Dairis Bertāns
| No. 9 – Bilbao Basket | |||||||||||||
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| Position | Guard | ||||||||||||
| League |
Liga ACB Eurocup | ||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||
| Born |
September 9, 1989 Valmiera, Latvia | ||||||||||||
| Nationality | Latvian | ||||||||||||
| Listed height | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | ||||||||||||
| Listed weight | 200 lb (91 kg) | ||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||
| Playing career | 2004–present | ||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||
| 2004–2006 | Valmiera | ||||||||||||
| 2006–2009 | ASK Rīga | ||||||||||||
| 2009–2010 | Ventspils | ||||||||||||
| 2010–2013 | VEF Rīga | ||||||||||||
| 2013–present | Bilbao Basket | ||||||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||||
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Medals
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Dairis Bertāns (born September 9, 1989)[1] is a Latvian professional basketball player who currently plays for Bilbao Basket of the Liga ACB. He also plays for the Latvia national basketball team.[1]
Professional career
From 2004 to 2006, Bertāns played for Valmiera and its junior team. In 2006, he signed with ASK Rīga. In 2006–07, he played for ASK Rīga's junior team, and in 2007–08, made his debut for the senior squad.
In March 2009, he left ASK Rīga following the club's financial difficulties and signed a two-year deal with Ventspils.[2]
In August 2010, he signed a two-year deal with VEF Rīga.[3] VEF Rīga's coach at the time, Rimas Kurtinaitis, saw potential in Bertāns as a point guard despite primarily being a shooting guard. So, during the 2010–11 season, Bertāns developed point guard skills to a different level, and was one of the key factors in VEF Rīga's first championship.
In July 2012, he re-signed with VEF Rīga on a three-year deal.[4]
In June 2013, he parted ways with VEF Rīga and signed a three-year deal with Bilbao Basket of the Liga ACB.[5] In one of his first games with Bilbao he scored 19 points in a preseason game against Philadelphia 76ers.[6]
In July 2014, Bertāns joined the Boston Celtics for the 2014 NBA Summer League.[7]
International career
Bertāns has been member of the Latvian U-16, U-18 and U-20 national teams, as well as the senior national team. He led Latvia to a bronze medal at the 2007 U18 European Championship in Madrid, Spain. He has since represented the Latvia national team at the 2010 FIBA World Championship and the EuroBasket 2011.[8] He was also the leading scorer (14.1ppg) for Latvia in 2012, when he helped Latvia earn a spot in EuroBasket 2013.
Bertāns was a key player for Latvia during EuroBasket 2013 where he averaged 10.9 ppg. In his best game of the tournament Dairis had a 28-point performance against eventual champs France.[9]
Personal
Due to his explosive style of play Dairis has earned nickname Latvian Rocket.
Bertāns' brother, Dāvis, is also a professional basketball player. Their father, Dainis, was a professional basketball player and is currently a youth coach. Their mother is a sports teacher and a former high level rower.
References
- 1 2 Noviks, Māris (August 29, 2010). "Cīņa par ceturto vietu un papildu kvalifikāciju". SportaCentrs.com (in Latvian). Retrieved August 29, 2010.
- ↑ Hot day in Latvia
- ↑ VEF Riga announce Valters, Grafs and Bertans
- ↑ VEF Riga keeps Dairis Bertans
- ↑ Bilbao signs Dairis Bertans to a three-year deal
- ↑ 76ers 106, Bilbao Basket 104
- ↑ "Celtics Announce 2014 Orlando Summer League Roster". NBA.com. July 1, 2014. Retrieved July 1, 2014.
- ↑ "Dairis Bertans (Latvia)". FIBA.com. Retrieved September 1, 2011.
- ↑ France - Latvia
External links
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