Arvydas Romas Sabonis is a Lithuanian former professional basketball player and businessman. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest European players of all time and one of the best big-man passers in the history of the game. Sabonis won the Euroscar six times and the Mr. Europa Award twice. He played in a variety of leagues, including the Spanish ACB League, and spent seven seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Playing the center position, Sabonis won a gold medal at the 1988 Summer Olympics, in South Korea, for the Soviet Union, and later earned bronze medals at the 1992 Olympic Games and 1996 Olympic Games representing Lithuania. He retired from professional basketball in 2005. Sabonis was selected by the Portland Trail Blazers in the first round of the 1986 NBA draft, but he did not play his first NBA game until 1995, at the age of 30.
The Lithuanian Football Federation is the governing body of football in Lithuania. The Federation is responsible for football development in the country and for the national teams, including the Lithuania national football team. It is based in Vilnius. LFF became a member of FIFA in 1923, but following Lithuania's annexation by the Soviet Union it was disbanded. It became a member again in 1992 after Lithuania regained its independence. The top division is A Lyga.
Zydrunas Ilgauskas is a Lithuanian-born American former professional basketball player who played the center position. The 7'3" Ilgauskas played for the Cleveland Cavaliers of the National Basketball Association from 1997 to 2010 and played for the Miami Heat during the 2010–11 season. He was named to the 1997–98 All-Rookie First Team and is a two-time NBA All-Star.
Raimondas Šarūnas Marčiulionis ( ) is a Lithuanian former professional basketball player. Widely considered one of the greatest international players, he was one of the first Europeans to become a regular in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Marčiulionis was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2014 and became a member of the FIBA Hall of Fame in 2015.
Šarūnas Jasikevičius is a Lithuanian professional basketball coach and former player who is the head coach for Fenerbahçe Beko of the Turkish Basketbol Süper Ligi and the EuroLeague. During his playing career, standing at a height of 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) tall, he played at the point guard position.
Lietuvos krepšinio lyga, also known as Betsafe LKL for sponsorship reasons, is the premier professional men's club basketball league in Lithuania. It is composed of 10 teams, and it is a member of the Lithuanian Basketball Federation. The best LKL clubs are also annual participants of the top European-wide basketball competitions, including the top-tier level EuroLeague.
Darius Songaila is a Lithuanian professional basketball coach and former player. He serves as an assistant coach for the San Antonio Spurs of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He has represented the Lithuania national team. He played at the power forward and center positions.
Martynas Andriuškevičius is a Lithuanian former professional basketball player. He is a 2.18 m tall and 113 kg (250 lb) center. Andriuškevičius has noted perimeter skill for a player of his size, and has trained with former NBA center Arvydas Sabonis.
Basketball at the 1992 Summer Olympics was the thirteenth appearance of the sport of basketball as an official Olympic medal event. It included the sport of basketball's men's and women's competitions of the 1992 Summer Olympics. The games were played at the Pavelló Olímpic de Badalona. 12 men's teams and 8 women's teams participated in the tournament.
The Lithuania men's national basketball team represents Lithuania in international basketball competitions. They are controlled by the Lithuanian Basketball Federation, the governing body for basketball in Lithuania. Despite Lithuania's small size, with a population of less than 3 million, the country's devotion to basketball has made them a traditional force of the sport in Europe.
Arvydas Macijauskas is a Lithuanian former professional basketball player. Standing at 1.93 m tall, he played at the shooting guard position. Widely considered one of the greatest Lithuanian players of the 2000s, he won numerous individual awards, as well as club and national team titles.
Rimas Kurtinaitis is a Lithuanian professional basketball coach who currently serves as the head coach of Lithuania men's national basketball team and Sabah BC, and a retired professional basketball player, who was a member of the senior Soviet and Lithuanian national basketball teams during his playing career. He won a gold medal at 1988 Olympics in South Korea. He recently worked as the head coach for Khimki. At a height of 1.96 m (6'5") tall, during his playing career, he played at the shooting guard position. He is the only non-NBA player to ever participate at the NBA All-Star Weekend's Three-Point Contest, doing so in 1989, where he scored 9 points.
Ramūnas Šiškauskas is a former Lithuanian professional basketball player and basketball coach. Listed at 1.98 m tall, he could play at both the shooting guard and small forward positions. His individual accolades as a player include a EuroLeague MVP award, four All-EuroLeague Team selections, as well as an All-EuroBasket Team designation. On May 16, 2014, Šiškauskas was named a EuroLeague Legend.
Robertas Javtokas is a Lithuanian professional basketball executive and former player. He most recently served as sports director of Žalgiris Kaunas. Standing at 2.11 m, he played the center position. He has been a member of the senior men's Lithuanian national team since 2004. In the 2001 NBA draft, he was selected by the San Antonio Spurs with the 55th overall pick.
Artūras Karnišovas is a Lithuanian professional basketball executive and former player. He is the current executive vice president of basketball operations of the Chicago Bulls of the National Basketball Association (NBA).
Modestas Paulauskas is a former Lithuanian professional basketball coach and basketball player.
EuroBasket 2011 was the 37th men's European Basketball Championship, held by FIBA Europe. The competition was hosted by Lithuania. This was the second time EuroBasket had been held in Lithuania, the country having also hosted the 1939 championship. FIBA Europe asserted that Lithuania managed to organize the best European championship in its history. The top two teams are guaranteed spots at the 2012 Summer Olympics.
Lithuanian Canadians are Canadians who are of full or partial Lithuanian descent. Over two-thirds of Lithuanian Canadians reside in Toronto, with other much smaller populations scattered around most of the Canadian provinces and territories.
The EuroBasket 2015 Final was the championship game of the EuroBasket 2015 tournament. The game was played on 20 September 2015 at the Stade Pierre-Mauroy in Lille, France.
Basketball is the most popular sport in Lithuania. During public opinion polls in Lithuania, the Lithuanians regularly describe basketball as their priority interest sport. A research in 2015 indicated that nearly 41% of all population in Lithuania watched the EuroBasket 2015 final between Lithuania and Spain and it became the most watched event of the 21st century in Lithuania. The popularity of basketball among Lithuanians led to it being nicknamed as the "second religion" in Lithuania.
