Schiller: on the adaptation in Kaunas, Hayes ‘temptations to Utah, and a rare combination of Grigonis’ abilities.

“Žalgiris” defeated Rimas Kurtinaitis’s pupils in the first match last October by 84:70.

Then the Russian team was weakened by an outbreak of coronavirus and injuries, with some players still in doubt.

Janis Timma, Jonas Jerebko and Sergejus Monia have been injured more or less recently, although the latter two may still appear on the Kaunas parquet.

The match in the arena “Žalgiris” will start at 20.00.

Chimki’s victory is cryingly needed, as he must also lose the last place of one of the richest Euroleague clubs in the tournament table (2/15).

The situation in Žalgiris is completely different.

“From a pragmatic point of view, our position is very good. But one should look deeper. We played quite stable and solid offense in the first round and constantly improved our defense until we reached very good statistics in December. We would like to continue. doing it. It’s not the case that once you start defending well, you always play like that. We need to keep working to maintain that level, “said Schiller.

– Are you already used to the new environment, new country and city? – we asked the coach of “Žalgiris”

– In my life I had to travel a lot, experience many new things. I have a lot of experience moving and adapting to new places. However, every time you need to do this, you will need to readjust it.

Two days ago I spoke to my assistant Arne Woltmann: after the game we always buy coffee and drive around town, usually a similar route. This time, while driving, I realized that I was completely used to Kaunas. It was similar to getting used to wide avenues and big cars when I came to the US, I got used to it similarly here.

Now I can feel at home in Kaunas. I adapted as a person, I also adapted as a coach in a professional sense – if it weren’t for that, I probably wouldn’t be sitting here now (laughs – Delphi). Although a complete adaptation is not possible in our work, whether you are Šarūnas Jasikevičius or anyone else. There is too much uncertainty just in this profession.

– What helped Marius Grigonis to become one of the best defenders in the Euroleague this season?

– First of all, hard work and skills. Marius is an offensive defender, plays very well against two and is able to shoot from greater distances. This combination is rare. Marius is an absolute professional and is on fire to win. Everyone loves it, but not for everyone it becomes a strength of character.

Kaunas Žalgiris – Chimki, Moscow region

– Nigel Hayes revealed himself playing as a lightweight winger after Steve Vasturia fell out of the rotation. Can it be said that his trauma served Žalgiris in any way?

– I can tell you that I tried to lure Nigel to Utah two years ago, only then there was no possibility of doing it. We flew him out for three days, when he only signed a contract with Žalgiris, but got a chance to go to the NBA. We were only able to offer him a two-way deal that he had previously had with the New York Knicks. It didn’t make sense for Nigel to go back to that situation again, he obviously understood that himself. I wanted him on my team, my former CEO wanted him too. Even though it failed then, I always liked it. So Nigel’s progress doesn’t surprise me. It should be noted that he himself does endless work trying to improve individually, and this can be seen in the square.

But the S. Vasturia trauma would not yet be considered a success for us. What is the use here if a player is injured. Just Nigel adapts successfully playing as a light winger, although changing positions is far from easy. Nigel’s height in third position is especially helpful in defending us, and it also has a ripple effect: when Nigel plays light winger, Paulius Jankūnas or Augustine Rubitas can play tough.