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If, before the new season, the 19-year-old defender barely reached the top 100 of the NBA’s rookie candidates according to preliminary forecasts, then, as the LKL and Euroleague battles intensified, a whirlwind of Mazeikiai invaded the first 50.
In the new 2020 talent show rankings announced by ESPN this week, R. Jokubaitis is ranked 49th. This means that if this projection of the United States sports media giant is confirmed, Rock could be summoned in the middle of the second round of the NBA Rookie Exchange in just three weeks. The right to the 49th invite this year belongs to one of the favorites of the Philadelphia 76ers of the Eastern Conference.
It is true that R. Jokubaitis, who was interviewed on the Delfi portal a week ago, still could not say if he would not withdraw the application and definitely participate in the NBA rookie exchange this year.
“Just before the start of the season, I was planning to withdraw the application and focus on the Euroleague, local issues. The NBA exchange has come a long way and I didn’t think about it anymore. And now I don’t want to say anything … “It’s not bad at all, but I’m not paying too much attention to it. I’ll meet his agent, we’ll talk. He communicates with people in the United States, he informs me. Gathering information is his job, we’ll see what my situation will be like,” R. Jokubaitis told Delfi.
Rokas, who normally rises from the bench, animates Kaunas’ “Žalgiris” game with sharp advances and precise long shots. In the Euroleague, he accumulates an average of 7.4 points each and LKL – 5.7 points each.
Applicants to join the NBA expect to be called up on November 18. R. Jokubaitis, who will celebrate his 20th birthday the day after the exchange of newcomers, has not yet made a final decision and does not reject any options.
“The exchange of newcomers is not my priority, now we have more serious problems. And I am not sure that someone will call me necessarily. But still … We will see later. I am more inclined to withdraw the application and try it next year than it’s coming, but I really don’t know. If the right circumstances arise … I don’t want to say something that sounds too strong, we’ll see, “said the defender.
Rokas Jokubaitis during the first 5 matches of the Euroleague season
In Žalgiris’s locker room, he has someone to talk to about the upcoming NBA rookie trade. Midfielder Marekas Blaževičius, who also turned 19 last month, has also submitted an application.
Like most basketball players on the Kaunas team, the contracts of R. Jokubaitis and M. Blaževičius provide for the possibility of going to the NBA in exchange for a certain ransom.
Arnas Velička, a 20-year-old defender who previously belonged to Žalgiris and will represent Chalons-Reims (France) this season, will also participate in this year’s NBA rookie swap.
The application has also been submitted by Greek Georgios Kalaitzakis, who defended the honor of Kėdainiai “Nevėžis” last season, and American LaMelo Ballas, who appeared in the noisy Vytautas team in Prienai in 2018, as well as Latvian Arturas Kurucas and the Estonian Sanderis Raieste.
In total, the list of candidates includes 108 last names, 36 of which are from non-US representatives. Among Europeans, the NBA has attracted already famous basketball players such as the Jew Deni Avdija, the Spaniard Leandro Bolmaro, the Frenchman Theo Maledon, the Serbs Aleksejus Pokuševskis and Urošas Trifunovičius.
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