Robertas Javtokas

Infobox Euroleague Player

---

caption = #25 Javtokas in a Dynamo jersey.
name = Robertas Javtokas
nickname =
position = Center
height_ft = 6
height_in = 11
weight_lb = 250
league = ULEB Cup,
Russian League
team = Dynamo Moscow
number = 25
nationality = Lithuanian
birth_date = birth date and age|1980|3|20
birth_place = Šiauliai, Lithuanian SSR, Soviet Union
college = Arizona
draft = 56st overall
draft_team = San Antonio Spurs
draft_year = 2001
career_start = 1997
former_teams = BC Šiauliai (1997–1999) University of Arizona (1999–2000) BC Lietuvos Rytas (2000–2006) Panathinaikos BC (2006–2007)
awards = Lithuanian League Rookie of the year (2001)
ULEB Cup Finals MVP (2005)

Robertas Javtokas (born March 20, 1980 in Šiauliai) is a Lithuanian professional basketball player. Javtokas is 2.11 m (6'11") in height and weighs 113 kg (250 lbs). He plays the center position and plays for Dynamo Moscow of the Russian League. He has been a member of Lithuanian national team since 2000. In the 2001 NBA Draft he was selected by the San Antonio Spurs with the 56th overall pick.

Player Profile

Javtokas has very good athletic ability, long arms and good coordination. He is a good jumper who has a 40-inch vertical leap [ [http://www.nba.com/draft2001/teams/overview_spurs.html?nav=ArticleList Team Draft Overview-San Antonio Spurs.] ] and can easily dunk in traffic. He still has to work on his technique and to improve his free-throw shooting. He can run the floor and make plays on the perimeter with his good athletic ability, nice size, and good hops. He is a good rebounder and a good defender as well. He once set a world record by dunking on a 12 foot high basketball goal. [ [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kvYgYijGCtY Javtokas dunks on a 12 foot high goal.] ]

Motorcycle Crash

On May 1 2002 while driving his Honda CBR1100XX motorcycle at a speed of around 140 kilometers per hour (87 miles per hour) towards Vilnius, he had a serious accident. Approaching a side road, Javtokas started to pass a van, but the van driver did not see the motorcycle and turned left. There was no chance for Javtokas to stop and he hit the van, losing control but not the bike, which crashed into a car in the opposite lane. Javtokas flew dozens of meters and landed in bushes off the road. He returned to basketball for the 2003-2004 season.

Pro career

Europe

In 2000 Javtokas joined BC Lietuvos Rytas and quickly became the best center in the Lithuanian League. Javtokas, playing alongside with Ramūnas Šiškauskas, Arvydas Macijauskas and Rimantas Kaukenas won the 2002 Lithuanian League Championship and also the North European League Championship. After the motorcycle crash, Javtokas missed the entire 2003 season and came back in 2004. In 2005, he won the ULEB Cup Championship and he was named the ULEB Cup Final MVP.

In 2006, with his help, Rytas made a strong debut in the Euroleague, and also beat their main rival BC Žalgiris 4-0 in Lithuanian League finals series. The team also won the Baltic League Championship. After the season, Javtokas was disappointed that Rytas was not able to offer him a bigger pare of money and also was returning to the ULEB Cup instead of the Euroleague, so he decided to play in another club.

He joined Panathinaikos in the 2006-07 season and with them he won the Greek Championship, the Greek Cup, and the Euroleague (thus winning the coveted Basketball Triple Crown), although he played very limited minutes all season. On July 24, 2007, he signed a two-year contract with Dynamo Moscow of the Russian League. In Dynamo he improved his free throw percentage from 10.3% to 54.5%, and he improved in scoring average to 12.2 points per game.

NBA

Javtokas was selected by the San Antonio Spurs with 56th overall pick in the 2001 NBA Draft. Although Javtokas has not yet played with the Spurs, they still retain his NBA draft rights.

Lithuanian national team

At the 2005 European Championship he played in 6 games for the Lithuanian national basketball team. During the tournament he averaged 11.0 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 1.5 assists per game. His 2-point field goal percentage was 61.7% and his free-throw percentage was 47.1%

Awards and achievements

Team

*3-time Lithuanian League Champion - 2000, 2002, 2006
*North European League Champion - 2002
*ULEB Cup Champion - 2005
*Baltic League Champion - 2006
*Greek Cup Champion - 2007
*Euroleague Champion - 2007
*Greek League Champion - 2007
*Triple Crown Champion - 2007
*EuroBasket 2007 Bronze medalist

Personal

*Lithuanian League All-Star Game - 2001, 2002, 2006
*Lithuanian League Rookie of the Year - 2001
*Lithuanian All-Star Game Slam-Dunk Contest Winner - 2001
*Lithuanian All-Star Game MVP - 2002
*ULEB Cup Finals MVP - 2005
*Led the Lithuanian League in blocked shots - 2006
*Led the Baltic League in blocked shots - 2006
*Coincidentally went to St. Vincent - St. Mary High School in Akron, Ohio, the same secondary legendary NBA icon LeBron James went to growing up. But they never went at the same time as Javtokas graduated one year and LeBron James came the next.

Notes

External links

* [http://youtube.com/watch?v=lTsnMFr7-g0 Youtube: Robertas Javtokas "Lietuvos ryte" - Rytasbasket.lt]
* [http://youtube.com/watch?v=ZNwkeNIOkOo Youtube: Robertas Javtokas Video]
* [http://www.interbasket.net/players/javtokas.htm Robertas Javtokas' Profile (InterBasket)]
* [http://www.nba.com/draft2001/playerfiles/robertas_javtokas.html?nav=ArticleList NBA.com NBA draft player profile]
* [http://www.ulebcup.com/ulebcup/home/on-court/players/showplayer?clubcode=dyn&pcode=BVE ULEBCup.com player profile]
* [http://www.euroleague.net/competition/players/showplayer?clubcode=pan&pcode=BVE Euroleague.net player profile]