Ignas Brazdeikis is leaving the NBA for now to return to his country and play for EuroLeague side Zalgiris Kaunas. Zalgiris agreed with the Kaunas-born forward to a 1+1 year deal, per the team’s announcement.
Brazdeikis was born in Lithuania, but grew up in Canada. He made his debut in the Lithuanian national team under Zalgiris Kaunas head coach Kazys Maksvytis and averaged 14.5 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 1 assist in the FIBA World Cup Qualifiers.
Welcome home, @_iggy_braz! 🤝
Zalgiris has struck a 1+1 deal with swingman Ignas Brazdeikis!
📰: https://t.co/KqcO4KnrVP pic.twitter.com/ldLhQ1JGw9
— BC Zalgiris Kaunas (@bczalgiris) July 24, 2022
He was the 47th pick of the 2019 NBA Draft picked by the Sacramento Kings and then traded to the New York Knicks. In his time there, he spent most of his first season in the G League and appeared in 13 games.
He then jumped to Orlando playing for the Magic and their G League affiliate Lakeland Magic. He appeared in 52 NBA games last season putting up 5.0 points and 1.7 rebounds, while shooting 43 percent from the field.
The Lithuanian swingman played one season in Michigan before declaring for the 2019 NBA Draft.
