Kęstutis Kemzūra facts for kids
Kęstutis Kemzūra, while coaching Lithuania's national team, at EuroBasket 2011
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| Juventus Utena | ||||||||||||||
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| Head coach | ||||||||||||||
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||
| Born | 20 April 1970 Kaunas, Lithuanian SSR, Soviet Union |
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| Nationality | Lithuanian | |||||||||||||
| Listed height | 1.91 m (6 ft 3.20 in) | |||||||||||||
| Listed weight | 91 kg (201 lb) | |||||||||||||
| Career information | ||||||||||||||
| Pro career | 1992–2001 | |||||||||||||
| Coaching career | 2001–present | |||||||||||||
| League | Lithuanian Basketball League | |||||||||||||
| Career history | ||||||||||||||
| As player: | ||||||||||||||
| 1992–1996 | Atletas Kaunas | |||||||||||||
| 1996–1998 | Šilutė | |||||||||||||
| 1998–1999 | Lietuvos rytas Vilnius | |||||||||||||
| 1999–2000 | Kalnapilis Panevėžys / Sema Panevėžys | |||||||||||||
| 2000–2001 | Swans Gmunden | |||||||||||||
| As coach: | ||||||||||||||
| 2001–2002 | Beşiktaş (assistant) | |||||||||||||
| 2002–2004 | Lietuvos rytas Vilnius (assistant) | |||||||||||||
| 2004 | Lietuvos rytas Vilnius | |||||||||||||
| 2004–2005 | Dynamo Saint Petersburg (assistant) | |||||||||||||
| 2005–2006 | Lithuania (assistant) | |||||||||||||
| 2005–2007 | Benetton Treviso (assistant) | |||||||||||||
| 2007–2008 | Khimki | |||||||||||||
| 2008–2009 | Latvia | |||||||||||||
| 2009–2011 | Lokomotiv Kuban | |||||||||||||
| 2009–2012 | Lithuania | |||||||||||||
| 2012 | Asseco Prokom Gdynia | |||||||||||||
| 2013–2015 | ČEZ Nymburk | |||||||||||||
| 2016–2017 | Austria | |||||||||||||
| 2016–2018 | Darüşşafaka (assistant) | |||||||||||||
| 2018–2019 | Olympiacos (assistant) | |||||||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | ||||||||||||||
As head coach:
As assistant coach:
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Medals
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Kęstutis Kemzūra (born April 20, 1970) is a famous Lithuanian basketball coach and former player. He is currently the head coach for Juventus Utena in the Lithuanian Basketball League. When he played, he was a point guard, which is like the team's main ball handler and play-maker. He was about 1.91 meters (6 feet 3 inches) tall.
Contents
Playing Basketball: Kęstutis Kemzūra's Early Career
Kęstutis Kemzūra started his basketball journey as a player with the Lithuanian club Atletas Kaunas in 1992. In his first year, he scored about 6.5 points per game in a European competition called the FIBA Saporta Cup. The next year, he played even better, scoring 12.5 points per game in the same competition.
In 1996, he moved to another Lithuanian team, Šilutė. After that, he joined Lietuvos Rytas Vilnius for the 1998–99 season. There, he even took on a special role as a player-coach, meaning he played and helped coach the team at the same time!
He left Lietuvos Rytas in November 1998 and joined Kalnapilis Panevėžys. He also played in the FIBA Korać Cup with Sema Panevėžys during the 1999–2000 season. His last season as a player was 2000–01, when he played for the Austrian team Swans Gmunden.
Playing for Lithuania's National Team
Kęstutis Kemzūra also played a short time for the senior Lithuanian national team in 1994. He helped Lithuania try to qualify for the EuroBasket 1995 tournament.
Coaching Basketball: Kęstutis Kemzūra's Journey
After he stopped playing basketball, Kęstutis Kemzūra started a new career as a coach.
Starting as an Assistant Coach
In the 2001–02 season, he became an assistant coach for the Turkish club Beşiktaş. The next year, he went back to Lithuania to join Lietuvos Rytas Vilnius. He started there as an assistant coach and later became the main head coach.
For the next three years, he worked as an assistant coach for teams like Dynamo Saint Petersburg in Russia and Benetton Treviso in Italy.
Becoming a Head Coach for Clubs
In 2007, Kemzūra became the head coach of the Russian club Khimki Moscow Region. He later moved on from that role in December 2008.
In December 2009, he signed on to be the head coach of another Russian team, Lokomotiv Kuban Krasnodar. He even helped coach the foreign players in the Russian All-Star Game in 2011. He left the team later that year.
In July 2012, Kemzūra signed a contract to coach the Polish club Asseco Prokom Gdynia, but he left in December 2012. In June 2013, he became the head coach of the Czech club ČEZ Basketball Nymburk.
In December 2016, he became an assistant coach for the Turkish team Darüşşafaka. Then, in July 2018, Kemzūra was named an assistant coach for the Greek club Olympiacos. When the head coach resigned in October 2019, Kemzūra became the temporary head coach.
He led Olympiacos to a big win in his first game as interim head coach. The team then announced he would stay as head coach until the end of the 2019–20 season, but he was later replaced.
More recently, on March 28, 2023, Kemzūra was chosen to be the head coach of a new Lithuanian club called BC Wolves. However, he left the club on January 21, 2024, after they didn't make it to the EuroCup playoffs. Since 2024, he has been coaching Juventus Utena.
Coaching National Teams
Kęstutis Kemzūra has also coached several national basketball teams.
Coaching Lithuania's National Team
Kemzūra was an assistant coach for the senior Lithuanian national team at the EuroBasket 2005 and 2006 FIBA World Championship. On November 5, 2009, he became the head coach of Lithuania.
Under his coaching, Lithuania won the bronze medal at the 2010 FIBA World Championship. He also led the team to a 5th-place finish at the EuroBasket 2011 and an 8th-place finish at the 2012 Summer Olympics. He was replaced as head coach in October 2012. In October 2021, Kemzūra returned to the team as an assistant coach, a role he held until June 2023.
Coaching Latvia's National Team
On December 19, 2008, Kemzūra was appointed as the head coach for Latvia. His team finished 13th at the EuroBasket 2009. After that, he decided not to continue with Latvia and instead became the head coach for Lithuania's national team.
Coaching Austria's National Team
On January 29, 2016, Kemzūra became the head coach of Austria. He coached them during the qualification games for EuroBasket 2017. Even though Austria didn't qualify, his contract was extended at the end of that year.
Awards and Achievements
Kęstutis Kemzūra has achieved many great things in his coaching career:
As Head Coach
- Russian Cup winner (2008)
- 2× Czech League champion (2014, 2015)
- Czech Cup winner (2014)
- Bronze medal at the 2010 FIBA World Championship in Turkey
As Assistant Coach
- EuroCup champion (2018)
- FIBA Europe League champion (2005)
- Italian League champion (2006)
See also
In Spanish: Kęstutis Kemzūra para niños
