Lithuania national basketball team

	Lithuania Lietuva
FIBA Ranking	5
Joined FIBA	1936
FIBA Zone	FIBA Europe
National Federation	Lithuanian Basketball Federation
Coach	Jonas Kazlauskas
Olympic Games
Appearances	6 (1992, 1996, 2000, 2004, 2008, 2012)
Medals	Bronze: 1992, 1996, 2000
FIBA World Cup
Appearances	3 (1998, 2006, 2010)
Medals	Bronze: 2010
EuroBasket
Appearances	12 (1937, 1939, 1995–2013)
Medals	Gold: 1937, 1939, 2003; Silver: 1995; Bronze: 2007
	Uniforms
Light	Dark

The Lithuanian national basketball team is the representative for Lithuania in international men's basketball. Lithuania won bronze medals in three out of six Olympic tournaments it participated in.

Lithuanian men competed in two of the pre-war EuroBasket competitions for the European championship. They won both the EuroBasket 1937 and EuroBasket 1939 competitions. The 1939 team was led by Frank Lubin, who helped popularize basketball in the country and was called the "Grandfather of Lithuanian Basketball".

Having been part of the Soviet Union, Lithuanian players frequently formed the core of the Soviet national team. This was especially so for the 1988 Olympic basketball gold medal-winning team which got most of its scoring from four Lithuanians: Valdemaras Chomičius, Rimas Kurtinaitis, Šarūnas Marčiulionis and Arvydas Sabonis.

After the restoration of Lithuanian independence in 1990, the national team was resurrected. Lithuania won bronze medals in the first three Olympics to include NBA players – 1992, 1996, and 2000, finished fourth in 2004 and 2008, and qualified to play at London 2012 Olympics.

The Lithuanian team won the EuroBasket for the third time in 2003. It also won the bronze medal in the 2010 FIBA World Championship.

Final roster for 2012 Summer Olympics [edit]

The following is the Lithuania roster in the men's basketball tournament of the 2012 Summer Olympics.^[1] view · talk

Lithuania men's national basketball team – 2012 Summer Olympics roster

Players

Coaches

Pos.	#	Name	Age - DOB	Ht.	Club	Club nat.
1.5 !G	4	Kaukėnas, Rimantas	700135000000000000035 - (1977-04-11)11 April 1977	1.94 m (6 ft 4 in)	BC Žalgiris	Lithuania !
1.5 !G	5	Kalnietis, Mantas	700125000000000000025 - (1986-09-06)6 September 1986	1.96 m (6 ft 5 in)	BC Žalgiris	Lithuania !
3.5 !F	6	Mačiulis, Jonas	700127000000000000027 - (1985-02-10)10 February 1985	1.98 m (6 ft 6 in)	Panathinaikos B.C.	Greece !
1.5 !G	7	Pocius, Martynas	700126000000000000026 - (1986-04-28)28 April 1986	1.96 m (6 ft 5 in)	Real Madrid Baloncesto	Spain !
1.5 !G	8	Seibutis, Renaldas	700127000000000000027 - (1985-07-23)23 July 1985	1.98 m (6 ft 6 in)	BC Lietuvos rytas	Lithuania !
3.5 !F	9	Songaila, Darius	700134000000000000034 - (1978-02-14)14 February 1978	2.06 m (6 ft 9 in)	CB Valladolid	Spain !
1.5 !G	10	Jasaitis, Simas	700130000000000000030 - (1982-03-26)26 March 1982	2.01 m (6 ft 7 in)	PBC Lokomotiv-Kuban	Russia !
3.5 !F	11	Kleiza, Linas	700127000000000000027 - (1985-01-03)3 January 1985	2.03 m (6 ft 8 in)	Toronto Raptors	Canada !
5.0 !C	12	Kavaliauskas, Antanas	700127000000000000027 - (1984-09-19)19 September 1984	2.09 m (6 ft 10 in)	VEF Riga	Latvia !
1.5 !G	13	Jasikevičius, Šarūnas	700136000000000000036 - (1976-03-05)5 March 1976	1.93 m (6 ft 4 in)	FC Barcelona Bàsquet	Spain !
5.0 !C	14	Valančiūnas, Jonas	700120000000000000020 - (1992-05-06)6 May 1992	2.11 m (6 ft 11 in)	Toronto Raptors	Canada !
3.5 !F	15	Jankūnas, Paulius	700128000000000000028 - (1984-04-29)29 April 1984	2.06 m (6 ft 9 in)	BC Žalgiris	Lithuania !

Head coach

Kęstutis Kemzūra

Assistant coach(es)

Team manager

Antanas Guoga

Legend

Club – describes last
club before the tournament
Age – describes age
on 29 July 2012

Depth chart [edit]

Pos.	Starter	Bench	Bench
C	Jonas Valančiūnas	Antanas Kavaliauskas
PF	Linas Kleiza	Paulius Jankūnas	Darius Songaila
SF	Jonas Mačiulis	Simas Jasaitis
SG	Martynas Pocius	Rimantas Kaukėnas	Renaldas Seibutis
PG	Mantas Kalnietis	Šarūnas Jasikevičius

Recent tournaments [edit]

London 2012 [edit]

Main article: Basketball at the 2012 Summer Olympics – Men

Team v t e	Pld	W	L	PF	PA	PD	GA	Pts
United States	5	5	0	589	398	+191	1.480	10
France	5	4	1	376	378	−2	0.995	9
Argentina	5	3	2	448	424	+24	1.057	8
Lithuania	5	2	3	395	399	−4	0.990	7
Nigeria	5	1	4	338	456	−118	0.741	6
Tunisia	5	0	5	320	411	−91	0.779	5

29 July 2012 22:15 v	Report	Argentina	102–79	Lithuania	Basketball Arena, London Referees: Carl Jungebrand (FIN), Jorge Carrion (PUR), Vaughan Mayberry (AUS)
		Scoring by quarter: 24–23, 27–16, 27–22, 24–18
		Pts: Scola 32 Rebs: Ginóbili 10 Asts: Ginóbili, Prigioni 6		Pts: Kleiza 20 Rebs: Kleiza 7 Asts: Kalnietis 5

31 July 2012 14:30 v	Report	Lithuania	72–53	Nigeria	Basketball Arena, London Referees: Cristiano Maranho (BRA), Stephen Seibel (CAN), Vitalis Gode (KEN)
		Scoring by quarter: 14–8, 20–19, 22–13, 16–13
		Pts: Songaila 12 Rebs: Kleiza 6 Asts: Jasikevičius 9		Pts: Diogu, Al. Aminu 12 Rebs: Al. Aminu 11 Asts: Al. Aminu 2

2 August 2012 09:00 v	Report	France	82–74	Lithuania	Basketball Arena, London Referees: Christos Christodoulou (GRE), Ilija Belošević (SRB), Jorge Vázquez (PUR)
		Scoring by quarter: 25–21, 14–22, 20–9, 23–22
		Pts: Parker 27 Rebs: Turiaf 10 Asts: Diaw 8		Pts: Kleiza 17 Rebs: Kleiza 7 Asts: Jasikevičius 5

02012-08-044 August 2012 14:30 v	Report	Lithuania	94–99	United States	Basketball Arena, London Referees: Recep Ankaralı (TUR), Luigi Lamonica (ITA), Marcos Benito (BRA)
		Scoring by quarter: 25–33, 26–22, 21–23, 22–21
		Pts: Kleiza 25 Rebs: Pocius 7 Asts: Jasikevičius, Pocius 6		Pts: James, Anthony 20 Rebs: Love 8 Asts: Paul 6

6 August 2012 11:15 v	Report	Tunisia	63–76	Lithuania	Basketball Arena, London Referees: Juan Arteaga (ESP), Saša Pukl (SLO), Felicia Grinter (USA)
		Scoring by quarter: 18–7, 17–22, 19–21, 9–26
		Pts: Rzig 17 Rebs: Mejri 12 Asts: Mejri 3		Pts: Songaila, Jasikevičius 13 Rebs: Kleiza, Valančiūnas 6 Asts: Kalnietis 9

Quarterfinals [edit]

8 August 2012 14:00 v	Report	Russia	83–74	Lithuania	North Greenwich Arena, London Referees: Carl Jungebrand (FIN), Pablo Estévez (ARG), Michael Aylen (AUS)
		Scoring by quarter: 17–10, 15–17, 22–23, 29–24
		Pts: Kirilenko 19 Rebs: Kirilenko 13 Asts: Khryapa 8		Pts: Kaukėnas 19 Rebs: Valančiūnas 9 Asts: four players 3

Last tournaments [edit]

2012 FIBA World Olympic Qualifying Tournament [edit]

The 2012 FIBA World Olympic Qualifying Tournament for Men was a men's basketball tournament that consisted of twelve national teams, wherein the top three teams earned a place in the 2012 Olympics basketball tournament. It was held on 2–8 July 2012 in Caracas, Venezuela.

The team started off the tournament with a convincing victory against Venezuela. Although Lithuania lost against Nigeria the following day, it finished first in its group because of the goal average, which turned out in Lithuania's favor. After the Lithuania loss to Nigeria because of which Venezuela took only 3rd place in group and didn't qualified to the quarter-finals there were rumors that Lithuania incurred the wrath of Venezuelans and that they're trying to specially harm Lithuania national team. A few events such as tanks column near training hall which polluted the air in it during the Lithuania workout,^[2]^[3] broken bus during the trip to the arena before the quarter-final game against Puerto Rico,^[4] disappeared jerseys and water before the same game against Puerto Rico started the talks about it. Despite all that, in the quarterfinals, Lithuanians eventually defeated Puerto Rico in a dramatic game.^[5] In the semifinals, Lithuania crushed the Dominican Republic and thus qualified for the 2012 London Olympics.^[6]

Eurobasket 2011 [edit]

Main article: Lithuania national basketball team at Eurobasket 2011

Lithuania basketball fans

It was the second Eurobasket tournament Lithuania hosted after 72 years. By numerous officials and other European basketball specialists and pundits, it was regarded as the best Eurobasket organized ever. Though it certainly wasn't the best for the domestic team, which finished in 5th – respectable, but, according to many Lithuanian fans, an overwhelmingly disappointing place. Lithuanian point guard star Šarūnas Jasikevičius pointed out that this championship will be remembered for the tragic loss in the quarterfinals against Macedonian national team. The only consolation being, secured place for the 2012 Olympic Qualifying Tournament.

The effort to mould future prospects and the past stars was counterproductive. It wasn't that supersonic team, sweeping everyone in the last years FIBA World Championship but rather arrhythmic body, which in the end yielded to relentless national pressure and unfounded expectations.

FIBA World Championship 2010 [edit]

Main article: Lithuania national basketball team at FIBA World Championship 2010

On December 12, 2009, Lithuania was granted a wild card to participate in the World Championship in Turkey the following year.^[7]

Lithuania started the tournament against New Zealand. After a tough first quarter, Lithuanians took control of the game and kept ahead by a comfortable lead till the final buzzer, which signaled Lithuania's victory 92:79. The second game was against Canada. After reducing the 17 point deficit in the fourth quarter, Lithuanians finally gained a small lead towards the end of the game. Canada had a chance to win the game, but Jermaine Anderson's game winning three rimmed out at the last second and Lithuania celebrated their second victory 70:68. The next match was against the defending champion Spain, and after another comeback from an 18 point deficit, the Lithuanians won the upsetting game 76:73, Linas Kleiza's free-throws sealing the victory.

Victory against Spain ensured Lithuania's qualification to the eighth finals. Lithuania's next match was against France, which held a perfect 3–0 record. France quickly gained momentum in the first half and forced Lithuania to a double-digit deficit. However, in the second half, Lithuania deftly reduced the deficit and cruised past the French defense, outscoring them 45–25 to win the game 69:55. The French were forced into second place as Lithuanians took Group D's leadership spot. Lithuania won the last game against Lebanon without much difficulty 84:66 and finished with a perfect 5–0 record in the preliminary round.

After sweeping China (78:67) in the eighth finals and crushing Argentina in a blowout game (104:85) in the quarterfinals, Lithuania lost to Team USA by 15 points. They captured the bronze medal after winning against Eurobasket's silver medalist Serbia 99:88. This was Lithuania's best World Championship result.

Lithuania national basketball team at FIBA World Championship 2010.

Semi-finals: Lithuania-United States

2010 FIBA World Championship bronze medalist team roster:

No	Position	Player	Year of birth	Club before 2010 FIBA World Championship
4	Guard	Renaldas Seibutis	1985	Olin Edirne Basketbol
5	Point guard	Mantas Kalnietis	1986	Žalgiris Kaunas
6	Forward	Jonas Mačiulis	1985	Olimpia Milano
7	Guard	Martynas Pocius	1986	Žalgiris Kaunas
8	Guard	Martynas Gecevičius	1988	Lietuvos Rytas Vilnius
9	Guard	Tomas Delininkaitis	1981	PAOK B.C.
10	Forward	Simas Jasaitis	1982	Galatasaray Café Crown
11	Forward	Linas Kleiza	1985	Toronto Raptors
12	Forward	Tadas Klimavičius	1982	Žalgiris Kaunas
13	Forward	Paulius Jankūnas	1984	Žalgiris Kaunas
14	Center	Martynas Andriuškevičius	1986	CB Lucentum Alicante
15	Center	Robertas Javtokas	1980	Valencia BC

Eurobasket 2009 [edit]

Main article: Lithuania national basketball team at Eurobasket 2009

Before EuroBasket 2009 basketball stars like Šarūnas Jasikevičius, Ramūnas Šiškauskas, Darius Songaila, Arvydas Macijauskas, Rimantas Kaukėnas and Žydrūnas Ilgauskas decided not to help Lithuania national team. After huge losses in the team roster and point guard shortage, Lithuania started tournament with loss to Turkey (76-84). Later Lithuanians disappointingly lost to Poland and won against Bulgaria only after a tough game. Lithuania national team took third place at the group stage and qualified for the second round, however there Lithuanians lost to Slovenia by 23 points. Second loss against Spain (70-84) complicated Lithuanians chances to qualify for the quarter-finals. Lithuania lost last game to Serbia as well and took only 12th place. After national team fiasco coach Ramūnas Butautas left team. It is regarded as the worst ever Lithuania national team performance.

Beijing 2008 [edit]

Main article: Lithuania national basketball team at Beijing 2008

Winning the third place game at Eurobasket 2007 against Greece allowed Lithuania to qualify for the Olympic basketball tournament at Beijing 2008 without competition at 2008 Pre-Olympics Tournament. Lithuania started tournament with victories against Argentina, Iran, Russia, Croatia and lost the last game to Australia, however with 4 victories and one lose Lithuania took first place in the group. In the quarter-finals Lithuania smashed China (94-68), however at the semi-finals Lithuania, after a tough game, lost to Spain (86-91). Lithuania had to play for bronze medals against Argentina. Despite the fact that Lithuania won against Argentina at the group stage, Lithuanians lost to Argentina during the game for bronze medals and took 4th place.

Eurobasket 2007 [edit]

Lithuania vs Spain in Gijón (2007-08-16).

Meeting of bronze medalists in Vilnius, 17 September 2007.

Team Lithuania for Eurobasket 2007:

No	Position	Player	Year of birth	Club before Eurobasket 2007
4	Guard	Rimantas Kaukėnas	1977	Montepaschi Siena
5	Shooting guard	Mindaugas Lukauskis	1979	Vilniaus Lietuvos Rytas
6	Forward	Jonas Mačiulis	1985	Žalgiris Kaunas
7	Center	Darjuš Lavrinovič	1979	UNICS Kazan
8	Forward	Ramūnas Šiškauskas	1978	Panathinaikos BC
9	Forward	Darius Songaila	1978	NBA Washington Wizards
10	Forward	Simas Jasaitis	1982	Maccabi
11	Forward	Linas Kleiza	1985	NBA Denver Nuggets
12	Forward	Kšyštof Lavrinovič	1979	UNICS Kazan
13	Point guard	Šarūnas Jasikevičius	1976	NBA Golden State Warriors
14	Forward	Paulius Jankūnas	1984	Žalgiris Kaunas
15	Center	Robertas Javtokas	1980	Panathinaikos BC

The Lithuanian basketball team of 2007 finished the Eurobasket 2007 with an 8–1 record, winning their first ever bronze medal in Eurobasket tournaments. Winning the third place game in the tournament against Greece allowed Lithuania to qualify for the Olympic basketball tournament at Beijing 2008.

Lithuania-Germany game

FIBA World Championship 2006 [edit]

In the 2006 FIBA World Championship, Lithuania finished 7th. This equaled their best ever finish, achieved in 1998, but some saw this as an under-achievement.

They started the tournament with a narrow 2-point loss to Turkey. In their second match they lost to, eventual finalists, Greece in overtime. In that game they made 25 turnovers, which was one of a couple of matches where they made a large number of mistakes. Their third game against Qatar was an easy victory 106:65. This restored some confidence ahead of the must-win match against Australia, as they won it 78:57. Their last group match against Brazil was close in the end, as Brazil lost it by 5 points 79:74. This ensured Lithuania's advance to the eighth-finals to face Italy. They won the match by 3 points 71:68, although Arvydas Macijauskas fouled an Italian player during a 3-point attempt in the dying seconds which gave Italy the chance to level the score, but all 3 free throws were missed. They lost their quarter final match against the eventual champions, Spain by 22 points. Lithuania turned the ball over 28 times during that match. They lost to Turkey in over-time of the 5th–8th place classification round, in which they wasted a 12-point lead in the last 3 minutes of the fourth quarter to take the match into over-time and eventually lost the 5-minute over-time 20:9. The final result was 95:84 to Turkey. They won their last match against Germany 77:62.

Sireika resigned soon after the championship. On December 28, 2006, Ramūnas Butautas was announced as the new coach of the team.

After recovering of independence (from 1990) [edit]

Famous Slam Dunking Skullman jersey

Lithuania national team in Barcelona Olympics

Winners of EuroBasket 2003

After recovering country independence, Lithuania becomes a full member of World basketball. In 1990 independent Lithuanian Basketball Federation was restored with new statutes. In 1991, during FIBA congress in Springfield, USA, LKF president S.Stonkus presented Lithuania basketball and requested a right to be a full member of FIBA once again. After a short FIBA congress session, FIBA president George Kilian announced that Lithuania becomes member of FIBA again and invited Lithuania to participate in all of the FIBA organized events.

Lithuania returned to basketball during 1992 Summer Olympics, held in Barcelona, and immediately won Olympic bronze medals winning against Unified Team (team formed from former USSR countries, except the Baltic States) at the bronze medals game. Olympic team almost had no state funding, so the team had to search for financial supporters by themselves in order to play international games. Šarūnas Marčiulionis had an experience and contacts in USA as he was the first USSR player to sign a contract with NBA team, so he searched for financial supporters which could finance Lithuania participation in 1992 Summer Olympics. USA rock band Grateful Dead decided to help Lithuanians. They allowed to use their band attributes - skull mans. Jersey with famous Skull Man, dunking into the basket, was created by designer Greig Speirs, who designated his profit to Lithuania national basketball team and Lithuania child's fund. Marius Markevičius created a movie, named The Other Dream Team, about this period.

After year, in Wrocław, Lithuania basketball team lost to Belarus and didn't qualified to EuroBasket 1993. This loss encouraged to create first professional basketball league in Lithuania.

EuroBasket 1995 was much more successful. Lithuanians, led by Arvydas Sabonis and Šarūnas Marčiulionis, advanced to finals and there, after a controversial and dramatic game, lost to Yugoslavia.

In 1996 Summer Olympics, Lithuania lost to Yugoslavia again. This time at the semi-finals. Later Lithuanians won against Australia and decorated with bronze medals. It was the last time when basketball fans were able to observe magical Sabas (Arvydas Sabonis) and Šaras (Šarūnas Marčiulionis) tandem. Marčiulionis left Lithuania basketball team and shortly after that retired due to injuries.

Times of change affected team results. Lithuania haven't won any of trophies until 2000. Lithuania recalled about themselves during 2000 Summer Olympics. The best Lithuania basketball players of that time - Arvydas Sabonis, Žydrūnas Ilgauskas and Artūras Karnišovas were unable to play due to injuries, however Lithuania basketball team, ably coached by Jonas Kazlauskas, almost won against Team USA formed from NBA players at the semi-finals. USA won by only 2 points. Lithuanians won bronze once again.

EuroBasket 2001 was a fiasco for Lithuania. Despite the fact, that they came to Turkey with almost the same roster, Lithuanians didn't even reached the quarter-finals after losing to Latvia. As an result, Lithuania lost all chances of participating at the 2002 FIBA World Championship.

In EuroBasket 2003, renewed Lithuania basketball team, led by Šarūnas Jasikevičius, Arvydas Macijauskas, Ramūnas Šiškauskas and Saulius Štombergas, won EuroBasket gold after 64 years once again.

During 2004 Summer Olympics, Lithuania started powerfully. Lithuania won first place in the group and eliminated China at the quarter-finals, however Lithuanians lost semi-finals to Italy and had to play for bronze against USA. Despite the fact that Lithuanians won against USA during group stage, they failed to do that again and took fourth place.

During EuroBasket 2005, a lot of basketball stars decided not to help Lithuania national team that year. Despite that, Lithuanians lost only once, however it was an quarter-final game and as an result Lithuanians took only fifth place.

Soviet period (1940–1990) [edit]

Due to occupation, Lithuanians were unable to represent Lithuania in FIBA organized tournaments. In 1941 Baltic states tournament was organized in Kaunas Sports Hall. Game between Latvia and Lithuania was observed by 6000 people. Lithuania won that game with result 38:33.

During occupation period, Lithuania basketball teams successfully played in USSR organized tournaments. The best Lithuania players played for Soviet Union national basketball team and won bunch of titles with it. As an members of Soviet Union team, Lithuanians (men and women) totally won 17 Olympic medals (8 gold, 6 silver and 3 bronze), 17 World championship medals (11 gold, 5 silver and one bronze), 51 EuroBasket medals (36 gold, 4 silver and 11 bronze).

Interwar period (1920–1940) [edit]

Lithuania national team after winning EuroBasket 1939

Basketball history in Lithuania begins in 1920, however until middle of 40's basketball in Lithuania wasn't popular.

In 1935 famous Lithuanian American basketball coaches (B.Budrikas, J.Knašas, Feliksas Kriaučiūnas and Konstantinas Savickas) arrives to Kaunas as a participants of World Lithuanians congress. Feliksas Kriaučiūnas and Konstantinas Savickas stayed in Lithuania and started teaching Lithuanians about basketball secrets. In 1937 Lithuania played a game against Latvia (one of the strongest basketball team of that time). Lithuania lost that game with result 29:41, however it was quite good performance for Lithuanians as they played much worse previously. Bacause of that, Lithuania decided to participate in EuroBasket 1937 held in Riga, Latvia. That year Lithuanians became champions of Europe for the first time in the history.

Lithuania was granted a right to organize EuroBasket 1939. In addition to this, Kaunas Sports Hall was built. It was the first basketball arena in whole Europe. Pranas Lubinas led Lithuania to the second title that year.

After World War 2, Soviet Union occupied Lithuania. Lithuanians were forced to play for Soviet Union national basketball team.

Notable players [edit]

Pranas Lubinas

Arvydas Sabonis

Rimas Kurtinaitis

Ramūnas Šiškauskas

Šarūnas Jasikevičius

Name	Position	Years	PPG	RPG	APG	Remarks
Pranas Lubinas	Center	1939	N/A	N/A	N/A	Popularized the sport in Lithuania in the late 1930s.
Arvydas Sabonis	Center	1992, 1995–1996, 1999	19.0	11.4	2.2	One of the best known Lithuanian basketball players that helped Lithuania to win two bronze medals at the Barcelona 1992 and Atlanta 1996 Olympics and was one of the key players in 1995 European Championships where Lithuania won silver. He was a large contributor to the successful Portland Blazers teams from 1995–2003. He was inducted into the FIBA and Naismith Hall of Fame.
Šarūnas Marčiulionis	Point guard Shooting guard	1992, 1995–1996	19.0	4.1	6.4	One of the key players in the Barcelona 1992 and Atlanta 1996 Olympics and 1995 European Championships. He helped resurrect the Lithuania national team before the 1992 Barcelona Olympics.
Rimas Kurtinaitis	Small forward Shooting guard	1992, 1995–1996	12.5	2.6	1.9	Outstanding three-point shooter. He is the only non-NBA player which participated in the NBA All-Star Three Point Contest.
Valdemaras Chomičius	Point guard	1992, 1995	5.0	1.2	1.6	Famous Soviet Union basketball player. He won most of this titles with Soviet Union, however he also helped Lithuania to win Silver medals in EuroBasket 1995 and Bronze medals in Summer Olympics 1992.
Artūras Karnišovas	Small forward Power forward	1992, 1995–1999	16.4	5.1	2.4	Notable for his appearance in the Barcelona 1992 and Atlanta 1996 Olympics and 1995 European Championships. Later he participated in 1998 World Championship and 1999 European Championships. He averaged 16.4 points per game in all of his tournaments combined. He is current Lithuania national team all-time leader in points (total 1453 points).
Saulius Štombergas	Small forward Power forward	1995–2001, 2003–2004	10.9	3.2	1.5	One of the best three-point shooters in Lithuania basketball history. He also was team captain in EuroBasket 2003 where Lithuania became the European champion.
Mindaugas Žukauskas	Small forward Power forward	1996, 1998–1999, 2001, 2003–2006	4.1	2.3	1.3	A long time Lithuania national basketball team captain, known for his aggressive defense.
Eurelijus Žukauskas	Center	1996–2001, 2003–2004	5.6	4.0	0.5	Outstanding defender and shot blocker. He was an member of Lithuania team in EuroBasket 2003, where Lithuania won gold medals; he also was Žalgiris member in 1999 when they won the Euroleague tournament.
Šarūnas Jasikevičius	Point guard	1997–2001, 2003–2004, 2007–2008, 2011–2012	10.0	2.3	4.9	One of the most famous Lithuania players in the history. He led Lithuania to its third gold medal in EuroBasket 2003 and was named MVP of that tournament. He also led Lithuania in a notable win against Team USA in 2004 Summer Olympics; he scored 28 points (7/12 three-pointers).
Ramūnas Šiškauskas	Point guard Shooting guard Small forward	2000–2001, 2003–2005, 2007–2008	12.2	3.2	2.1	A long time Lithuania national basketball team captain. He was even called Baltic Pippen for his outstanding efficient on the court.
Arvydas Macijauskas	Shooting guard	2003–2004, 2006	15.1	2.7	1.5	Outstanding three-point shooter and one of the key players in EuroBasket 2003.
Kšyštof Lavrinovič	Power forward Center	2003–2009, 2011	7.1	4.2	0.8	An all-around power forward noted for his efficiency on court.
Robertas Javtokas	Center	2001, 2004–2011	?	?	?	A long time Lithuania national basketball team captain notable for his efficient defense and devotion to the team (i.e. playing despite pain and various injuries during the championships).
Linas Kleiza	Power forward	2006–2010, 2012	11.9	5.6	1.1	Led the team in FIBA World Championship 2010 and Summer Olympics 2012.
Jonas Valančiūnas	Center	2011–2012	8.4	4.1	0.9	The first major star to have been born in post-Soviet Lithuania. Before making his debut with the senior national team at 19, he led Lithuania youth basketball teams to three gold medals and was named MVP of all three tournaments. He's also the highest ever NBA drafted Lithuanian basketball player in history. In the 2011 NBA Draft, Raptors selected him #5. The same year he debuted in Lithuania men's national team and was one of the key players in EuroBasket 2011.

Statistics [edit]

Most games played [edit]

Rank	Name	NT career	Games
1	Gintaras Einikis	1992–2001	106
2	Šarūnas Jasikevičius	1997–2012	104
3	Saulius Štombergas	1993–2004	99
4	Eurelijus Žukauskas	1996–2004	83
5	Artūras Karnišovas	1992–1999	80
6	Robertas Javtokas	2001–	74
7	Mindaugas Žukauskas	1996–2006	71
8	Darius Songaila	2000–2012	68
9	Kšyštof Lavrinovič	2003–2011	64
10	Ramūnas Šiškauskas	1999–2008	60
11	Simas Jasaitis	2005–	59
12	Darius Maskoliūnas	1995–2003	55
13	Linas Kleiza	2006–	51
14	Arvydas Sabonis	1992–1999	51
15	Darius Lukminas	1994–1999	50
16	Rimas Kurtinaitis	1992–1997	49
17	Rimantas Kaukėnas	2001–2012	47
18	Paulius Jankūnas	2005–	44
19	Mantas Kalnietis	2006–	42
20	Virginijus Praškevičius	1994–2003	41

All time points scored [edit]

Rank	Name	NT career	Total points
1	Artūras Karnišovas	1992–1999	1453
2	Saulius Štombergas	1993–2004	1084
3	Šarūnas Jasikevičius	1997–2012	1031
4	Gintaras Einikis	1992–2001	1023
5	Arvydas Sabonis	1992–1999	1001
6	Ramūnas Šiškauskas	1999–2008	772
7	Šarūnas Marčiulionis	1992–1996	687
8	Linas Kleiza	2006–	659
9	Darius Songaila	2000–2012	610
10	Rimas Kurtinaitis	1992–1997	602
11	Arvydas Macijauskas	2002–2006	497
12	Eurelijus Žukauskas	1996–2004	490
13	Kšyštof Lavrinovič	2003–2011	465
14	Robertas Javtokas	2001–	447
15	Rimantas Kaukėnas	2001–2012	443
16	Simas Jasaitis	2005–	424
17	Darius Lukminas	1994–1999	407
18	Mindaugas Žukauskas	1996–2006	376
19	Mantas Kalnietis	2006–	358
20	Virginijus Praškevičius	1994–2003	298

Notable coaches and assistants [edit]

There have been only few coaches on Lithuania basketball team roster since Lithuania's independence in 1991.

Vladas Garastas – coach for Lithuania basketball team for Olympics of 1992 and 1996, for European championship of 1995.
Jonas Kazlauskas – coach for Sydney 2000 Olympics and couple of European championships (1997, 1999, 2001) and for World championship 1998.
Antanas Sireika – coach for Athens 2004 Olympics and for golden European championship of 2003, later for EC 2005 and World championship 2006.
Ramūnas Butautas – coach for Beijing 2008 Olympics, also won bronze medal in EC 2007 and underachieved in EC 2009.
Kęstutis Kemzūra – coach for team which won bronze medal in World championship 2010.

There have been couple of notable assistants for Lithuania basketball team.

Javier Imbroda helped Lithuania earn its first medal shortly after independence at Barcelona 1992 Olympics.
Donnie Nelson an American coach that helped Lithuania for many years in various tournaments. After the near loss of team USA at the Sydney 2000 Olympics, Nelson declared that he would never help Lithuania in matches against USA.

Competitive record [edit]

FIBA Basketball World Cup [edit]

Year	Position	Pld	W	L
1950 to 1990	Did not participate – occupied by the Soviet Union
1994	Did not participate
1998	7th	9	5	4
2002	Did not participate
2006	7th	9	5	4
2010	Bronze Medal	9	8	1
2014	–	–	–	–
Total		27	18	9

Olympic Games [edit]

Year	Position	Pld	W	L
1936 to 1988	Did not participate
1992	Bronze Medal	8	6	2
1996	Bronze Medal	8	5	3
2000	Bronze Medal	8	5	3
2004	4th	8	6	2
2008	4th	8	5	3
2012	8th	6	2	4
Total		40	27	13

FIBA Diamond Ball [edit]

Year	Position	Pld	W	L
2000	Did not participate
2004	Runner-up	3	2	1
2008	Did not participate
Total		3	2	1

EuroBasket [edit]

Year	Position	Pld	W	L
1935	Did not participate
1937	Champions	5	5	0
1939	Champions	7	7	0
1946 to 1991	Did not participate – occupied by Soviet Union
1993	Did not participate
1995	Runner-up	9	7	2
1997	6th	9	5	4
1999	5th	9	7	2
2001	11th	4	2	2
2003	Champions	6	6	0
2005	5th	6	5	1
2007	Bronze Medal	9	8	1
2009	11th	6	1	5
2011	5th	11	8	3
2013	Qualified	-	-	-
Total		81	61	20

FIBA Under-19 World Championship [edit]

Year	Position	Pld	W	L
1979 to 1991	Did not participate
1995	5th	–	–	–
1999	Did not participate
2003	Runner-up	–	–	–
2007	10th	–	–	–
2009	9th	8	5	3
2011	Champions	9	7	2
Total		–	–	–

Documentaries [edit]

There are several documentaries about the national team, the most notable one being "The Other Dream Team", starring many basketball stars. It focuses on the 1992 Barcelona Olympic team. "Mes už... Lietuvą" also gained wide approval in Lithuania. The film focuses on the experience and behind-the-scenes look of Lithuanian national team hosting the EuroBasket 2011. "Lietuvos Krepšinis 1920–2004" features the most important events and players in Lithuanian basketball history.

Past rosters [edit]

A monument celebrating the achievements of the Lithuanian basketball, located in Vilnius close to the Siemens Arena

1937 EuroBasket: finished 1st among 8 teams

Arturas Andrulis, Leonas Baltrūnas, Pranas Talzūnas, Leopoldas Kepalas, Feliksas Kriaučiūnas, Pranas Mažeika, Eugenijus Nikolskis, Leonas Petrauskas, Zenonas Puzinauskas, Stasys Sačkus, Juozas Žukas, Česlovas Daukša (Coach: Feliksas Kriaučiūnas)

1939 EuroBasket: finished 1st among 8 teams

Pranas Lubinas, Mykolas Ruzgys, Leonas Baltrūnas, Artūras Andrulis, Jurgis Jurgėla, Pranas Mažeika, Vytautas Norkus, Vytautas Budriūnas, Zenonas Puzinauskas, Feliksas Kriaučiūnas, Vytautas Lesčinskas, Eugenijus Nikolskis, Leonas Petrauskas, Mindaugas Šliūpas (Coach: Pranas Lubinas)

1992 Olympic Games: finished 3rd among 12 teams

Arvydas Sabonis, Šarunas Marčiulionis, Valdemaras Chomičius, Rimas Kurtinaitis, Sergėjus Jovaiša, Artūras Karnišovas, Gintaras Einikis, Arūnas Visockas, Darius Dimavičius, Romanas Brazdauskis, Gintaras Krapikas, Alvydas Pazdrazdis (Coach: Vladas Garastas)