Artūrs Žagars

Artūrs Mārtiņš Žagars (born 21 April 2000) is a Latvian professional basketball player for Fenerbahçe Beko of the Turkish BSL and the EuroLeague. Standing at 1.90m, he primarily plays at the point guard position.

Early career
Žagars spent much of his early career playing for Latvian club BS DSN Riga.

Professional career
In 2017, Žagars signed a long-term contract with Spanish club Joventut Badalona. On 11 March 2018, Žagars made his Liga ACB debut, scoring two points in seven minutes versus Baskonia.

In November 2018, Žagars suffered a torn ligament in his ankle and was sidelined until early March 2019 after undergoing surgery.

On 19 April 2019, Žagars declared for the 2019 NBA draft.

On 16 February 2021, Žagars was loaned to Estonian powerhouse Kalev/Cramo.

On 12 January 2022, he was loaned to Löwen Braunschweig of the German Basketball Bundesliga.

On 20 July 2022, Žagars signed with Nevėžis Kėdainiai of the Lithuanian Basketball League (LKL). In 22 league matches, he averaged 15.4 points, 3.0 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 1.1 steals per contest.

On 18 September 2023, Žagars signed a three-year contract with Turkish giants Fenerbahçe. He was subsequently loaned to Lithuanian club BC Wolves for the 2023–24 season. Already at the beginning of October, Žagars suffered a severe injury to the lateral ligament of his knee. Due to the injury, Žagars will have to miss at least five months.

National team career
Žagars was named to the All-Star Five of the 2018 FIBA Europe Under-18 Championship in Riga after averaging 18.9 points, 6.3 assists, and 1.9 steals per game, while leading the Latvian national under-18 team to its first finals appearance and silver medal at the tournament.

Žagars represented Latvia during the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup which achieved 5th place during its debut. Moreover, Žagars achieved the world cup's all-time record of assists by dishing out 17 assists in a game versus Lithuania. In recognition of his individual play, Žagars was named to the All-FIBA World Cup Second Team.

EuroCup

 * style="text-align:left;"|2019–20
 * style="text-align:left;" rowspan="3"|Joventut Badalona
 * 10 || 3 || 10.4 || .385 || .333 || .750 || .7 || 1.8 || .5 || .0 || 2.7 || 2.8
 * style="text-align:left;"|2020–21
 * 7 || 0 || 4.6 || .222 || .200 || .667 || .1 || .6 || .1 || .0 || 1.0 || 0.3
 * style="text-align:left;"|2021–22
 * 3 || 0 || 15.0 || .467 || .286 || .500 || .3 || 2.0 || .3 || .0 || 5.7 || 3.7
 * style="text-align:left;"|2023–24
 * style="text-align:left;"|Vilnius Wolves
 * 1 || 1 || 24.0 || .383 || .400 || .1000 || 1.0 || 4.0 || .0 || .0 || 10.0 || 7.0
 * - class="sortbottom"
 * style="text-align:center;" colspan=2|Career
 * 21 || 4 || 10.1 || .352 || .310 || .727 || .5 || 1.5 || .3 || .0 || 2.9 || 1.5
 * 1 || 1 || 24.0 || .383 || .400 || .1000 || 1.0 || 4.0 || .0 || .0 || 10.0 || 7.0
 * - class="sortbottom"
 * style="text-align:center;" colspan=2|Career
 * 21 || 4 || 10.1 || .352 || .310 || .727 || .5 || 1.5 || .3 || .0 || 2.9 || 1.5