Ąžuolas Tubelis
![]() Tubelis with Arizona in 2021 | |
No. 10 – Rytas Vilnius | |
---|---|
Position | Power forward / Center |
League | LKL |
Personal information | |
Born | Vilnius, Lithuania | 22 March 2002
Listed height | 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) |
Listed weight | 235 lb (107 kg) |
Career information | |
College | Arizona (2020–2023) |
NBA draft | 2023: undrafted |
Playing career | 2018–present |
Career history | |
2018–2020 | Rytas Vilnius |
2018–2020 | →Perlas |
2023–present | Rytas Vilnius |
2023–2024 | →Neptūnas Klaipėda |
Career highlights and awards | |
| |
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com | |
Ąžuolas Tubelis (born 22 March 2002) is a Lithuanian professional basketball player for Rytas Vilnius of the Lithuanian Basketball League (LKL), on loan from Rytas Vilnius. He played college basketball for the Arizona Wildcats of the Pac-12 Conference. A power forward, he was named first-team All-Pac-12 twice with the Wildcats.
Youth career
[edit]In May 2018, Tubelis won the 2017–18 Adidas Next Generation Tournament (ANGT) with the U18 team of Lietuvos rytas Vilnius.[1] On 18 October 2018, he signed a long-term contract with Rytas Vilnius.[2] In the 2018–19 season, he played for Perlas in the National Basketball League (NKL), the second-tier league of Lithuania. He averaged 9.6 points, 3.7 rebounds and 1.4 steals per game.[3] In February 2019, Tubelis played for Rytas' U18 team at ANGT Kaunas, where he was named to the all-tournament team after averaging 15.3 points, 6.5 rebounds, three steals and 2.8 blocks per game.[4] In June 2019, Tubelis took part in the Basketball Without Borders Europe Camp in Riga.[5]
In 2019–20, Tubelis split playing time between Perlas and Rytas' senior team, emerging as one of the top players in the NKL.[6] He debuted for the senior team in a 6 October 2019 win over Juventus Utena.[3] Tubelis scored an LKL season-high 11 points in a victory over Šiauliai on 1 February 2020.[6] At ANGT Kaunas in February 2020, he averaged 20.5 points and 12.5 rebounds, leading Rytas' U18 team to first place and earning tournament most valuable player honors.[7] Later that month, Tubelis participated in the Basketball Without Borders Global Camp at 2020 NBA All-Star Weekend in Chicago.[8] In 25 NKL games, he averaged 16.4 points, 6.2 rebounds, 1.5 steals and 1.5 blocks per game.[9]
College career
[edit]On 27 May 2020, Tubelis committed to play college basketball for Arizona. He joined the team with his twin brother, Tautvilas.[10] Tubelis was considered a four-star recruit by 247Sports.[11]
On 2 February 2023, Tubelis posted a career-high 40 points and nine rebounds in an 91–76 win over Oregon.[12] As a freshmen, he averaged 12.2 points and 7.1 rebounds per game, and was named to the All-Pac-12 honorable mention and All-Freshman Team.[13] Tubelis was named first-team All-Pac-12 as a sophomore and a junior.[14] He declared for the NBA draft, but was not widely projected to be selected.[15] According to Seth Davis of The Athletic, there were questions on his ability to switch onto smaller players away from the basket.[16] ArizonaSports.com wrote that his slow footspeed could be a concern.[17]
Professional career
[edit]After going undrafted in the 2023 NBA draft, Tubelis joined the Philadelphia 76ers for the NBA Summer League.[18] Afterwards, on 17 July 2023, he signed a two-way contract with the 76ers and their NBA G League affiliate, the Delaware Blue Coats.[19] However, he was waived by the 76ers on 25 October.[20]
On 8 November, he re-signed with Rytas Vilnius and then was loaned to Neptūnas Klaipėda of the Lithuanian Basketball League (LKL).[21] On 14 May 2024, Tubelis received the LKL Most Valuable Player Award after averaging 17.5 points, 7 rebounds and 1.1 blocks during the regular season.[22] He led Neptūnas to an eight-game winning streak which helped the team secure a playoff spot.
National team career
[edit]Tubelis played for Lithuania at the 2016 FIBA U16 European Championship in Radom, where he averaged 4.9 points and 4.3 rebounds per game.[23] At the 2018 FIBA U16 European Championship in Novi Sad, he averaged 14.3 points, 10.4 rebounds and 2.7 blocks per game.[24] Tubelis represented Lithuania at the 2019 FIBA U18 European Championship in Volos, averaging 14.9 points, 12.6 rebounds and 3.4 blocks per game.[25]
Career statistics
[edit]GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game |
FG% | Field goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field goal percentage | FT% | Free throw percentage |
RPG | Rebounds per game | APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game |
BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game | Bold | Career high |
College
[edit]Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2020–21 | Arizona | 26 | 20 | 26.7 | .498 | .310 | .692 | 7.1 | 1.2 | .6 | .6 | 12.2 |
2021–22 | Arizona | 36 | 35 | 24.6 | .540 | .263 | .669 | 6.2 | 2.3 | 1.1 | .7 | 13.9 |
2022–23 | Arizona | 35 | 34 | 30.1 | .570 | .313 | .764 | 9.1 | 2.0 | 1.1 | .7 | 19.8 |
Career | 97 | 89 | 27.1 | .544 | .295 | .714 | 7.5 | 1.9 | 1.0 | .7 | 15.6 |
Personal life
[edit]Tubelis has a twin brother, Tautvilas, who also currently plays basketball for the Arizona Wildcats and has represented Lithuania at the international level.[10] Tubelis' first name, Ąžuolas, translates to oak in Lithuanian and was given to him by his grandfather.[26]
References
[edit]- ^ Hein, David (11 February 2020). "Tubelis rises to challenge against archenemy Zalgiris". Adidas Next Generation Tournament. Retrieved 28 May 2020.
- ^ ""Rytas" pasirašė ilgalaikę sutartį su jaunučių rinktinės lyderiu Tubeliu" (in Lithuanian). Delfi. 18 October 2018. Retrieved 27 May 2020.
- ^ a b "Tubelis: "Žaisti "Ryte" man reiškia labai daug"" (in Lithuanian). Basketnews. 17 October 2019. Retrieved 27 May 2020.
- ^ "Kriisa named MVP of ANGT Kaunas". Adidas Next Generation Tournament. 10 February 2019. Retrieved 28 May 2020.
- ^ "U16 European MVP Prkacin, Marciulionis and talented Germans headline BWB Europe Camp". FIBA. 6 June 2019. Retrieved 27 May 2020.
- ^ a b Vanagas, Tomas (5 February 2020). "NKL jaunųjų krepšininkų reitingas: viršūnę pasiekė mitybą pakeitęs 20-metis" (in Lithuanian). Basketnews. Retrieved 28 May 2020.
- ^ Hein, David (9 February 2020). "Tubelis takes home MVP as Rytas takes first place". Adidas Next Generation Tournament. Retrieved 27 May 2020.
- ^ Givony, Jonathan; Schmitz, Mike (19 February 2020). "NBA draft stock watch: Standouts from the Basketball Without Borders". ESPN. Retrieved 28 May 2020.
- ^ "Ąžuolas Tubelis / Žaidėjai - NKL". nklyga.lt (in Lithuanian). Retrieved 28 May 2020.
- ^ a b Givony, Jonathan (27 May 2020). "Arizona lands international basketball prospect Azuolas Tubelis, twin brother". ESPN.com. Retrieved 28 May 2020.
- ^ Daniels, Evan (27 May 2020). "Arizona lands international star Azuolas Tubelis". 247Sports. Retrieved 29 May 2020.
- ^ Pascoe, Bruce (2 February 2023). "Tubelis scores 40 in No. 5 Arizona's 91-76 rout of Oregon". ESPN. Retrieved 30 November 2021.
- ^ Pedersen, Brian J. (5 October 2021). "Tommy Lloyd looking for Azuolas Tubelis to 'become dominant' after productive freshman year". Arizona Desert Swarm. Retrieved 30 November 2021.
- ^ "2021-22 Pac-12 Men's Basketball All-Conference honors and Annual Performance Awards, presented by Nextiva" (Press release). Pac-12 Conference. 8 March 2022. Retrieved 8 March 2022.
- ^ Pascoe, Bruce (1 June 2023). "Officially done at UA, Azuolas Tubelis has chance to slide into NBA Draft". Arizona Daily Star. Retrieved 23 June 2023.
- ^ Davis, Seth (13 June 2023). "Eight college star sleepers for the 2023 NBA Draft: Sanogo, Strawther, Bailey and more". The Athletic. Retrieved 23 June 2023.
- ^ Zimmerman, Kevin (23 June 2023). "Report: Wildcats' Azuolas Tubelis not taken in NBA Draft, signs with 76ers". ArizonaSports.com. Retrieved 3 July 2023.
- ^ "Roster and Schedules Announced for Salt Lake City Summer League and NBA 2K24 Summer League 2023 in Las Vegas" (Press release). Philadelphia 76ers. 30 June 2023. Retrieved 3 July 2023.
- ^ "Ąžuolas Tubelis Signed to Two-Way Contract". NBA.com. 17 July 2023. Retrieved 17 July 2023.
- ^ "Ricky Council IV Signed to Two-Way Contract". NBA.com. 25 October 2023. Retrieved 26 October 2023.
- ^ "„Rytas" pasirašė sutartį su Ą. Tubeliu ir pristatė naują rėmėją". RytasVilnius.lt (in Lithuanian). 8 November 2023. Retrieved 9 November 2023.
- ^ "Su trenksmu į Lietuvą grįžęs Ą. Tubelis – reguliariojo sezono MVP". lkl.lt (in Lithuanian). 14 May 2024. Retrieved 10 June 2024.
- ^ Hein, David (16 January 2018). "Who to watch at the Adidas Next Generation Tournament Kaunas". heinnews. Retrieved 29 May 2020.
- ^ "Azuolas Tubelis (LTU)'s profile - FIBA U16 European Championship 2018". FIBA. Retrieved 29 May 2020.
- ^ Hein, David (5 February 2020). "ANGT Kaunas: Players to Watch". Adidas Next Generation Tournament. Retrieved 29 May 2020.
- ^ Hein, David (24 April 2019). "Tubelis is solid as oak for Rytas". Adidas Next Generation Tournament. Retrieved 28 May 2020.
External links
[edit]- 2002 births
- Living people
- All-American college men's basketball players
- Arizona Wildcats men's basketball players
- Basketball players from Vilnius
- BC Neptūnas players
- BC Rytas players
- Lithuanian expatriate basketball people in the United States
- Lithuanian men's basketball players
- Lithuanian twins
- Power forwards