VALENCIA (Jeff Taylor's Eurovision) - ​We remember it like it happened yesterday, the great fall of Lithuania and coach Ramunas Butautas at FIBA EuroBasket 2009. That was the year that Spain overcame early defeats to Serbia and Turkey and captured the European title for the first time.

The Baltic side, in their third tournament under Butautas, crashed and burned in Poland and the coach paid the price.

Their only victory that summer came against Bulgaria in the Group Phase. Butautas, who had steered the team to a third-place finish at FIBA EuroBasket 2007 and fourth place at the Beijing Games the following year when Sarunas Jasikevicius played for the team, led his side to just that one victory over the Bulgarians and five defeats in Poland.

Lithuania were third at EuroBasket 2007 when Jasikevicius played for Butautas

Making the situation worse was that Lithuania had their typical, fanatical traveling supporters behind them in Wroclaw and then Lodz. They were rowdy, yet shocked by the state of their team. Butautas knew he was gone as Lithuania coach immediately after that tournament.

Lithuania did lose to some very good teams that year. They fell to a rampant Turkey team that was getting ready to stage the 2010 FIBA Basketball World Cup. Hosts Poland with Marcin Gortat thumped them, as did Slovenia, Spain and Serbia. Even so, Lithuania suffered blowout defeats each time. We figured that was the last we'd ever seen in international basketball of Butautas, but eight years later and he's back.

Unless something happens between now and August 8, when the Lebanese play their first game at the FIBA Asia Cup against Korea in Beirut, Butautas will coach in the international game again. He'll be at the helm of the Cedars. This, he says, is an exciting prospect, even though it's taking part in a different part of the world.

"The language of basketball is the same no matter which part of the globe you represent," he said to FIBA.basketball. "I am not a rookie in Asian basketball as I've coached against many Asian national teams while in charge of the Lithuanian national team, and I have almost two years of experience of coaching BC Astana in Kazakhstan."

Coaches have philosophies and ways they want to play, yet the good ones are able to get the best of their players even if they are not well suited for the preferred style.

"I try to adapt my strategy to the players in order to express their biggest strengths," Butautas said. "I believe that the players I coach trust me and we work together, pulling in the same direction."

Butautas will go up against Korea, New Zealand and Kazakhstan in the Group Phase. This isn't the first time a Lithuanian coach has led a prominent team in Asia. You'll remember that Jonas Kazlauskas coached China at the 2006 FIBA Basketball World Cup, the FIBA Asia Cup the following year and the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. Maybe Butautas will restore his battered image in international basketball in Beirut.

Speaking of coaches, you have to applaud Italy's coach at the FIBA U19 Basketball World Cup, Andrea Capobianco. On Saturday, he presided over an incredible late comeback against Spain that put the Italians into a Final against Canada. The Spain v Italy game was great theater. It was probably the best game of the tournament.

Capobianco, you may recall, had only just coached Italy at the FIBA EuroBasket Women in Prague and endured one of the most frustrating losses a coach could experience, one that kept his team out of the FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup 2018 in Spain.

His U19 team wasn't able to follow up the 66-63 victory over Spain in Cairo with another. Canada dominated the Final and beat Italy, 79-60. Yet getting to the podium and claiming a silver was a tremendous accomplishment and a terrific bounce-back statement by Capobianco.

"For us, the silver is amazing," he said. "I can only say thank you to this incredible group."

Capobianco then had a nice personal touch, remembering the team he had coached at the EuroBasket Women.

"I dedicate this medal to all the girls of the women's national team," he said. "They, too, had done something great, but in that case, the target escaped us because of a detail."

Capobianco dedicated Italy's silver medal in Cairo to the women's national team

In that game, a questionable unsportsmanlike foul was called on Italy's rising star Cecilia Zandalasini which allowed Latvia to go to the line and make a pair of go-ahead free-throws that ultimately gave them victory in the Classification Round game and a spot in the World Cup.

As for the heroes of that Italy men's team at the U19 World Cup, there were plenty. No player was more important in my opinion than back-up point guard Michele Antelli, a real energizer bunny. In both the Quarter-Final against Lithuania and the Semi-Final against Spain, Antelli's defense was so fierce that he swung the momentum on both occasions to Italy.

Jeff Taylor
FIBA

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