Former stars Maciulis and Radja share valuable insights at Players Workshop

DEBRECEN (Hungary) - Two legends of European and international basketball, Jonas Maciulis and Dino Radja, offered their advice on becoming professional players to the youngsters at the FIBA U19 Basketball World Cup 2023 as part of the Players Workshop, held this week. 

The Lithuania Maciulis and former Yugoslavia and Croatian star Radja - both of whom shined at this event in the past - talked to the players about goal setting and time management. 

"Setting short-term, mid-term and long-term goals can help you throughout your career, even if things don’t go in the right direction," Maciulis said during the event which was held at the Kolscey Center in Debrecen on the first rest day of the tournament. 

"Manage your time for going to practice, rest, spending time with your family and friends … this is one of the keys to having a successful career," added Radja. 

The Players Workshops take place at all FIBA U17 Basketball World Cups and FIBA U19 Basketball World Cups and are included in the FIBA Players' Commission Strategy to educate young players about issues they will face on and off the court. And the former stars give the youngsters varying life lessons and talk about past experiences they went through. 

Maciulis helped Lithuania to second place at the FIBA U19 Basketball World Cup in 2003, while Radja was part of the legendary 1987 Yugoslavian team that won the U19 title. 

Both players shared their experiences at the workshop and spoke about how to set smart objectives, and what are the specific goal-setting skills needed to schedule their day.

At the end of the workshop, one player from each of the participating countries was called to the stage to work together in small groups and make a schedule for a game day, taking into account the varying aspects of a player's life, such as practices, games, recovery or spending time with family and friends.

FIBA