Andrea Trinchieri will lead Zalgiris to the final of the Lithuanian Cup, where they will face Lietkabelis, head coached by Nenad Canak.
Zalgiris defeated Siauliai 87:77 in the semifinals. They will be without Dovydas Giedraitis in the final due to an injury sustained in the semifinal match.
“Yes, I have watched many of their games in the EuroCup, and I also saw last week’s game against Siauliai. They have a coach from Serbia, and you can see it – they control the tempo, control the offense, have good combinations, and my former pupil Djordje Gagic looks like a baby Shaq. He played brilliantly,” said Andrea Trinchieri after Gagic scored 31 points and added 10 rebounds in the semifinal, shooting 10/12 from the field, which was enough for an efficiency index of 44.
In the final of the Cup, two former coaches who led Partizan will meet. How would you describe Nenad Canak as a head coach?
“First of all, this summer he left Lietkabelis for Turkey, but when Turk Telekom released Nenad Canak, Lietkabelis immediately took him back. This means that Nenad did an excellent job in Panevezys.
He is a good coach, very good. This is the Balkan basketball school. He controls everything, knows where the ball should go. I think Lietkabelis’ style of play in the league is a bit different from that of other teams. I know for sure that a tough battle awaits us“, Trinchieri concluded.
The Lithuanian Cup was held from 2007 to 2015. During that time, Zalgiris won it five times, while Lietuvos Rytas lifted the trophy twice. Since 2016, the name of the national Cup has been changed to the King Mindaugas Cup.
Zalgiris is the most successful in this “new competition” with six trophies. Lietuvos Rytas won the trophy designated for the winner in 2016 and 2019.
The big final between Zalgiris and Lietkabelis is scheduled for Sunday, starting at 6:15 PM.