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Lithuanian basketball: past, present and future

In 1891 American teacher James Naismith invented basketball. Year after
year it became more and more popular, people played basketball in more and
more countries. In 1922 Steponas Darius brought it to Lithuania. It became
popular so fast, as TV after World War II.
Level of Lithuanian basketball was so high, that in 1935 Lithuanian team
played in the European championship. In 1935 championship took place in
Riga (Latvia). Lithuanians were debutantes, and nobody could hope, that
debutantes could be among leaders, but Lithuanians were! Lithuanians
weren`t champions!
In 1939 the occurred in Kaunas. A new Sport Hall was built for this
occasion, and sportsmen still play basketball in it now. Lithuanian team
became the winner of this competition again.
Women have never remained in the background of men. All time they tried to
be in the same level like men and they always do it. European championship
in 1938

was very successful and Lithuanian sportswomen won silver medals.
World War II didn`t stop development of Lithuanian basketball. In the time
of the war, legendary players, champions of Europe, ran to the West, but
Lithuanian basketball wasn't dead. A few students team won the first Soviet
Union championship in 1947. It was the start of the history of the biggest,
grandest, and greatest Lithuanian Basketball club "Zalgiris" (Green Wood).
The name of this club comes from the battle in 1410, when Lithuanians
beated the crusaders. This battle is named Grunwald in German or Zalgiris
in Lithuanian.
All the time, when Lithuania endured yoke of Soviet Union, Lithuanian
basketball was predominated in all Union. All the time Lithuanian players
played in combined teams.
In 1978-1981 one of the greatest Lithuanian players' generations started
forming. In 1982 Arvydas Sabonis came to "Zalgiris". He started playing in
professional team, when he was only seventeen and he is still playing now.
In 1983 the biggest fights between "Zalgiris" and CSKA from Moscow started.
It was not Moscow team; it was a team of all Soviet Union. The most players
were subjugated by the way of deception. Soviet bureaucrats wanted
Lithuanian players to play in Moscow team too, but Lithuanians looked
smarterd, and they didn't let them go.
For Example, Soviets wanted Sabonis to play in CSKA. At the same day, when
Sabonis finished secondary school, soviets came to school and tried to take
Sabonis to the army. But Lithuanians were faster. Sabonis was already
studying at Kaunas high school!
All time Lithuanians hadn't ways to the Europe. Till 1984, "Žalgiris'' has
never played with the teams from the West. Only "thaw" in Soviet Union and
reorganization of Mikhail Gorbachiov gave a chance for "Žalgiris".