Andrea Trinchieri replaces Kazys Maksvytis as Zalgiris head coach / News - Basketnews.com

Andrea Trinchieri's contract runs until the end of the 2024-2025 season.

Credit: BNS, IMAGO-Contrast Credit BNS, IMAGO-Contrast

After Zalgiris Kaunas' sixth consecutive loss in the EuroLeague, changes have been made in the coaching staff.

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Head coach Kazys Maksvytis is leaving the Lithuanian champions by mutual consent. He will be replaced in Kaunas by Andrea Trinchieri, an Italian with considerable EuroLeague experience.

Maksvytis, the coach of the Lithuania men's national basketball team, has been the head coach of Zalgiris since April 2022.

"The decision was not an easy one, but both sides came to it. Although a couple of weeks ago we showed public confidence in the coach, lately the team's play and results have not satisfied the coaching staff, the club's management, or the team's fans," commented Zalgiris Kaunas Director Paulius Jankunas.

"Maksvytis joined Zalgiris at a difficult time, and last season helped the team get back to where we want to be. We are grateful to him for his work here. Anyway, basketball is always going through different processes, so it's time for a change, which should move the team forward. The new coach is coming to Zalgirio Arena with his eyes alight, and we hope that with his arrival, we can stabilize the situation."

The new Zalgiris manager, Trinchieri, has been coaching Bayern Munich for the last three years. He has also coached Partizan Belgrade, Brose Baskets Bamberg, Unics Kazan, several Italian clubs, and the Greece men's national basketball team.

He has worked in the EuroLeague for eight seasons, and in 2021 and 2022, Bayern Munich qualified for the EuroLeague play-offs and once came close to reaching the Final Four under his guidance.

In 2014, the Italian was voted the best coach in the European Cup and has won titles in every country he has worked in.

Trinchieri's contract runs until the end of the 2024-2025 season.

The 55-year-old will arrive in Kaunas in the near future, but tonight's King Mindaugas Cup game against Wolves Vilnius will be led by Tautvydas Sabonis, assisted by Gintaras Krapikas and Evaldas Berzininkaitis.

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