Goudelock, who enjoys the experience in Lithuania: “I want to be the best version of myself” / News

Photo: BNS

In the fast-paced 2020-2021. There is no shortage of bright names in the Betsafe-LKL championship. 73 new basketball players have joined the league, so fans will be able to find new goddesses and people throughout the season who will become their favorites both on and off the court.

One of the most prominent newcomers to Betsafe-LKL is Andrew Goudelock, a Vilnius Morning defender, who until recently was called a points machine in the Euroleague.

For the 31-year-old basketball player, the Ryto Club is already the thirteenth stop of his career. From Los Angeles to Kazan, from Istanbul to Milan, from Tel Aviv to Shandogo in China and from Venice to Vilnius. Goudelock, like a lonely wanderer, shook the whole world, tasted warm and cold, until he found himself in a place he had heard a lot about.

The player’s past points to Rytas not being his last club. However, this does not mean that Goudelock accidentally landed in Vilnius, just to play basketball anywhere.

Speaking to LKL.lt, the American spoke about a rather bitter but colorful reality for life. As a teenager, he lived alone the dream of the National Basketball Association (NBA). And this dream, as the basketball player himself says, can be very misleading.

The 23-year-old, dressed in a Los Angeles Lakers jersey, did not know at the time that almost the rest of his career would continue in Europe, and the basketball player would begin his forties in the Lithuanian capital, a city where he felt a shining star nothing. more arrive.

“It just came to our notice then. But it wasn’t just me. In America, they threw me in all directions and in no time I experienced everything: I heard my name on the rookie exchange, I debuted in the NBA, then they sent me. To the development league, then I won the MVP title there, I went back to the NBA, they sent me again, in the summer league, for example, I accumulated about 24 points, I really knew I was worth more.

I realized that I deserved a place in the NBA, but finally I said to myself and to them: “Forget it. Forget me. I have found teams that really love me. “I had to change my mind, I had to change my life. I just had to leave because I knew I could play at a high level, but the NBA doors were always closed for me.” Goudelock told LKL.lt about the twists and turns of his career.

– Andrew, if you tried to remember yourself as a child. Where were the beginnings of that basketball, why basketball? – asked LKL.lt.
– My family, my father, I did not know him, but he played basketball. All the men in my family played basketball. In the city where I was born and raised, everyone knew my last name as the last name of a basketball player. I just got involved in it. When I started going to school, I started playing every day. In fact, I’ve been doing well from the beginning, so there weren’t many questions about basketball in my life.

– You say it went well. And when did you realize that good basketball would become your main source of livelihood and that you were a professional?
– I was quite young. In fact, I played football and basketball in parallel. I did very well in both branches. I chose basketball because I experienced less pain from it; after all, in football, you really have to bite your teeth. It was not a difficult decision and I do not regret it.

– Arrived in Europe very early and landed directly in Kazan, Russia. How was that feeling?
– It was a shock. But it didn’t just happen to me. In America, I was thrown in all directions and in no time I experienced everything: I heard my name on the rookie exchange, I debuted in the NBA, then they sent me to the development league, then I won the MVP title there, I went back to NBA, they sent me back. In summer league, for example, I had about 24 points, I really knew I was worth more.

I realized that I deserved a place in the NBA, but finally I said to myself and to them: “Forget it. Forget me. I’ve found teams that really love me. “I had to change my mind, I had to change my life. I had to leave because I knew I could play at a high level, but the door to the NBA was still closing on me.

– Vilnius is already the thirteenth stop for you. Could you compare a basketball player to a world traveler?
– How lucky some players are and they immediately find a team that trusts him, that the future unites him, for example, for seven or eight years. But that didn’t happen to me. No matter what team he was on, he knew deep down that he might come back to the NBA one day, so we didn’t negotiate long-term contracts.

This approach was instilled in me by my agent, who constantly repeated that you would never know how things would be after this season. You know, I’m very happy about that; After all, in my career, I have seen many special places around the world, touched many different cultures, and met many new people.

– You have already debuted in the Betsafe-LKL Championship. What did you know about this league before your arrival?
– I have heard a lot about the Lithuanian Basketball League (Betsafe-LKL). I have a lot of friends who have played or are playing here, so I always knew it was a strong league. I knew that basketball was of a high level in Lithuania, so I didn’t have many doubts before coming here.

For me, this is another place to improve: I will not say anything new, no matter where I play, I want to be the best version of myself. And different places, different rivals, allow you to take those steps forward. Now that I am here, I will do my best to play the best basketball and win as much as I can with the team.

– What impression does Vilnius leave? Have you ever felt that the people here really like basketball?
– What I like the most about Vilnius is the people. I can say that he is very friendly and hospitable. Although I spent a bit of time here, I already felt that the basketball fans in Vilnius recognized me: they stop on the street, say something nice, give something. Nor have I ever felt that I am a foreigner, that I am black.

In other places you used to go out into the city and feel those nasty looks because you are different. This is definitely not the case in Vilnius, everyone is the same here. I asked Donatas Motiejūnas about Lithuanians, he said he would welcome me kindly, but I am really very pleasantly surprised, because I did not expect daily communication to be so simple and warm.

– Is your biggest personal goal this season …?
– I want to win as many games as possible, be the best in my version and most importantly, avoid injuries. The most important health. If I’m healthy, it will be a great season because I can see that we have a great coaching staff and talented teammates.