Members of the U18 Real Madrid team very well may have looked themselves in the mirror after Anadolu Efes Istanbul claimed its much-anticipated 2021 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague crown and said: "Now it’s our turn."

Real finishes unfinished business with ANGT title

Just like Efes, which saw the COVID-19 pandemic cancel the remainder of a 2019-20 EuroLeague campaign it expected to win, Real’s future talents were left a void after not getting an opportunity to defend their Euroleague Basketball Adidas Next Generation Tournament title last season despite being a favorite.

The 2021 ANGT Finals in Valencia gave Real the chance to finally get some closure and finish the unfinished business from last season. And the Spanish powerhouse ended up doing just that, outlasting archrival U18 FC Barcelona 81-78 in overtime of the 2021 ANGT Championship Game to claim the club’s third U18 continental crown.

"Before the game, we talked about how for the whole year we had been fighting and working together and we wanted to win so bad," said Real guard Urban Klavzar, who contributed 16 points and 4 rebounds in the win over Barcelona.

After surviving the battle with Barcelona, Klavzar raced around the court and then knelt on the court and banged his hands on the court, before getting up to celebrate with his teammates. It was similar to the relief that Efes expressed in Cologne after downing FC Barcelona to win the EuroLeague crown.

Klavzar had a huge release of relief after finally getting the crown: "Our goal was to win this. It feels incredible," he added.

Klavzar was one of seven players on the 2021 ANGT Finals team who took first place at the ANGT Munich in 2019-20 with a comfortable 16-point win in the last game to qualify for the ANGT Finals for a seventh straight year. The others were Sediq Garuba, Konstantin Kostadinov, Eli Ndiaye, Juan Nunez, Matteo Spagnolo and Tristan Vukcevic. Nunez and Vukcevic were not on hand for the end of the ANGT Finals as both were with Real’s senior team. Vukcevic did not play at the ANGT Istanbul for the same reason. Owen Aquino was on hand at both of the last two qualifiers, but missed the ANGT Finals

"We worked all year just for this," added Spagnolo, who was the only member of the Real team that won the 2019 ANGT title in Vitoria-Gasteiz and played in Valencia.

Spagnolo was hampered in this season’s finals and only played in the championship game, where he tallied 8 points, 5 rebounds and 3 assists. It was Spagnolo's third appearance in the title bout; he also played for U18 Stellazzurra Rome in the 2018 ANGT Championship Game, a loss to U18 Rytas Vilnius.

The playmaker also became just the 10th player to win two ANGT trophies. Anatoly Kashirov, Vasily Zavourev, Artur Urazmanov and Iliya Astafiev all won the crowns for U18 CSKA Moscow in 2004 and 2005 and Iliya Gusev was part of CSKA’s winning teams in 2005 and 2006. Besides the CSKA three-peat, the only other club to win back-to-back ANGT trophies was U18 FMP Belgrade in 2008 and 2009. The quartet of Dejan Musli, Branislav Djekic, Aleksandar Ponjavic and Nikola Vukasovic was part of both winning sides.

It shouldn’t be a surprise that Real is considered a favorite to win the title again in 2022 considering that Klavzar is one of nine players born in 2004 or later, including the MVP Ndiaye, Nunez and Garuba, while Jan Vide was born in 2005 and Amadou Traore was in 2007.

With its unfinished business now finished, Real can start thinking about matching CSKA with a historic three-peat.

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After leading U18 Real Madrid to its third title at the Euroleague Basketball Adidas Next Generation Tournament Finals on Sunday, Eli Ndiaye was awarded the MVP trophy for his outstanding performance. 

Ndiaye grabs MVP trophy after leading Real to title

Ndiaye played a huge role in Real prevailing in a thrilling 81-78 overtime victory over Spanish nemesis U18 FC Barcelona in the 2021 ANGT Championship Game. The Senegal native, who was named the MVP of the ANGT Istanbul qualifying event, collected 17 points, 9 rebounds, 5 assists and 5 steals for an index rating of 23 in 44:47 minutes. Joining Ndiaye on the all-tournament team were Michael Caicedo and James Nnaji of U18 FC Barcelona, Nikola Djurisic of U18 Mega SoccerBet Belgrade and Kymany Houinsou of U18 LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne.



<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Ladies and gentlemen, the MVP of the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/adidasNGT?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#adidasNGT</a> Finals is...🥁<br><br>ELI NDIAYE from U18 <a href="https://twitter.com/RMBaloncesto?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@RMBaloncesto</a>!<br><br>Congratulations champion!🐐 <a href="https://t.co/9zvdiIcZEj">pic.twitter.com/9zvdiIcZEj</a></p>&mdash; Turkish Airlines EuroLeague (@EuroLeague) <a href="https://twitter.com/EuroLeague/status/1401495380576059392?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 6, 2021</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

For the ANGT Finals, Ndiaye averaged 19.0 points, 13.3 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 3.5 steals and 1.0 block for an average PIR of 30.5. He led the tournament in index rating, rebounds and steals, ranked second in points and fouls drawn (6.8 per game), third in offensive rebounds (4.8) and fifth in blocks. Caicedo gave all he could for Barcelona but his 25 points, 11 rebound and 4 steals in the full 45:00 minutes were not enough against Real. For the weekend, Caicedo collected 19.8 points, 8.5 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 2.5 steals for an average PIR of 20.5. He was first in points, fifth in index rating, sixth in steals and seventh in rebounds. Nnaji had 9 points, 9 rebounds and 4 blocks in the ANGT Championship Game. The Nigerian finished with 14.3 points, 9.3 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 4.3 blocks and an average index rating of 26.0. Nnaji led the tournament blocks, was second in PIR, offensive rebounds (5.0) and two-point shooting (76.7%).

Djurisic helped Mega give Barcelona a real fight in Group B, but could not get the club to its third ANGT Championship Game. He averaged 13.7 points, 8.7 rebounds and 6.0 assists for an index rating of 20.0. Djurisic ranked second in the tournament in assists and sixth in both rebounds and PIR. Houinsou was the leader of a young and exciting ASVEL team which nearly beat Real in the group stage. The guard collected 11.7 points, 6.3 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 1.3 blocks for an index rating of 11.3. He ranked fourth in blocks, ninth in assists and 10th in rebounds.

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Konstantin Kostadinov has already made major strides in his young career and the talent from Bulgaria now hopes he can help U18 Real Madrid to the title at the Euroleague Basketball Adidas Next Generation Tournament Finals - and take another big step.

Real's Kostadinov has his eyes on ANGT glory

Kostadinov was important in Real finishing first at the ANGT Istanbul when he collected 7.0 points, 3.5 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.3 steals per game including 6 points, 7 rebounds and 3 assists in the first-place game win over U18 Stellazzurra Rome.

"I was not at my best in scoring, but I think I helped the team in rebounding, in finding my open teammates and I did whatever I had to do to get the win," Kostadinov said.

"I did whatever I had to do to get the win."

The Istanbul tournament was Kostadinov’s second ANGT qualifying event as he helped Real finish first at the ANGT Munich in the 2019-20 season, averaging 13.3 points, 6.8 rebounds, 0.8 assists and 2.0 steals. He came up big in the first-place game - also against Stellazzurra - with 23 points, 9 rebounds and 2 steals for an index rating of 22.

"One of the most important things that I learned from last year is being able to cope with pressure at the highest level. At the end, this is basketball. You need to have some fun if you want to play it," he said.

Basketball used to be really just fun for Kostadinov, who was born and raised in the Bulgarian city of Burgas on the Black Sea coast.

"I did not think that I could be good. I just was tall and my first coach really liked that because back then in my city when I was a little kid, there were not so many tall people. Therefore, when he met me it was a nice surprise for him," said Kostadinov of the city with about 200,000 people. "I started basketball with my friends, just for fun, just to do some physical activity and avoid staying at home all the time and watching TV. Then, when I started to play, I really liked it, because my height was an advantage and that was pretty good for me."

Despite Burgas being a small city, Kostadinov’s play was recognized by the country’s youth basketball leaders. He was named to the Bulgaria team for the FIBA U16 European Championship 2017 Division B - at just 14 years of age. He ended up playing at the competition the next two summers as well, helping Bulgaria finish sixth in 2019 - the country’s top performance since it returned to Division B in 2011.

"The main and the most important thing that I learned back then was you cannot enter the court with the mindset that things are going to be hard or the other way around either, that things are going to be easy," said Kostadinov, who averaged 14.6 points, 10.5 rebounds, 4.6 assists, 2.5 steals and 1.6 blocks in 2019, when Bulgaria lost to the Netherlands in the quarterfinals.

"In my first U16 championship I was the youngest player, so I was aware of the fact that I had to do something about it. I knew I could never score 40 points in my first game, so I tried to help the team in some other aspects such as rebounding, passing, defending," he explained.

Before Kostadinov even took the stage for Bulgaria, he already had his eyes opened widely. In 2016, Real Madrid came calling and brought the then 13-year-old youngster to Spain.

"It was a big surprise for me when I heard that Real Madrid was calling a kid from a small city in Bulgaria for tryouts. I never expected that," remembered Kostadinov, who went to the Spanish capital with his parents. "They helped me a lot through all that time because the first year was the hardest one. Without knowing the language, without knowing people here, everything is harder. However, my parents supported me a lot and thanks to them, my adjustment to Madrid and to the club was much easier."

Within the club, Kostadinov got to interact with many highly-regarded talents such as Usman Garuba, Mario Nakic, Amar Sylla and Juan Nunez. And just the experience of being around them helped Kostadinov in his development as well.

"You realize they are just kids like me and that we all experience similar situations. I learned that we all have ups and downs and that this is something normal," he said. "I also learned that the most important thing is not to pull back when things go wrong but keep fighting."

Kostadinov spent the 2020-21 season playing for Real Madrid’s second team in the EBA fourth league. In addition to the ANGT Istanbul, another highlight was making his Bulgarian senior national team debut in February 2021. He was on the bench when Bulgaria defeated Latvia to qualify for the FIBA EuroBasket for the first time since 2011.

“I was there, that was the most important thing. I was very happy getting there at my age," he said.

Kostadinov, who was still about a month shy of his 18th birthday, was allowed to play in Bulgaria’s other game in the national team window and he produced impressively. He drained 3 three-pointers in scoring 11 points to go with 2 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal and 1 block in 21 minutes of a loss to Bosnia and Herzegovina.

"The other players liked the threes. I missed the last dunk from an alley-oop, but they were pretty happy for me and my debut," he remembered.

Kostadinov is considered one of the biggest prospects in Bulgarian basketball, but he’s not worrying too much about that: "I am still young, I still have to work a lot in order to achieve what I want in basketball," he said.

"The most important thing is not to pull back when things go wrong but keep fighting."

The next goal comes in Valencia, where Real Madrid will be shooting for its third ANGT title following 2015 and 2019. Kostadinov and a number of his teammates from this year’s team were on last year’s squad that won the Munich qualifier and was ready to become the first team to repeat as ANGT champs since U18 FMP Belgrade in 2009. Real could also pull even with U18 CSKA Moscow for the most ANGT trophies; the Russian powerhouse won three straight crowns in 2004, 2005 and 2006.

"We are ready for that huge challenge. Last year we could not play because of the pandemic, so this year is the important one," Kostadinov said. "The team must play basketball, pass the ball, find the open teammate and shoot the easy shot. This tournament is important for all of us and the club, so we will do our best to try to win it."

That would be another major stride in his still-young career.

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There is no shortage of storylines for the Euroleague Basketball Adidas Next Generation Tournament Finals as the continent’s premier U18 club competition takes center stage this week in the Spanish city of Valencia.

Four former champs highlight ANGT Finals field

The 18th edition of the ANGT Finals was originally scheduled to run alongside the 2021 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Final Four in Cologne, Germany. However, pandemic regulations resulted in the tournament's relocated to the state-of-the-art L'Alqueria del Basket facility in Valencia, where the first of this season's three qualifying tournaments was staged. The group games will take place from June 3-5 with the ANGT Championship Game scheduled for June 6.

Four former champions headline the eight-team field, including the most recent winner U18 Real Madrid, which will be looking to become the first repeat champion since U18 FMP Belgrade in 2009. Real has hoisted the trophy on two occasions, just like U18 Zalgiris Kaunas, and should either team win on June 6 it would match U18 CSKA Moscow as a record three-time winner. U18 FC Barcelona and U18 Crvena Zvezda mts Belgrade are the other two past winners in the field. Real (twice), Zalgiris (3) Barcelona (1) and Zvezda (2) all have additional appearances in the ANGT Championship Game.

Two other 2021 ANGT Finals participants will be aiming to finally reach the summit after coming up just short. U18 Mega SoccerBet Belgrade has been to two ANGT Championship Games; it lost in 2017 and 2019. U18 Stellazzurra Rome lost to U18 Rytas Vilnius in the 2018 title game. Should either Mega or Stellazzurra win the championship, or either of the other two participants - host U18 Valencia Basket or debutant U18 LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne - they would become the 11th club to be crowned U18 continental champion.

The eight teams are broken down into two groups with each team playing the others in the group in round-robin style. The top finisher in each group will then face off on Sunday in the ANGT Championship Game. Group A has Zvezda, ASVEL, Real and Zalgiris while Group B is made up of Barcelona, Mega, Stellazzurra and Valencia.

The 2014 champion Zvezda is appearing in the ANGT Finals for the 10th straight time and 11th overall. In addition to its 2014 crown, the club also reached the ANGT Championship Game in 2015 and 2016. Zvezda finished runner-up at the ANGT Belgrade and was awarded a wild card for the Finals. Fellow wild card recipient ASVEL is the sole first-timer in the competition in Valencia. The French club took sixth place at the ANGT Valencia. The 2015 champion Real has become a regular at the ANGT Finals, with its seventh straight appearance and eighth overall. The Spanish powerhouse, which lost to Zvezda in the 2014 ANGT Championship Game and beat the same club in 2015, took first place at the ANGT Istanbul to book its spot in the ANGT Finals. Zalgiris finished third at the ANGT Istanbul and was given a wild card to reach the Finals for the 15th time in 18 editions. The Lithuania club won the crown in 2003 and 2007 and lost in the title game in 2005, 2006 and 2011.

In Group B, Barcelona hoisted the trophy in 2016 after coming up just short in 2008 and 2013. The Spanish side took first place at the ANGT Valencia to make the Finals for the ninth time - but first since 2017. The Serbian team Mega claimed first place at the ANGT Belgrade to make the Finals for a fifth consecutive season. It was the runner-up in 2019 when it lost to Real in the ANGT Championship Game, meaning a repeat of the 2019 title bout is possible. Stellazzurra hopes to keep that from happening as it makes its third appearance in the Finals, following 2015 and 2018 - the latter of which it lost in the final. The Italians were ANGT Istanbul runners-up to Real and received a wild card. The other team in Group B is Valencia, which received a wild card as the host team to participate in the Finals for a second time after debuting in 2019.

It took Zaccharie Risacher a while to learn what many around him had long known - that his father Stephane Risacher was a great basketball player. 

Risacher trying to follow in father's footsteps

The younger Risacher has since realized it and is taking major steps to follow in his dad’s footsteps, which makes him an intriguing prospect to follow at the Euroleague Basketball Adidas Next Generation Tournament Finals.

Risacher will be playing at the ANGT Finals with U18 LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne after the club received a wild card for the event, to be held in Valencia, Spain, from June 3-6. It will be another step up in his still very young career.

Risacher grew up with basketball around him. He was born in Spain in 2005 and lived there his first three years while his father was playing for Unicaja Malaga and Murcia. Zaccharie doesn’t remember that much from his time on the Iberian peninsula.

"I was very young, but I just remember there was a small basket in the garden and I was always outside playing," he said.

The Risacher family lived in Spain for a total of six years and one Spanish custom followed the family to France in 2008.

"As long as I can remember I was always in the gym."

"We kept the habit of having dinner late like in Spain," Risacher said.

Dinners in Spain and France were full of basketball talk, he remembered. That’s also because the game was a major part of his father’s life as Stephane played for Paris, Pau-Orthez, Olympiacos Piraeus, Unicaja, Murcia and Elan Chalon - not to mention 10 years for the France national team.

"As long as I can remember I was always in the gym, following my dad and we always had a basket at home," said Risacher, who joined the Chalon sur Saone youth ranks when he was 3 and a half years old.

But to Zaccharie, Stephane Risacher was just his father, not a 2000 Olympic silver medalist who played 96 games over six seasons in the EuroLeague for Olympiacos and Unicaja before retiring in 2010.

"As I got older I realized my dad was a great player. We had always spoken about basketball at home since I was very young. But I was 12 when I realized this," he explained.

Growing up in Lyon and playing for the small club Tassin in the city suburbs, Risacher had his father with him in his own basketball endeavor as the team’s assistant coach.

Zaccharie signed with ASVEL to play in the club’s youth ranks in August 2020 and was excited about the opportunity to play for an organization that regularly gives its youngsters chances to play at higher levels.

"I was very lucky to join the academy and be able to stay close to my home and my family. I want to continue developing myself in order maybe to have this opportunity," said Risacher, who has played in the French U21 league this season since early March. "Playing at this level allowed me to learn quicker. The players are physically stronger and more mature."

Risacher got a major taste of success when ASVEL claimed the U21 league title this season with the forward averaging 4.4 points and 1.8 rebounds in 10 minutes over 10 games - highlighted by a 12-point effort in a quarterfinals victory over Pau-Lacq-Orthez.

"I was very lucky to join the academy and be able to stay close to my home and my family."

Risacher showed at the ANGT Valencia qualifying event just how quick of a learner he is. In his first two games in the late December 2020 tournament, he combined for 6 points and 6 rebounds. Then he poured in 18 points with 7 rebounds against the U18 team of his father’s former club Unicaja. And Zaccharie finished with 12 points, 8 rebounds and 3 steals against U18 Herbalife Gran Canaria.

"I played better in the second part of the tournament," he reflected. "It was nice to see how players from others countries are playing the game of basketball."

Risacher and a number of his teammates from the championship-winning U21 team are now ready for a chance at another title. ASVEL's invitation to the ANGT Finals marks the club’s first appearance in the competition's final round of action. Risacher will once again heed the advice of his parents.

"The first thing my parents told me was to always try to do my best on the court. And stay focused on my goals," he said.

And only recently has that included trying to be as successful as his father.

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The culmination of the Euroleague Basketball Adidas Next Generation Tournament came in Belgrade with U18 Lietuvos Rytas Vilnius defeating U18 Stellazzurra Rome 76-71 to capture the 2018 continental title. It was the second time that Lietuvos Rytas claimed the elite youth club competition following its 2012 crown. And the thrilling championship game wrapped up a season filled with highlights.

Deividas Sirvydis doubled up on MVP trophies by taking top player honors at the ANGT Finals with a masterful showing in Belgrade following his MVP performance at ANGT Kaunas. He etched his name into the annals of Lietuvos Rytas history with 18 points in the championship game while Marek Blazevic collected 20 points and 11 rebounds. Luca Conti, Dalph Adem Panopio and Paul Eboua combined for 57 points for Stellazzurra, but they were not enough.

Lietuvos Rytas joined U18 Zalgiris Kaunas, U18 FMP Belgrade and U18 CFBB Paris with two ANGT titles; they trail only U18 CSKA Moscow and its record three trophies.

### Joventut gets back on top in L’Hospitalet

The 16th edition of the ANGT tipped off in the Barcelona suburb of L’Hospitalet, where U18 Seguros Divinas Joventut Badalona knocked off U18 Barcelona Lassa for its first qualifying crown since winning both the L’Hospitalet tournament and its sole ANGT continental crown in 2013. Luka Samanic was masterful for Barcelona in taking the MVP title despite losing the final and Joventut’s Joel Parra joined him on the All-Tournament Team. L’Hospitalet saw the emergence of Joventut’s Latvian point guard Arturs Zagars and the debut of the 14-year-old Eleftherios Mantzoukas for competition newcomer U18 Promitheas Patras.

### Down goes Zalgiris: Lietuvos Rytas take Kaunas title
History was made in the second qualifying tournament as U18 Zalgiris Kaunas lost for the first time at Zalgirio Arena as host of ANGT Kaunas. Stellazzurra was the team to take down Zalgiris - and end its 22-game winning streak dating back to 2012 - to reach the Kaunas final, where Lietuvos Rytas prevailed to book its first ticket to the ANGT Finals since 2016.

### Madrid wins the first-ever ANGT Munich
The ANGT made its first stop in Munich in February with U18 Real Madrid being a rude guest in taking its fifth straight qualifying tournament title by knocking off host U18 FC Bayern Munich in the final. Madrid, which was paced by Munich MVP Mario Nakic, now has a 23-game winning streak in qualifiers dating back to its loss in the 2013 ANGT L’Hospitalet final.

### Akay collects fifth-ever triple-double
ANGT Munich also saw Mert Akay of U18 Darussafaka Istanbul collect 20 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists against U18 Brose Bamberg for just the fifth triple-double in ANGT history - joining Dario Saric in 2011, Damien Inglis in 2013, August Haas in 2015 and Amar Gegic in 2016.

### Zvezda extends streak to eight straight Belgrade crowns
U18 Crvena Zvezda mts Belgrade proved it is still the dominant force at ANGT Belgrade by winning the tournament as hosts for an eighth straight time. Zoran Paunovic was MVP as Zvezda knocked off city rival U18 Partizan Belgrade in the final to extend its Belgrade winning streak to 35 games going back to 2011.

### Lietuvos Rytas too much for Stellazzurra
The ANGT Finals belonged to Lietuvos Rytas, which survived a tough battle against Real Madrid to reach the championship game. Stellazzurra received a wild card to the finals and showed it was deserving by winning three straight games, including tough games against Zvezda and Joventut. The Italian team was appearing in its second ANGT Finals, but did not win a game in its first trip in 2015. Stellazzurra’s only loss in Belgrade came at the hands of Lietuvos Rytas in the championship game.

### Scorers going wild
The 2017-18 ANGT season saw a number of near records including four of the top five all-time scoring outputs. Morgan Stilma of U18 Unicaja Malaga scored 42 points against U18 Virtus Bologna - ranking him second in the history of the competition, just 1point behind Dragan Bender’s 43 points for U18 Maccabi Teddy Tel Aviv in December 2014. Mustafa Kurtuldum of U18 Anadolu Efes Istanbul hit for 41 points against U18 Spars Ziraat Bank Sarajevo and Nikos Arsenopoulos from U18 Olympiacos Piraeus nailed 41 points versus U18 Brose Bamberg to tie for the third-most all-time. Brose’s Henri Drell poured in 40 points against Bayern Munich to pull even with two others for fifth most.

### Other near records
The season also saw other near record-breaking performances. U18 Virtus Bologna big man Gora Camara pulled down 23 rebounds vs U18 Torrons Vicens L’Hospitalet, just 1 rebound off the record shared by Marko Pecarski and Jonas Valanciunas. Dalph Adem Panopio of Stellazzurra and Joventut’s Didac Cuevas both dished out 13 assists at the ANGT Finals, which was 3 assists behind the record of 16 set by Marius Grigonis in 2012 and matched by Arnas Velicka in 2016. Dino Bistrovic of U18 Cibona Zagreb and Luka Samanic of Barcelona both made 16 free throws in a game, which was 1 off the all-time mark by Luigi Datome with U18 Montepaschi Siena in 2005.

ANGT season in review 

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Fabrizio Pugliatti may only be 17 years old, but the U18 Stellazzurra Rome guard hopes to be an inspiration for younger players in his homeland, Venezuela. 

Stellazzurra's Venezuela talent Pugliatti thrilled to be 'home' in Italy

He is thrilled to be taking the first step toward doing that in his other homeland of Italy.

Pugliatti helped Stellazzurra reach the first-place game at the Euroleague Basketball Adidas Next Generation Tournament Istanbul, which ultimately resulted in the club getting one of the invitations to the ANGT Finals in Valencia from June 3-6.

"We did a great job in Istanbul. It was a shame we couldn't win the tournament," said Pugliatti, who turned 17 in February and averaged 5.8 points, 4.5 rebounds, a team-high 3.3 assists and 1.0 steals in his first ANGT event. "The ANGT is the biggest stage in Europe. For me, it was a huge step forward. I love to compete and compare myself to other players from all around the world."

Stellazzurra will be appearing at the ANGT Finals for the third time after 2015 and 2018 - the latter of which saw the team reached the ANGT Championship Game. Pugliatti said he cannot wait for the event: "It is another great opportunity for us. We are getting prepared to face this new challenge. We are ready to go to Valencia with all the desire to do our best."

"The ANGT is the biggest stage in Europe. For me, it was a huge step forward."

That desire stems from playing basketball early in the northern Venezuelan city of Valencia, where he battled on the local courts as the youngest of four brothers - the oldest of whom played professionally briefly in Venezuela and Panama.

"When I was a kid, I tried every time to take some inspiration from my older brothers," Pugliatti said. "My challenge was to beat them and get better. My brothers gave me a lot of advice and taught me how to play in a mature way."

Pugliatti said he grew up watching a lot of basketball – both NBA and EuroLeague. His childhood idol was Greivis Vasquez, one of the few Venezuelans to reach the NBA. Pugliatti currently enjoys watching Wade Baldwin IV of FC Bayern Munich and he thinks his own game is similar to Chris Paul in terms of his basketball IQ and passing abilities.

His game was noticed by Venezuelan youth basketball leaders and he was selected to play at the FIBA U14 South American Championship in 2017 when he was still a year younger than most of the players. The event was played in Venezuela and Pugliatti helped the hosts reach the final, where they lost to Brazil.

"It was an event that was streamed and followed a lot in South America. My coach gave me great confidence despite being such a young kid as I was at the time. That opportunity boosted my passion for basketball," said Pugliatti, who had already made a name for himself as the U13 national MVP.

That exposure led to a watershed 2018 for Pugliatti, who received an offer from Stellazzurra to come to Europe and develop his game in Italy. He was just 14 years old when he came to Rome.

"It was very tough at the beginning: a long-distance family-son connection is always very hard. After a few weeks, I got used to it and now Stella is my second family," Pugliatti said. "Stella is a big family. Most players come from different parts of the world. Hence it is easier to get involved with each player living here."

Coming to Italy was actually a bit of coming home for Pugliatti, whose grandparents on his father’s side both migrated from Sicily to Venezuela after World War II. His father was born in Venezuela and returned to Italy for his middle and elementary school years in Sicily before moving back to Venezuela, where he met Pugliatti’s Venezuelan mother.

"My dad is very proud of me. He is excited about my decision to track his roots here in Italy. I message and call him every time I can," said Pugliatti.

There was also a major disappointment for Pugliatti in 2018 when he played at the FIBA U15 South American Championship in Uruguay, where Venezuela lost to Argentina in the third-place game and missed the chance to play at the FIBA U16 Americas Championship 2019.

"Stella is a big family. Most players come from different parts of the world. Hence it is easier to get involved with each player living here."


"That moment hurt me a lot because we did not achieve the goal to play at U16 Americas. We know we could have done a lot more than we did," said Pugliatti, who averaged 2.4 points, 3.6 rebounds and 1.0 assists. "It gave me a lot of energy to work more and improve all the time. I want to be ready if this kind of opportunity shows up in the future."

A major opportunity came on November 22, 2020, when Pugliatti played for Stellazzurra’s team in the SerieA2 second division against Scafati, becoming the youngest Venezuelan to debut in a European professional league.

"It was a blessing and a big responsibility. It was a big moment of joy for me and my family. We are altogether making a huge effort for me to make these things happen, said the youngster, who has averaged 4.2 points, 2.2 rebounds, 1.1 assists and 0.8 steals in 14 minutes per game in the league this season. Pugliatti’s endeavors are being well documented by media back in Venezuela, which is home to an estimated 2 million people of Italian descent.

"Representing my country is an honor for me. It makes me very proud," he said. And Pugliatti is hoping he can become a role model for youngsters back home: "I want to inspire the young generation of players from Venezuela, demonstrating to them just how big the impact can be if a chance in Europe would show up."

Pugliatti is certainly taking advantage of the opportunity while being "back home".

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U18 Zalgiris Kaunas's two Euroleague Basketball Adidas Next Generation Tournament continental titles are the second-best in the competition's history. 

Zalgiris, Lelevicius need no extra motivation

Zalgiris has also finished as the ANGT runner-up a record three times. But the last time the Lithuania powerhouse reached the ANGT Championship Game dates back to 2011. Liutauras Lelevicius is out to change that in Valencia next month.

"We don't need any extra motivation. We are already motivated to compete and fight for every centimeter on the court," said Lelevicius of the team's effort to give Zalgiris a third ANGT trophy and pull even with U18 CSKA Moscow.

And when asked what it will take for Zalgiris to add another title to those won from 2003 and 2007, the 1.99-meter center said: "We will have to play as a team. One player can't win tournaments."

Lelevicius played outstandingly at the ANGT Istanbul, earning a spot on the all-tournament team as Zalgiris lost just once, to eventual winner U18 Real Madrid, and took third place.

"I am quite happy about my performance. There are always things to improve but overall I feel happy about it," said Lelevicius, who averaged 18.8 points, 6.0 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.2 steals for an index rating of 22.8.

The tournament in Istanbul was the second time he was appearing in the ANGT after picking up 2.3 points, 3.3 rebounds and 1.5 assists in the ANGT Kaunas in 2019-20.

"I think that I've improved a lot since then. I understand the game a little bit better. I am better prepared physically and mentally as well," he said.

By the time the ANGT Finals tip off in Valencia in June, Lelevicius will have been very prepared for that moment. He started playing basketball when he was 5 years old. That's when his mother, Indre Leleviciene – who played the game for 13 years, was a candidate for the Lithuanian youth national team, and won a university title in the country's student league – asked her son if he'd like to tag along to one of her training sessions.

"My mom asked me if I would like to attend the practice. And basketball has been my best friend since then," Lelevicius said.

A watershed moment for Lelevicius during his still-young career came at the FIBA U16 European Championship 2019, where Lithuania lost to Greece 67-56 in the Round of 16 and ended up finishing ninth. Especially painful was that Lithuania had beaten that same Greek team twice in the European Youth Olympic Festival tournament in Baku, Azerbaijan earlier in the summer.

"It was the toughest loss in my career so far, because we had really high hopes for that tournament," said Lelevicius, who slumped to just 5 points, 3 rebounds and 1 assist in 27 minutes. "It hurt a lot, but it also motivated me to improve."

Lelevicius says he didn't grow up watching any single player as a role model, which may have helped him form such a versatile game. Another thing that has led to a rise in the ranks has been his inner belief.

"In my opinion, you have to believe in yourself," he said. "I guess you can practice as much as you want, but if do not believe in what you are doing, it will be difficult to succeed."

And self-belief will be necessary, Liutauras Lelevicius knows, if Zalgiris is to end its long ANGT title drought.

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U18 Mega SoccerBet Belgrade has twice reached the Euroleague Basketball Adidas Next Generation Tournament Championship Game. It lost both times. Nikola Djurisic hopes that the third time’s the charm for the Serbian talent superpower at this season’s ANGT Finals in Valencia.

Djurisic hopes third time's the charm for Mega

Mega is back at the finals of the U18 continental showcase for the fifth straight time after taking first place at the ANGT Belgrade in March. Djurisic played a major role in that and he’s ready to help Mega finally get the job done.

“The third time's a charm, I really believe in that,” said Djurisic. “But we must go step by step. It is very specific competition, there is not much time for rest or to correct mistakes. We have to be 100 percent concentrated from the start and really give our best. Every team there will have the same goal as us, and we have to prove on the court that we are better than them.”

"This is the biggest scene for U18 players in Europe."

Djurisic averaged 19.3 points, 6.8 rebounds, 5.3 assists and 2.8 steals as Mega went 4-0 in Belgrade, including coming back from 19 points down to defeat city rival and host city U18 Crvena Zvezda mts Belgrade 80-82 in the first place game. His performance in his second ANGT Belgrade earned Djurisic a spot on the all-tournament team.

“Last season I played a much smaller role, but I used that time to gain as much experience as possible, playing with older guys and learning from the coach and teammates. This is the biggest scene for U18 players in Europe. I talk with other players about everything because experience is very valuable at this kind of competition,” said Djurisic, who turned 17 years old in late February.

Djurisic’s talent is not only visible at the U18 level as the 2.03-meter guard has played this season with Serbian League side OKK Belgrade.

“I was given a big chance to practice and play with the seniors. It wasn't easy at first. I got a lot of minutes. I am grateful that I played with so many big and experienced players on my team and in the league, which helped me to be better from game to game,” said Djurisic, who is averaging 16.3 points, 3.2 rebounds and 3.0 assists in 29 minutes a game for OKK as he adapts to the differences between youth and senior basketball.

“You watch it on TV and in the gyms, you see how much different it is but until you feel it on your body and in the game, you are not aware of it,” explained Djurisic, who even made his ABA League debut on April 11, playing against FMP Belgrade. “That was a fantastic experience, entering the game for the first time. I could not sleep all night after that.”

Djurisic will not only be playing for himself and his current Mega U18 teammates at the ANGT Finals in Valencia but also for many of his teammates from both the Mega and OKK teams.

“We will be highly motivated. [Current Mega professional players Nikola] Miskovic, [Mihailo] Jovicic and [Luka] Cerovina were in that championship game in 2017; [Marko] Kljajevic and [Aleksandar] Langovic were there in 2019, as were some guys I play with at OKK, like [Marko] Brekic, [Luka] Paunovic, [Mihailo] Musikic, [Petar] Kovacevic and [Vladan] Music,” Djurisic said. “I talked with them. Every advice is golden. That moment when you play for the title, I believe it is a fantastic feeling.”

In addition to his teammates and coaches, Djurisic also can look to his family for advice on excelling in sports. His mother Vesna Citakovic was a great for Serbia and Montenegro in volleyball; she helped the country win a silver medal at the 2007 European Championship and bronze at the 2006 World Championship as well as league and/or cup titles in Serbia and Montenegro, Turkey and Italy besides also playing in Israel, Germany, Romania, Poland, Indonesia and Serbia before retiring in 2016. His father Dusko Djurisic played football in Serbia, Switzerland, Belgium, where Nikola was born in 2004, Israel, Germany and Cyprus before he hung up his boots in 2010.

"I am grateful that I played with so many big and experienced players."

“Their advice is always invaluable. They teach me to be dedicated, responsible but most importantly, to love what I am doing,” said Djurisic, who has lived in Italy, Turkey and Germany.

“I had luck because my parents lived in various countries and cultures. For some of them, I was too young to remember much, but it felt good in every one of them,” said Djurisic, who moved to Serbia at age 8 in 2012. “It was hard at the beginning because it's a different style of living and work. I spoke and wrote in English. At first, when I came to Serbia, I thought in English in my head and then translated it to Serbian. But very soon I felt that I was at home.”

After dabbling in football, tennis, karate and judo, Djurisic finally was introduced to basketball when his uncle took him to basketball practice at 6 years old.

“I loved it from the first moment,” he said.

Now, Djurisic is hoping that love can turn into an ANGT title – and make it a third time lucky for Mega.

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