Arturas Javtokas Signs with Men’s Basketball

April 19, 1999

CLEMSON, S.C. – Clemson Head Men’s Basketball Coach, Larry Shyatt, announced the signing of Arturas Javtokas (yav-TOE-cuss) on Monday to a national letter of intent.

Javtokas is a 6-10, 260-pound center/forward who played for West Nebraska Junior College this past season and will enter Clemson with two years of eligibility remaining. At West Nebraska, Javtokas averaged 15.0 ppg and 9.0 rpg and was Junior College All-American this past season.

Javtokas, a native of Siauliai, Lithuania, will be one of three players on the Clemson roster next season from Lithuania. Andrius Jurkunas of Kaunas, Lithuania will be a red-shirt senior on the 1999-2000 Clemson squad and Tomas Nagys of Mazeikai, Lithuania will be an incoming freshman who signed with the program earlier this month.

“What I like most about Arturas is his work ethic. He has a passion for the game that I have not seen until this point in my coaching career,” said Shyatt. “His approach to academics and athletics is almost foreign to us. He will give us inside strength, something we have been accustomed to in recent years.

“He played for one of the best junior college coaches in the nation in Dave “Soupy” Campbell. Campbell has one of the top programs nationally on the junior college level and has experience coaching at major college programs on the division I level.”

Javtokas will be a part of a Clemson team that next season will consist of two seniors, two juniors, three sophomores, three incoming freshmen and one freshman who has already enrolled in school. The three incoming freshmen include Nagys and Ronald Blackshear (Camilla, GA) and Raymond Henderson (Charlotte, NC), both of whom signed during the early signing period in November. Pasha Bains (Richmond, British Columbia) is another freshman who transferred from Wyoming in January and enrolled in spring classes.

CLEMSON SIGNEES

 Name             Pos. Cl. Hgt. Wgt. Hometown/High School or Junior College   *Pasha Bains       G   Fr. 6-3  200  Richmond, Canada/Richmond Secondary School Ronald Blackshear G   Fr. 6-4  185  Camilla, GA/Mitchell-Baker Raymond Henderson F/C Fr. 6-8  245  Charlotte, NC/East Mecklenburg Arturas Javtokas  C/F Jr. 6-10 260  Siauliai, Lithuania/W. Nebraska Junior College Tomas Nagys       F   Fr. 6-9  215  Mazeikai, Lithuania/Montgomery (AL) Catholic

*Transfer from Wyoming, enrolled at Clemson in January of 1999 and will be eligible at the conclusion of the 1999 Fall semester.