Zydrunas Ilgauskas Bio

A Lithuanian basketball player playing for National Basketball Association (NBA) is Zyndrunas Ilgauskas.

He is currently playing for Miami Heat of National Basketball Association (NBA). Zyndrunas Ilgauskas was born in June 5, 1975 at Lithuanian. He used to play basketball at his schooling level and has started playing from Kaunas. Kaunas is Ilgauskas’s birth place and from here he has started playing basketball. At that time, he has averaged 20.3 points per game, 12.8 rebounds per game by hitting 2.8 blocks.

Zyndrunas Ilgauskas has delivered exciting performances and ha has always taken advantage of his height which is 7 feet and three inches. When he has started playing, he was not such an expert in handling basketball and hitting shots.

With the passage of time and sessions of practicing more and more, he is now eligible to control any situation for the team. He is a wise and energetic player who is always confident of his efforts. He believes in investing hard work to bring a better result in the game.

To him just playing is something in life and playing well is everything in life. His thinking and beliefs are always reflected from the way he plays at the court.

In 1996 NBA Draft, Cleveland Cavaliers have selected him on the overall 20th pick. He suffered from many of the body injuries which have prevented him by playing many of the games in the season. It was 1996-97 when Ilgauskas suffered from myriad foot and ankle injuries. Then, one of the bones in the right foot of Ilgauskas has broken.

He took a little longer in recovering and returning back to the field. In the year 1998, Zyndrunas Ilgauskas was selected as the NBA All-Rookie First Team.

In the year 1996, Ilgauskas has played with the Lithuanian team. He has played with the Atletas Kaunsas from 1994 to 1996. He has played many of the seasons with the Cavaliers and has marked his career with many of the point sand rebounds. It was July 12, 2005 when Ilgauskas has signed a contract of extension to play for five more years.

This contract was signed with the worth of $55 million. He used to play as a centre in the basketball. Though Wizards have made him to play as a free agent yet he has always played with the Cleveland Cavaliers till 2010.

When he was playing against the Sacramento Kings, he received a lot of appreciation and even a standing ovation from the crowd. He was called as “The Z” for the day to grace the honor to Lithuanian Quicken Loans Arena. It was 2010 NBA Playoffs when Zyndrunas Ilgauskas has not marked his career well.

He has averaged 1.7 points per game and 1.6 rebounds per game by taking 69 minutes. Because of this, Cleveland Cavaliers were eliminated in the Eastern Conference Semifinals.

From 2010 to the present, Zyndrunas Ilgauskas is still playing with the Miami Heats and is rendering his services in the field of basketball playing. In 2002 and 2005, Zyndrunas Ilgauskas was honored with the NBA All-Star. He is not only representing his country in a good manner but also carrying the fame of his team well.

You've got something to share with us about this player?

If you happen to know something interesting about this player, we'd love to hear about it. Share it with us.

Return from Zydrunas Ilgauskas Bio to Best Basketball Tips