Ignas Brazdeikis

Ignas Brazdeikis
Born	(1999-01-08) January 8, 1999 Kaunas, Lithuania
Nationality	Lithuanian, Canadian
Occupation	Professional basketball player
Known for	Basketball player for Žalgiris, former NBA player

Ignas Brazdeikis (born January 8, 1999) is a professional basketball athlete holding dual Lithuanian and Canadian nationality, currently playing for Žalgiris in both the Lithuanian Basketball League (LKL) and the EuroLeague. During his collegiate tenure, he represented the Michigan Wolverines, where his performance earned him 2019 accolades including Second Team All-Big Ten, Big Ten Freshman of the Year, and a spot on the Big Ten All-Freshman team. In the 2019 NBA draft, Brazdeikis was chosen with the 47th overall pick by the Sacramento Kings but was subsequently traded to the New York Knicks. His NBA career includes stints with the Knicks, Philadelphia 76ers, and Orlando Magic, complemented by participation in the NBA G League for teams such as the Westchester Knicks and Lakeland Magic.

On the international stage, Brazdeikis initially competed for the Canada men's national basketball team at the U-16 and U-17 levels. After turning professional, he acquired Lithuanian citizenship and began representing the Lithuania men's national basketball team. Presently, he plays for Žalgiris in both the LKL and EuroLeague competitions.

Early life

Born in Kaunas, Lithuania, Brazdeikis is the son of Diana and Sigitas "Sigis" Brazdeikis and has an elder sister named Ema. His aunt, Lina Brazdeikytė, is a former professional basketball player who was part of the Lithuanian women's squad that won EuroBasket Women 1997. The family relocated first to Chicago, then to Winnipeg and Etobicoke, where Brazdeikis began playing basketball at six years old before settling in Oakville, Ontario. He has maintained a lifelong allegiance to his hometown club, Žalgiris.

High school career

Brazdeikis attended Holy Trinity CSS in Oakville, marking a milestone as the first ninth-grade student to join its senior basketball team. He later transferred to Orangeville Prep in Mono, where he earned MVP honors from the Ontario Scholastic Basketball Association in both 2017 and 2018. Leading Orangeville to capture the OSBA championship in 2017 during his junior year, he was also named tournament MVP. Interestingly, although right-handed, Brazdeikis shoots left-handed. Throughout high school, he received guidance from former Michigan Wolverine standout Nik Stauskas.

By May 2017, Brazdeikis had not yet decided whether to graduate with the class of 2017 or 2018 and had completed unofficial visits to Michigan, Vanderbilt, and Cincinnati. After receiving scholarship offers from Baylor, Cal, Illinois, Oklahoma, Oregon, Tennessee, and USC—and holding a No. 66 national ranking by 247sports.com—he arranged official visits to Michigan, Vanderbilt, and Florida in September 2017. He verbally committed to Michigan on September 22 and signed a National Letter of Intent on November 10, 2017, joining a recruiting class that featured Colin Castleton, David DeJulius, Brandon Johns, and Adrien Nunez. Following his commitment to Michigan, recruitment efforts for R. J. Barrett were discontinued.

Both Yahoo Sports and ESPN identified Brazdeikis as Michigan’s premier incoming freshman for the class of 2018.

College career

Brazdeikis made his Michigan debut on November 6, 2018, contributing 12 points in a 63–44 victory over Norfolk State, which also marked coach John Beilein's 800th career win. In just his second appearance, he tallied 19 points and seven rebounds against Holy Cross. On November 18, he propelled Michigan to claim the Hall of Fame Tip Off tournament championship by leading the team with 20 points and seven boards in a matchup against Providence. He sustained this level of play with another 20-point, seven-rebound performance versus Chattanooga on November 23. Brazdeikis achieved a personal best of 24 points on November 28, aiding Michigan in defeating #11 North Carolina during the ACC–Big Ten Challenge.

During Michigan’s Big Ten opener on December 1, Brazdeikis added 12 points in a 76–57 triumph over #19 Purdue. His impressive showings against ranked opponents earned him the Big Ten Freshman of the Week accolade on December 3. After scoring 23 points against Northwestern and following up with a 17-point effort against South Carolina, he shared the Big Ten Freshman of the Week honor on December 10. Leading Michigan with 21 points in a December 30 victory over Binghamton secured him his third Big Ten Freshman of the Week recognition that month.

On January 3, Brazdeikis recorded his inaugural career double-double by posting 16 points along with a career-high 11 rebounds in a Big Ten win over Penn State. He was subsequently named to the John Wooden Award Men's Midseason Top 25 watchlist on January 9. By January 13, Michigan had matched its longest winning streak by achieving a school-best start of 17–0. After suffering their first loss to Wisconsin on January 19, Brazdeikis responded with an 18-point, 11-rebound double-double that helped clinch a buzzer-beater victory against Minnesota on January 22. He then led the team with a game-high 20 points in a January 25 win over Indiana, marking Michigan’s largest road victory margin over the Hoosiers. On January 28, Brazdeikis earned his fourth Big Ten Freshman of the Week award, setting a new school record for the honor.

Brazdeikis was included in the Wooden Award Late Season Top 20 Watch List on February 5. That same evening, he set a personal record by making five three-pointers and led Michigan with 23 points during a win over Rutgers as coach Beilein secured the program’s most Big Ten wins. Two days later, on February 7, Brazdeikis was announced as one of the Top 10 finalists for the Karl Malone Award.

By season’s conclusion, Brazdeikis was honored with Second Team All-Big Ten recognition and named Big Ten Freshman of the Year by both coaches and media outlets. Additionally, he was selected for the U.S. Basketball Writers Association All-District V Team and earned placement on the National Association of Basketball Coaches Division I All-District Second Team. Leading Michigan in scoring with an average of 15.7 points per game, he played a key role in guiding the team to the championship game of the 2019 Big Ten Conference men's basketball tournament, where he received All-Tournament Team honors.

In the NCAA tournament Sweet Sixteen matchup on March 28, Brazdeikis led Michigan with a team-high 17 points and achieved a career-best total of 13 rebounds despite falling to #9 Texas Tech. The Wolverines completed their season with an impressive overall record of 30–7, marking their second straight year surpassing thirty wins. In recognition of his performance throughout the year, Brazdeikis received an honorable mention as an Associated Press All-American in 2019. On April 9, he declared for the 2019 NBA draft, joining teammates Jordan Poole and Charles Matthews in announcing their intentions to pursue professional careers.

New York Knicks (2019–2021)

Brazdeikis was selected 47th overall in the 2019 NBA draft by the Sacramento Kings on June 20, 2019, before being promptly traded to the New York Knicks. He joined the Knicks' roster for the 2019 NBA Summer League and secured a multi-year contract on July 6, 2019. During the Summer League in Las Vegas, Brazdeikis became the first player to reach 30 points in a single game. He made his NBA debut on November 3, scoring four points against the Sacramento Kings.

At the outset of the NBA G League season, Brazdeikis was assigned to the Westchester Knicks. On January 11, 2020, he posted 24 points, grabbed 14 rebounds, and dished out five assists in a victory over the Lakeland Magic. He was sent back to Westchester on February 1, 2021.

Philadelphia 76ers (2021)

Brazdeikis was traded to the Philadelphia 76ers on March 25, 2021. He played in one game for the team before being waived on April 8, 2021.

Orlando Magic (2021–2022)

On May 2, 2021, Brazdeikis inked a 10-day contract with the Orlando Magic, making his debut the following day by scoring a then career-best 14 points in a win against the Detroit Pistons. The Magic extended his contract for the remainder of the 2020–21 season on May 12. Two days later, he surpassed his previous best with a new career-high of 21 points in a loss to the Philadelphia 76ers. On August 12, 2021, Brazdeikis agreed to a two-way deal with Orlando. He reached a season-high of 20 points on April 5, 2022, while also contributing six rebounds and two assists during a victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Žalgiris (2022–2023)

Brazdeikis returned to Lithuania on July 24, 2022, signing a two-year (1+1) contract with Žalgiris, competing in both the LKL and EuroLeague. In his initial season, he played a key role in helping Žalgiris secure the LKL championship by winning a tightly contested series against Rytas with a 3–2 outcome. Although he opted to continue for a second year, after participating in just one game there were reports suggesting a potential buyout.

Olympiacos (2023–2024)

On September 24, 2023, Brazdeikis committed to a three-year contract with Olympiacos, following Žalgiris' agreement to accept a €500,000 buyout.

Žalgiris (2024–present)

Brazdeikis rejoined Žalgiris on July 24, 2024, signing a two-year contract.

National team career

At the 2015 FIBA Americas Under-16 Championship, Brazdeikis secured a silver medal representing Team Canada while averaging 9.2 points and 7.2 rebounds per game. He also competed at the 2016 FIBA Under-17 World Championship, posting averages of 14.7 points and 6.9 rebounds. In April 2018, he took part in the Nike Hoop Summit, contributing nine points, four rebounds, and three assists over twelve minutes as part of the World team’s victory.

Although Brazdeikis represented Canada at youth levels, he expressed strong intentions to join the Lithuania men's national basketball team. In January 2020, he applied for reinstatement of his Lithuanian citizenship and received approval on May 5, 2021. Amendments in Lithuanian legislation allowed him to maintain his Canadian citizenship concurrently. He made his debut for Lithuania on June 22, 2022, during a friendly match against Latvia.

Regular season

|- | style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"|New York | 9 || 0 || 5.9 || .273 || .111 || .800 || 0.6 || 0.4 || 0.0 || 0.1 || 1.9 |- | style="text-align:left;" rowspan="3"| | style="text-align:left;"|New York | 4 || 0 || 1.8 || .000 || || 1.000 || 0.5 || 0.3 || 0.0 || 0.0 || 0.5 |- | style="text-align:left;"|Philadelphia | 1 || 0 || 8.0 || .000 || .000 || || 2.0 || 0.0 || 0.0 || 0.0 || 0.0 |- | style="text-align:left;"|Orlando | 8 || 0 || 29.3 || .443 || .407 || .667 || 5.1 || 2.0 || 0.5 || 0.4 || 11.1 |- | style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"|Orlando | 42 || 1 || 12.8 || .431 || .310 || .656 || 1.7 || 0.9 || 0.2 || 0.1 || 5.0 |- class="sortbottom" | style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"|Career | 64 || 1 || 13.1 || .416 || .315 || .686 || 1.9 || 0.9 || 0.2 || 0.1 || 5.0

EuroLeague

|- | style="text-align:left;"| 2022–23 | style="text-align:left;" | Žalgiris | 35 || 28 || 22.4 || .440 || .313|| .805|| 2.9|| 1.3|| 0.4|| 0.1|| 11.6|| 8.8 |- | style="text-align:left;"| 2023–24 | style="text-align:left;" | Olympiacos | 27||5||10.9||.337|| .226|| .741||1.7||0.6||0.2|| 0.1||3.6||2.4 |- | style="text-align:left;"| 2024–25 | style="text-align:left;" | Žalgiris |29||18||17.6|| .422|| .240|| .886|| 3.2|| 1.4|| 0.3|| 0.1||8.1||7.5 |- class="sortbottom" | style="text-align:center" colspan="2"|Career |91||51||17.5|| .418|| .273|| .817||2.6||1.1||0.3||0.1||8.1||6.5

College

|- | style="text-align:left;" |2018–19 | style="text-align:left;" |Michigan |37||37||29.6|| .462|| .392|| .773||5.4||0.8||0.7||0.5||14.8

External links

• EuroLeague profile
• Michigan Wolverines biography
• Ignas Brazdeikis – collegiate basketball stats at Sports Reference
• College statistics at ESPN
• College stats at CBS Sports