Interview Zigmas Kersic (VO)

Hello my name is Zigmas Kersis. I am a 2m02 Lithuanian point guard, but I can also play the shooting guard position. During my childhood, I experienced many different cultures because I moved a lot between cities and countries. I’ve lived in Canada, Latvia, Estonia, a little bit in Spain, and of course Lithuania. I believe these experiences made me the person I am today and helped me learn how to adapt to certain environments. The main reason why me and my family travelled so much is because my father is a professional basketball coach. He has always been by my side, coaching me and helping me develop as a player and as a person.

Can you introduce yourself and your journey ?

Retrouvez l'interview de Zigmas Kersic dans laquelle il nous a raconté son parcours, son regard sur la saison et ses ambitions pour la suite de la saison mais ces préférences en NBA !

When I was a little kid, I wanted to play football, basketball was an option, but for some reason I was hesitant on trying it. Eventually one day, my dad talked me into trying one practice of basketball, and I liked it. I never stopped since

At a young age, I wasn’t really good. I was weak and slow, I was scared to shoot the ball. However, my dad kept motivating me, we would stay in the gym longer and work on various aspects of basketball. In the youth leagues, I was physically less mature than other players, so I had to put a lot of sweat and tears into this game to have the chance to catch up to them.

My dad was an amazing shooter himself, so he taught me how to shoot. We worked a lot on my shot, fixing every small detail and doing a lot of shooting form reps. I have also spent couple summers working out in the “Discover Your Best” basketball camp with coaches Tomas and Karolis. They have helped me to improve my dribbling skills. I am a pretty technical player, I can create shots for myself and for my teammates. I have a high basketball IQ, I understand the game from various points of view. I think that I can be an amazing coach when I am done with basketball one day.

So my strong points are shooting, passing, dribbling, making P/R reads, controlling the game as a point guard, and making the best decisions to win as a team. One thing I would really need to improve is defense. I try to get better at it every single day and take on the best players in practice.

Which type of player are you and what are your strong points on the game ?

It was a great run with the espoirs team, making it to the top 4 is a great accomplishment. It is kind of sad that we ended up short, but it was a great experience. I learned a lot by watching and analyzing the top competition of U21 in France. Going against guys like Roman, Willan, and Evan in practice made me elevate my game as well. I did not play too much this year, but I hope I can be beneficial for the team next year in U21 as well as in U18.

Towards the end of the season, I got an invitation to attend tryouts for the Lithuanian U17 national team. I played pretty well, and I got selected to the top 18 player preselection. It is a great feeling when all of the time spent in the gym starts to pay off a little bit. However, I have more goals, I want to make it to the final roster and play in the World Championship.

Voilà pour de l'interview de Zigmas. Merci à lui pour son temps et ses réponses, et souhaitons lui une bonne saison avec le BCM Gravelines !

PS : Pour ceux qui ne sont pas à l'aise avec l'anglais, retrouvez la VF de l'interview ce weekend !

Team Prospect Sport 

Découvrez les sophomores à suivre cette saison NBA !

After a great season with youth team and a 4th place at the Espoir future trophy, you were selected with the national Lithuanian team.

How do you feel about it ?

My objective for next season is to play a lot both for the U18 and U21 teams. I want to develop as a leader for U18 and help U21 as much as I can, providing a solid role and helping the team win. I think the key to getting on the court is defense, so I need to become a solid defender. As a team, of course we want to win the championship, however, we need to keep our focus on the present. Trying to improve as much as we can, facing one opponent after another.

What are your objectives next season ?

I would say I follow the EuroLeague more than the NBA, but I do catch up on the highlights and game reviews, especially during the playoffs. I love watching NBA on TNT and other analysis shows and podcasts. A couple of the podcasts I listen to are from NBA players such as Paul George, JJ Redick, Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce, Matt Barnes and Stephen Jackson, Udonis Haslem and Mike Miller, Shaq, and so on.

Do you follow the NBA ?

Source : X

I It is really hard for me to have a certain player that I can relate my game to, but if I had to choose a favorite, it would probably be Tyrese Haliburton. Mainly because he is also a tall point guard like me. He can really shoot, pass the ball on the highest level, and lead his team to wins. I also admire the way Kevin Durant plays, he is probably one of the best scorers in the history of basketball. A couple coaches have told me that we have a similar profile. So I think KD and Tyrese would be my two choices, as in players who I look up to.

I was a little disappointed when the Celtics dominated the Pacers in the playoffs because I really liked the way they played, very fast-paced basketball. In the finals, I am supporting the Dallas Mavs, and I hope Luka can get his first championship. Watching the way Luka and Kyrie play is so beautiful. Kyrie is truly a magician with the ball.

Also looking at Euroleague, I love the way Compazzo and Teodosic play. I want to model my playmaking the way they pass the ball and create for their teammates after them.

Who is your favorite NBA player and why ?

Source : Indy Star

Source : the Sumter Iterm

Source : Euroleague

Before coming to France I decided to join a university basketball team called KTU (Kaunas Technology University), I think it was very crucial for my development as a point guard. In half a year I improved so much, because I was playing with men and being coached by an amazing coach Lukas Šimkus. He believed in me, gave me hope and helped me become the player I am today.

I think the half year in KTU and coach Lukas Šimkus helped me get ready for the tryout with BCM club and even make the team.

I am very excited to continue my basketball journey and development with BCM

To be honest right now NBA seems very far away and unreachable, if I could get a chance to play for any team or even get drafted one day I would be grateful for that kind of opportunity. Maybe I would find myself prefering the american style of basketball more than the european. It would take an insane amount of work but I believe anything is possible. Personally, right now I think my play style is more fit for european basketball, so I would say playing the pointguard role in Euroleague is what I am dreaming about currently.

Playing in France would be my first priority right now, I really love the culture and the passion everybody has for basketball here. It is hard to say what the future holds for me so I like to live day by day, try to focus on bettering myself everyday.

I think it is amazing what these guys like Valanciunas, Sabonis and even Buzelis are doing for Lithuanian basketball, I hope one day I could be like them and make Lithuania more known for it’s love for basketball.

Are you dreaming about the NBA ?

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