The second team from the Baltics comes Latvia, more precisely from its capital: Riga. The team of Karlis Muiznieks qualified to the Final Four phase by eliminating KK Zagreb in the round of the last eight.
The Barons are led by veteran US born power forward Demetrius Alexander who has already played nearly everywhere in the world (Japan, Korea, Spain, Israel, USA,…). He is leading the team in scoring and rebounding and still uses his nice athletic gifts to dominate in the paint.
Alexander is supported especially by the Latvian guard Armands Skele. Skele was once considered to be among the best young players in Europe at the SG position but he has not yet lived up to his potential that some may have seen in him at the age of 18. However, he remains heavily popular in Latvia and he even went for a Nike Ad in his homecountry.
The Latvians can also be considered as favorites against Tartu Rock as they have beat them twice in the Baltic League this season. And the recent addition of JP “I’m not leaving Rytas” Batista gives them a depth on the bench that the Estonians only can dream of. So the fans in Cyprus will probably see some nice plays by the Barons when they qualify for the Final.
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