User:VAINARS/Ričards Vanags

Ričards Daniels Vanags (Engl. Richards Daniels Vanags - born December 29th, 2002) is a Latvian basketball player who plays both - small forward and power forward position. If necessary can play in shooting guard position. In 2022/2023 he represents the Latvian Basketball League's (LBL) club BK Liepāja. Previously also played in other Latvian and Estonian clubs.

Richard Daniels Vanags' father, Ainārs Vanags, is a businessman and former professional volleyball player twice bronze medalist of the USSR Championship representing Riga's "Radiotehniķis" (RRR) team (1989—1991) and became a three-time Latvian champion in beach volleyball (1991—1993).

Career
In his youth, Richards Vanags trained in the Alfrēds Kraukļa VEF sports school system under coaches Kaspar Strapcāns, Marko Zarkovič, and Viktors Antičs. He represented the VEF team in the Latvian Junior Basketball League (LJBL).

At the beginning of his adult basketball career, he played for BK Jēkabpils, followed by BK Valka/Valga and Rapla's "Avis Utilitas". However, in the summer of 2022, he joined another Latvian-Estonian Basketball League club, BK Liepāja, where he became one of the team's leaders, averaging 13.5 points per season. He helped the team reach the Latvian Cup final and winning the bronze medals in the Latvian Basketball League.

On June 28, 2023, R. Vanags became the first Latvian basketball player to be selected in the first international draft of the National Basketball Association (NBA) G League. The Rio Grande Valley Vipers drafted him, the affiliate team of the Houston Rockets, granting him the right to play for the team in the next two seasons.

Latvian National Team
Richard Daniels Vanags has played for all age groups of the Latvian youth national teams. He participated in the U-19 team during the 2021 World Championship, which took place in Latvia. The team finished in 11th place in the tournament, and R. Vanags was the top scorer for the team, averaging 11.1 points per game. He also represented the Latvian U-20 team in the 2022 European Championship, where he was again the team's leading scorer, averaging 13.8 points per game.

In 2023, Richards Daniels Vanags was included in the sixteen candidates for the Latvian senior national team. He participated in training sessions in preparation for the World Cup qualifiers. On June 19, 2023, R. Vanags made his debut for the Latvian national team's widened roster "Latvia's Mission 2025" in a friendly game against Finland's youth talent team "Susijengi Rising Stars" in Helsinki, scoring 14 points and grabbing 9 rebounds.