The Lithuanian champs' new head coach seems to have found a player to build around in the veteran guard.
Trinchieri: Lukas Lekavicius’s effort a picture of Zalgiris's game
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Andrea Trinchieri was not surprised that Lukas Lekavicius played a major role in Zalgiris Kaunas beating ALBA Berlin 77-71 in his coaching debut for the team. After all, the new coach already saw what his guard could do years ago.
Lekavicius scored 9 points to go with season highs of 6 rebounds, 5 assists, a performance index rating of 16 and 24 minutes in what was by far the 29-year-old’s most productive game of the season.
“I asked the team one thing. I know I cannot ask you for a perfect game. This is very far from our moment. But I can ask you for a perfect effort. And I believe Lukas had the perfect effort - 6 rebounds, 5 assists. Turnovers whatever. But that was the postcard of our game,” the new Zalgiris play-caller said after the win, which snapped a six-game losing streak.
Lekavicius had only combined for 2 points, 2 rebounds, 6 assists and -2 in PIR in 28:32 minutes over his previous four games.
Trinchieri however said Lekavicius could be a player who helps the club rebound and still do good things this season.
“Lukas is a specific player. When you look at a player, when you scout a player, you can look at him in two ways: What is missing: size, He is not big. Or what he has. I focus on what he has. Lukas plays bigger than his size, he’s not afraid of anything. He plays like a 2-meter guard. He shoots floaters. He makes mistakes, plays through them. I believe Lukas is someone who can give us something in this moment,” Trinchieri said.
And Lekavicius rewarded his new coach’s faith in him as he scored a lefty running floater over ALBA big man Yanni Wetzell for a 74-71 lead with 31 seconds left.
The 16 PIR was Lekavicius’s highest since he posted a 19 index rating in Round 34 of the 2022-23 season against FC Bayern Munich. The coach for Bayern then was … Andrea Trinchieri, who watched Lekavicius guide the Lithuanian champs to an 80-83 away win to qualify for the playoffs on the final day of action.
And Zalgiris’s new coach was also the opposing coach when Lekavicius set his career highs of 29 points and 32 PIR - on February 24, 2017, against Brose Bamberg.
Trinchieri said afterward that he brought up that game to Lekavicius before the ALBA game.
“I told him in shoot-around: do you remember that game in Bamberg when you scored 30? At the end, I was so desperate because he was unstoppable that I put Daniel Theis on him. A center guarding a guard and he still scored,” Trinchieri recalled. “He is a burst for our offense. He has speed. He is not afraid of anything. He plays bigger than his size. I believe we need some intangibles - something to change this atmosphere.”
It shouldn’t be a surprise if Lukas Lekavicius becomes a real weapon for the new Zalgiris Kaunas under Andrea Trinchieri - someone who is happy to finally have the guard on his team for big games.