The EuroLeague is facing a growing concern as an increasingly demanding schedule appears to be taking a toll on player health.Žalgiris Kaunas assistant coach tomas Masiulis recently spoke out about the surge in injuries across the league, a trend impacting team performance and forcing clubs to consider new strategies like proactive player rest, as seen with Bayern Munich [[1]]. With key players sidelined – including Žalgiris’ Dovydas Giedraitis and Nigel williams-Goss – the league is grappling with how to balance competitive intensity with player well-being [[1]].
The demanding schedule faced by EuroLeague basketball teams is contributing to a surge in player injuries, according to Žalgiris Kaunas assistant coach Tomas Masiulis. The intense physical strain is a growing concern for teams across the league, impacting player availability and potentially affecting game outcomes.
Currently, Žalgiris is dealing with injuries to key players. Forward Dovydas Giedraitis will be sidelined for the next several weeks due to a thigh injury sustained in practice, and guard Nigel Williams-Goss remains out with a hamstring strain, preventing him from traveling to Madrid for an upcoming game.
“He’s trying, he tried yesterday, he’ll try today, but he’s definitely not going to Madrid yet, he won’t play, but we’re already waiting for him, there are positive developments,” the coach said regarding Williams-Goss’s recovery.
Masiulis compared the current EuroLeague schedule to that of the NBA, noting that the challenges faced by NBA teams sometimes dwarf those experienced in Europe. “I think there are too many games,” he explained. “Of course, we also have more players now, so we try to calculate minutes, rotate, sometimes other players are not happy when you substitute them, they want to play, but eventually you sit down, you add everything up in your head, what kind of load you get – it’s inhuman. After that, it shows, and we see that there are a lot of injuries.” He added, jokingly, that a recent complaint about the schedule felt less significant after learning about the grueling schedule faced by Steve Kerr’s Golden State Warriors.
As injuries continue to plague EuroLeague teams, Masiulis addressed the strategy employed by Bayern Munich, which recently rested key players – including Andreas Obst and Wenyen Gabriel – to manage fatigue. “Tactics. Everyone is looking for those solutions, everyone wants to get the best out of the situation,” he said. “We’re not doing that yet, but maybe there’s an idea there too.”
— You had a free weekend in Lithuania. Which team did you see in training?
— We watched videos, we saw how we were giving up a lot of easy points, especially to Dubai. But everything needs to be shown on the court.
— We were used to seeing free play from Real, but everything is changing with Sergio Scariolo. What are the main changes you see?
— The coach has definitely changed, and so have many players. There may be less freedom, they play more with shooters, fourth-numbered players – M. Hezonja, T. Lyles are involved. And the guards have changed. The style has changed a bit, but that athleticism, physicality has remained, they want to run fast like a Spanish team, looking for points. F. Campazzo does a good job of getting the whole team going, so they have a lot of weapons.
— F. Campazzo’s numbers are down. Is he still the key player on whom Real’s results depend?
— As far as I’ve observed, he had a harder time getting going at the beginning of the season, but now he’s in his groove, everything goes through him. At the beginning, A. Felizas played point guard more, but now F. Campazzo and T. Maledonas share the point guard position.
— You had difficulties last week with both N. Milutinov and M. Kabengele. What can be learned from these duels when playing against E. Tavares?
— These are slightly different players. E. Tavares isn’t as likely to go under the basket and force his way through, as M. Kabengele and N. Milutinov did. He’s more about defense [providing blocks]. Of course, he definitely has a body, but that’s not his main quality in playing with his back to the basket. Seeing us play against him, but it’s a little different – he’s more about closing off the entire key and how to get him out of there, because scoring from under the basket when he’s standing there isn’t easy. That’s his biggest advantage.
— You mentioned T. Lyles. It seems he’s adapting to EuroLeague the best of all the Real newcomers. What has allowed him to adapt so quickly?
— He plays a lot, but he can definitely score and you can see that he understands European basketball. He has a lot of weapons: he can shoot from distance, play with his back, and run fast break. He has good defenders who find him. He adapted quickly and is an important part of their team.
— For three years, Real was your main rival. How do you remember those “El Clasico” battles and how did you feel about the interest in Spain?
— You could feel it from the fans that those games were more than just games. The best memories, good fights. It was interesting to prepare and interesting to participate. I remember the emotions the most – both on and off the court.
— Real has achieved four of its five wins at home. Does something change in their team’s game when they play at home?
— I think it’s still a new team, a new coach, many players have changed – they need time. They are also looking for their identity. Little by little they are finding it. They are looking for who can play with whom. You can see that there is mutual trust – between the coaches and the players – they are getting used to each other. Now the game is improving and the further on, the better they will play.
— What is the situation with N. Williams-Goss?
— He’s trying, he tried yesterday, he’ll try today, but he’s definitely not going to Madrid yet, he won’t play, but we’re already waiting for him, there are positive developments.
— Many coaches criticize the current basketball schedule, saying that too many games are played and that this leads to many injuries. What is your opinion, as a former player?
— We played twice as few games – you should start with that, because now teams play 90, and some even 100 games in a season. You play almost every three days – that’s probably the biggest [difference], I think. We used to play one or two games a week, now three and we travel everywhere. I think there are too many.
Of course, we also have more players now, so we try to calculate minutes, rotate, sometimes other players are not happy when you substitute them, they want to play, but eventually you sit down, you add everything up in your head, what kind of load you get – it’s inhuman. After that, it shows, and we see that there are a lot of injuries. I also thought I would complain about the schedule, but Steve Kerr wrote that they played 17 games in 29 days or something like that, so it seemed like we were still resting. I’m joking, of course.
— Bayern Munich rested two players during a double-week last week, citing load management as the reason. Is this trend coming to EuroLeague?
— I think everyone is looking for what is better and more useful. Do you have a player at one hundred percent in one game, or do you have him at 60-70% in two games? Maybe that’s what they think. Maybe that player will play longer, but at maximum once. Tactics. Everyone is looking for those solutions, everyone wants to get the best out of the situation. We’re not doing that yet, but maybe there’s an idea there too.
