Arnas Butkevicius names the toughest players to guard in EuroLeague / News - Basketnews.com

Butkevicius mentioned Markus Howard, Dwayne Bacon, and Will Clyburn as the toughest players he had to guard this season in the EuroLeague.

Credit: D.Lukšta Credit D.Lukšta

Arnas Butkevicius is not a flashy guy. In Zalgiris Kaunas, he's usually tasked with doing the dirty work on the basketball court - getting the rebound, making the hustle play, and giving his all on defense.

Arnas Butkevičius

MIN:21.13PTS:5.23 (57.14%)REB:3.46As:1.23ST:1.08BL:0.31TO:1.27GM:26ProfileEuroLeague2022/2023

Oftentimes, the Lithuanian forward is asked to defend the biggest offensive threats of the opposing teams. He's now revealed the players that are hardest to guard, at least for him.

"I've probably had the most work with Markus Howard. He's not an easy guy [to guard] for me. There are a lot of off-ball screens being set for him and he's very quick with the ball. It requires a lot of stamina, and these types of players are not comfortable for me," he told Jonas Leksas from Basketnews.lt.

"Dwayne Bacon as well," Butkevicius continued. "He has a huge body but he's agile enough and knows how to use his strength. He left an impression on me. Will Clyburn... Players of the highest caliber and I won't surprise anyone [by naming them] but it wasn't easy at all, and I had to get used to it."

Zalgiris goes to the EuroLeague double round this week to play against two teams from the bottom third of the standings. First, an away game against ALBA Berlin and then a battle at home versus LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne.

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