Home Interviews Kazlauskas: Chinese basketball is nothing like Euroleague

Kazlauskas: Chinese basketball is nothing like Euroleague

Photo: musukrepsinis.lt

Jonas Kazlauskas is not sure whether he’ll continue his work at Guangdong Southern Tigers despite a valid contract for one more season. He poke to DELFI.lt about his experience in China and the state of club basketball there.

Head coach of Lithuanian national team has taken a less popular way by taking charge of Southern Tigers in 2013. Kazlauskas is well known in China after he coached national team through 2005-2008.

Here are some of the most interesting quotes from the interview conducted by Mindaugas Augustis of DELFI.lt:

– You don’t want to go back to China due to tiredness or are there other motives?

– There are all kinds of them [motives], behind the scenes games exist everywhere. China is no exception. During my first season at the club we’ve won the championship rather easily, losing just one game entire season. It appears that everyone conspired against champions in order to show that the league is strong.

First of all, there were no more referees from abroad during playoffs. The level of refereeing of Chinese referees is not the highest. Secondly, the playoffs system was amended giving the home court advantage to the lower seeded teams. Because of that Beijing side lost two games on purpose. Thirdly,we got only one day to rest, buy ticket planes, after finishing regular season. Preparation was out of question. All these things add up and you start thinking that you are fighting against windmills, it makes you mad.

– Didn’t old contacts within Chinese Federation helped you fight those windmills?

– Everything is different in China. Some people are responsible for the national team, other – for the championship, referees. They don’t depend on each other.

– Maybe it feels better for the federation to have champions from the capital?

– There is some truth in that. Sponsors have huge influence in China, big bucks are turning. Federation has an agreement with Infront, an international company who runs the league. They get what they earn, for them it’s important to have champions changing, to have competitiveness and so on.

– You once told that the referees wouldn’t let anyone to even get close to Stephon Marbury in semi-final series. Was it bias or are the referees protecting celebrities?

– The Chinese try to copy NBA. It’s no secret that the referees protect their stars over there. But it’s one thing when it’s done by professional, very good referees. And it’s a different thing when protection is done by average or low level referees. In China there are cases when orders are given from above and then it’s very difficult to fight. When Marbury alone takes more free-throws than your entire team, then a question ‘what’s going on’ arises. Last year, when the referees were foreigners it was a bit easier but this year local referees were working and there were many problems.

– Last month there were talks that some Russian clubs remembered you. Could you return to work in Europe?

– European clubs have never forgotten me but I don’t want to comment rumours – sometimes you spread them yourselves and then want to get something out.

– You mentioned that big money are involved in Chinese basketball. What are the budgets of leading clubs?

– If locals are telling me the truth, then the budgets of the top teams are around $15-19M, the budget of our club was sixth or seventh in the league.

– Then the financial abilities are like most Euroleague clubs. Does basketball differ a lot from that played in Europe?

– Chinese basketball is completely different from that in Euroleague. Chinese are copying NBA basketball, they play “run&gun” basketball, defense gets less attention. Basketball in Europe is much more organized and systematized. While in China there’s a celebrity club like in NBA. Yi Jianlian or Shipeng Wang are huge stars in their homeland, they are recognised everywhere, it’s difficult [for them] to walk the street. When they are met at the airports it seems some kind of gods have landed.

– Do Chinese basketball fans attend games in large amounts?

– The stands are full, they support their teams. It’s better not to annoy local fans, some are angry, all kinds of things may happen. To me another thing is strange. I encountered that for the first time and I hope I won’t ever again. 2008 Beijing Olympics, first game, Chinese national team plays against USA. And for the first time the gym supports not the hosts but the visitors. To me that was something impossible to understand. Can you imagine Lithuanians not supporting Lithuanian national, even if it played against superstars? It shows how well the NBA works in China, how the players are deified. That’s why it’s difficult to fight with same Marbury.

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