By Antonis Stroggylakis/ astroggylakis@eurohoops.net
If you had placed any bets before the tipoff of the 2023-24 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague on who will lead the competition in rebounds with almost one-third of the regular season in the books, Baskonia forward Tadas Sedekerskis probably wouldn’t have been among your top options.
In retrospect, he should have been. Not your traditional big man, Sedekerskis is currently ranked first among all EuroLeague players with a powerful 8.9 rebounds per game – 6.9 defensive and 2.1 offensive. He’s perhaps an unlikely rebounding king, even if he previewed this dominance during the 2023 FIBA World Cup, where he was the Lithuanian national team’s second-highest rebounder at 7.3 per game.
Nonetheless, Sedekerskis’s board work in the EuroLeague has shown a massive jump compared to last season. The 25-year-old has more than doubled his rebounds, from 4.2 to 8.9, with a corresponding increase in playing time, from under 19 to 31 minutes per game.
Not only is Sedekerskis the EuroLeague’s most prolific rebounder this season but he’s way ahead of the others, with second-placed Bonzie Colson of Maccabi Tel Aviv more than 2 rebounds behind on average. Mind you, Colson’s 6.7 boards per game are impressive for a 1.98-meter forward who is his team’s sixth-tallest player.
Still, such a distance between the first and second spots on the top rebounders list is extremely rare. Only once before in the modern EuroLeague has there been such a gap after a full season. That was in the 2014-15 season, when 2.24-meter giant Boban Marjanovic of Crvena Zvezda truly towered over the competitions, with 10.7 rebounds per game while his fellow Serb Nemanja Bjelica of Fenerbahce had 8.5 during his MVP run that season.
At 2.06 meters, Sedekerskis doesn’t enjoy such a size advantage. In fact, should he continue to command the glass in such a fashion, he will become the first non-center to lead the league in rebounds since CSKA Moscow legend Viktor Khryapa in 2013.
Leading by example
If he’s not the tallest player on the floor, Sedekerskis otherwise has the full package of skills that make for a potent rebounder. He has great footwork when shots go up to position himself expertly for rebounds, negating any size disadvantage. He has the necessary leaping ability to win battles mid-air and catch others off guard. He’s always on the move, ready to hustle, put his body into the fire, and fight hard for any extra possession that can make a difference for his team.
Such tenacity and aggressiveness have defined Baskonia forever, and are now exemplified by Sedekerskis in his new role as team captain. It’s an honor and responsibility he realizes fully, having grown up with the club’s youth squads since he was 15 years old.
Sedekerskis took the captain’s job last summer, succeeding Lithuanian forward Rokas Giedraitis, who moved to Crvena Zvezda. He’s leading by title and example, pairing his unmatched number of rebounds with 10.1 points and 2.0 assists for an average performance index rating of 18.7, which ranks seventh among all EuroLeague players this season.
Most importantly, of course, Sedekerskis has significantly impacted Baskonia’s recent surge since head coach Dusko Ivanovic’s return.
Over his last five rounds, Sedekerskis averaged 9.0 rebounds as the team went 4-1 – he missed a road win at LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne – and he was stellar in Baskonia’s two most resounding wins. He grabbed a career-high-tying 13 rebounds at Olympiacos and then took 12 as Baskonia handed Barcelona just its second defeat. That dozen was particularly impressive since Barcelona is one of the league’s strongest rebounding teams, ranking fourth to date with 36.5 per game.
Baskonia has now climbed to a 6-5 record following a rough 1-4 start, and Sedekerskis’s affinity for rebounding has heavily influenced this rebirth. His overall way of performing serves also as a guide for his teammates to follow if they are to make the playoffs for the first time since 2019.