggets in the upcoming season. Curious? Come with me, to a land where a Nuggets championship is possible!

Read the rest of this entry »

Good news! J.R. Smith (who used to be a player we didn’t like all that much, but that changed last year when he got his shit together) just got a new three-year deal with the Nuggets.

Trust me when I say that he’s going to be even more awesome this coming season. He’s been working out all summer and if you combine his pure athleticism with his improved attitude and new-found maturity, he’s going to be in-freaking-sane.

Keeping J.R. was crucial, considering what the Nuggets have lost in the off season (especially Marcus Camby). Currently, the team is worse off than it was at the end of last season, but hopefully things will go better than I expect.

In other news, the Broncos are in action tonight, with the starters expected to play approximately three quarters. I’m still calling for them to go 8-8 this year. The Rockies are out of it and the White Sox are up against the Rays (which is okay because the Twins are at the Angels this weekend).

There’s also some breaking news about a new Olympics scandal, this time with boxing scoring. Some Romanian dude commented on the fact that the scoring has been grossly inaccurate and unfair (true). The boxing and Olympics people promptly responded by suspending him and instituting some kind of disciplinary procedure against him. I’ll try to find out more about this and update tomorrow.