Three Young Basketball Players Debut for Latvia in Friendly Against Estonia

The Latvian men's national basketball team suffered a 78:88 defeat against Estonia in a friendly match held in Tallinn on Friday, June 27. The game marked the debut of three young players: Kristians Feierbergs (23), Ričards Aizpurs (17), and Gunārs Grīnvalds (18).

Captain Rihards Lomažs led Latvia with 19 points, while Mārtiņš Laksa added 16, and Artūrs Strautiņš contributed 13 points and seven rebounds. Mārcis Šteinbergs, Rolands Šmits, and Artūrs Žagars did not play.

Among the debutants, Aizpurs played the most minutes (17), scoring eight points (4/4 on two-pointers, 0/4 on three-pointers), grabbing four rebounds, and committing one turnover with a plus-minus of -7. Feierbergs, in seven minutes, failed to score but secured five rebounds and posted a +9 plus-minus. Grīnvalds was on the court for only 48 seconds.

Head coach Jānis Gailītis praised Aizpurs' integration into the team. Aizpurs will represent Texas Christian University in NCAA Division I next season. Grīnvalds will also play in NCAA Division I for UCLA, having previously been part of Real Madrid's system. Feierbergs recently moved from Liepāja to Rīgas zeļļi.

Latvia will face Georgia on Sunday, June 28, at 19:00 in the Xiaomi Arena. Upcoming FIBA World Cup qualifiers include an away game against the Netherlands on July 3 and a home match against Austria on July 6.