By Johnny Askounis/ info@eurohoops.net
The next challenge for Arturs Zagars has been officially confirmed.
Zagars, 23, inked a three-year contract with Fenerbahce Beko and will spend the 2023-24 season with Lithuania outfit Wolves on loan, the team based in Istanbul announced Monday. The deal with Fener and his loan assignment were reported by Eurohoops last week.
Representing Latvia in the 2023 FIBA World Cup was a huge success. Beyond contributing to the push for his country to rank fifth overall in its first-ever participation in the flagship event of FIBA, he also became an intriguing free agent attracting the interest of multiple teams. Rewarded a three-year contract with the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague powerhouse, returning to Lithuania’s Betsafe LKL and BKT EuroCup emerge as the initial destination.
The Latvian combo guard tallied 12.4 points, 7.4 assists, 2.6 rebounds, 0.4 steals, and 0.1 blocks per contest over eight appearances in the World Cup. Among the major highlights of his solid showings in Indonesia and the Philippines was setting a record for the most assists in a single game of the World Cup with 17 dimes in the fifth-place game against Lithuania.
Averaging 15.4 points, 4.4 assists, 3.0 rebounds, and 1.1 steals per game painted the picture of his efforts in the 2022-23 season with Nevezis-OPTIBET in the top-flight division of Lithuania. The previous experience in EuroCup, the second-tier club continental competition of Euroleague Basketball, amounts to 20 games played between 2019 and 2022 as a member of Joventut Badalona.
Photo Credit: FIBA.BASKETBALL