by Mantas Aliukonis
The head coach of the Lithuanian men’s basketball national team, Rimas Kurtinaitis, never searches for his words. In this exclusive interview, conducted just before the team departed for Tampere, Finland, where Lithuania successfully began its championship, he reflects on his playing career, his path into coaching, and his leadership style. He also shares thoughts on Lithuanian football, his time in Azerbaijan, and his parting with Vilnius “Wolves.”
Work as the engine of strength
Asked whether he had managed to rest after winning the Azerbaijani league title with FC Sabah and beginning preparations with Lithuania’s national team, Kurtinaitis admitted that leisure time is scarce. “There is always both plenty of time and too little—it depends on what you’re doing. This summer was a bit tense because we prepared for the European Championship and had to set out the national team’s plans. Speaking of my favorite activities—I went carp fishing a couple of times; hunting I haven’t done for years now. At the moment my stance is that work comes first, pleasures can wait.”
His athletic appearance has often drawn compliments. He attributes it to his lifestyle: “I think a person’s engine of health and youth is work. Even better if you’re doing work you love. Basketball is my hobby, my love—everything in one. What hurts people most are misfortunes, failures—and at the moment I don’t have too many of those; apparently that’s the secret.”
A sentimental return to Azerbaijan
Although his current post is in Azerbaijan, Kurtinaitis does not see it as a step down from EuroLeague. “I went to Azerbaijan because I feel a sentimental connection. I worked in that country 25 years ago—I spent four years there. I know them as a nation, their joys and hardships. So when I received an offer to return to Baku, I didn’t hesitate long. If a EuroLeague option came up, I’d consider it, but frankly, I don’t worry about not coaching in EuroLeague anymore. Ten years in that competition was enough—months of no sleep, nerves. To tell the truth, it doesn’t really tempt me.”
The coach also recalled his earlier successes there, particularly gold at the Islamic Solidarity Games in 2005. “We managed to beat big basketball countries like Iran, which four years later played at the Beijing Olympics. Nobody predicted gold for us. That achievement is very dear to me. I was also in Mecca and Medina—the very cradle of Islam. The memories are the best, not even speaking about the high results achieved.”
These victories, he said, became lessons he still shares with his players: “Most often the things happen that you least expect. We were sent simply to participate, but we achieved the maximum. I am very happy we brought gold to Azerbaijan.”
Early struggles in coaching
That period also marked the start of his head-coaching career. “Yes, that’s where it began. At that time I even received an offer from Iran’s national team, but the situation there was unstable, so I declined. Maybe I lost an opportunity to establish myself earlier as an Olympic coach, but my career shaped itself gradually—sometimes you lose something somewhere, but you find something elsewhere.”
Kurtinaitis recalled even serving as a playing head coach for Baku Gala between 2002 and 2006. “I didn’t play too much, but I trained together with the players, showing by personal example. I have always liked—and still like—to be active. Sport is part of my life.” Yet the transition was difficult. “I needed two years to grasp certain things. As a player you play, but as a coach you have to manage 12 or 15 different characters and join them into one body. That experience only comes by working as a coach.”
Climbing the coaching ladder
From Azerbaijan, his career moved through clubs such as Perm Ural Great, Sakalai, and Wrocław Śląsk. The challenges were financial as much as sporting. “These were clubs without strong finances. In Perm we had a decent team, but after three months the money ran out. In Sakalai I practically worked out of principle. The club gave me meals, a car, and fuel—I don’t even remember if I received a salary. But I wanted to work.”
The turning point came at Lietuvos Rytas. “That stage was very successful—we won everything we could: the EuroCup, the LKL, the domestic cup, the Baltic Basketball League. That season was golden. Those years laid the foundation for my later career.”
Later came his successful spell with Moscow Khimki, where he won further EuroCup titles. But he does not believe the national team offer came too late. “I think everything in life happens naturally. Some people get things early; I had to prove myself. Maybe we’ll win, maybe we won’t, but we will fight for sure. Our team has built a good atmosphere—we may not have the big names, but we will try to fight for medals.”
Friendship and rivalry
Kurtinaitis also touched on his friendship with coach Tomas Pačėsas, which began during the 1996 Atlanta Olympics. “We’ve known each other a long time. Life brought us together so that when he was coaching in Poland, he invited me to help. We worked successfully.”
Looking back at that semifinal loss to Serbia in Atlanta, he said: “We fought until the last two minutes. I remember Arvydas Sabonis driving under the basket, stepping on Vlade Divac and falling out of bounds. That was a moment of bad luck. Had we reached the final, silver would have been guaranteed. But as they say: ‘Silver—you lose; bronze—you win.’ That bronze medal is very dear to me.”
The rivalry with the Serbs, he added, was always sporting, never personal. “We got along well with them off the court, but on it we fought because we knew what we were fighting for.”
Football connections
Kurtinaitis’ love for football came from his father, a goalkeeper in the Lithuanian championship. “From my earliest days I was taken to hockey, basketball, football. The love for football never disappeared. I don’t miss home games of Sabah, and in Azerbaijan we have a big common sports family—footballers support basketball, basketball players support football.”
On Lithuanian football, his assessment was blunt. “All sports lack money, not just football. I’d love to see Lithuania at a European Championship someday, but that requires work. The crisis at FK Žalgiris is hard to judge from the outside, but clearly such things stain the sport.”
He also played a role in bringing Valdas Dambrauskas to Sabah. “We talked with the president of the club, and I told him we needed this coach. Football has become more interesting with him.”
Coaching schools and professionalism
On the question of Lithuanian coaches abroad, Kurtinaitis noted: “You can’t just bring assistants who are your friends. At the highest level you need real advice. Serbia produces more high-class coaches than we do, but that doesn’t mean we lack quality people—it’s just that not many Lithuanians are ready for EuroLeague-level jobs.”
His own approach has always been based on professionalism. “There’s no point for a head coach to bring acquaintances who won’t be able to advise at the level you’re working. You’ll lose your job just because you brought your acquaintances; you have to look at this work professionally.”
Looking ahead
Finally, asked whether Lithuania could repeat the 2010 World Championship success, he said: “Our team is quite young, but we have Jonas Valančiūnas as our queen bee. We’ve created a good atmosphere and formed a team. We must rely on tough defense, aggressiveness, and fast offense. Maybe we’re not full of stars, but we will compensate with work and aggression.”
He compared his vision to the NBA’s Detroit Pistons of the 1980s: “They didn’t have special stars, but were combative. I see such a model in our team. We will be team-oriented, fast, mean.”
The legendary coach also recalls his work at the turn of the millennium at the Department of Physical Education and Sports, his trip to the 1989 NBA All-Star Weekend in Houston, and which Lithuanian players today most resemble him in his youth. He also reflects on the decades-long FIBA–EuroLeague conflict, the prospects of an NBA-Europe project, and the closure of Wolves, with whom he parted not entirely amicably.
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