The Miami Heat are very much looking forward to the 2025-2026 NBA season. The franchise is looking to build off its first-round playoff exit from this past year and instead build back up to the dynasty it once was. It’s always a climb, but things are looking up.
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One man who should be able to help them do that is rookie Kasparas Jakucionis. The 19-year-old Lithuanian spoke about his upcoming NBA debut during a recent interview on The OGs. Kasparas began his interview by detailing his days growing up, and how he chose to watch basketball in Europe rather than in the States. Why? Because that’s all they had in Lithuania.
“Growing up, I watched more European basketball just because of time difference. We didn’t have channels to watch NBA. They wouldn’t like translate it, you know? Maybe some YouTube highlights you would watch, but that’s the only thing that was possible. When I was older, I started to watch more NBA,” stated the University of Illinois alum.
The show hosts, Heat legends Mike Miller and Udonis Haslem, asked Kasparas who the first player was that he followed to the NBA. His answer, unsurprisingly, is the current face of the league and icon for Europeans everywhere, Luka Doncic.
“When Luka was in Madrid, I watched him a lot. Now that he’s transitioned, when he got drafted, I watch him the most,” stated Kasparas. The group then geeked out over The Don’s incredible talents on the hardwood. “The playmaking, watching shot creation, all that kind of stuff,” added Jakucionis.
It’s always a treat to see a young player speak about the person who inspired them to pursue professional basketball as their main goal. Jakucionis not only idolized Luka, but he also nearly followed in his footsteps. Instead of Madrid, he went to play basketball in Barcelona.
“When I was in Barcelona. I got a chance to work with all the professional guys, and almost all of them were in the NBA at some point,” he stated before explaining why he eventually chose to attend college in the U.S. rather than continue the grind overseas.
“I wanted to be more into U.S. culture. Closer to the NBA. The competition in college is pretty good because everybody is hungry,” he stated. Choosing to play in the NCAA is different from what Doncic did, but Kasparas seemed quite pleased with the decision.
And looking back at it, he didn’t necessarily make a bad decision. He was a standout at Illinois, averaging 15.2 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 4.7 assists per game in the 2024-2025 season. This made him a standout for this year’s draft.
The Heat scooped him up with the 20th overall pick, and he’ll look to make an immediate impact on an offense that stagnated in the postseason. With young talent like Kel’el Ware, whom the Heat have deemed untouchable in trade talks, and experienced vets like Tyler Herro and Bam Adebayo, the Miami side could be a surprise package in a severely depleted Eastern Conference.
Still, there’s plenty of time for Kasparas. Like No. 1 pick Cooper Flagg, he’s a young boy in a man’s league. He’ll probably need a few games to shake off the nerves, but if he follows Doncic the way he claimed, he’ll adjust to the league quite nicely.
